Another F-16 found its final resting place off the coast of New Jersey

USAF F-16 fighter crashed off the coast of N.J today as reported by Associated Press
Pilot managed to send some signal to the ground based stations suggesting problems with oil in the engine. Several moments later engine stopped and the aircraft smashed into the ocean.
Pilot was rescued by coast guard police and delivered to the hospital.
This month it's already 3 accident involving USAF F-16 fighters. On Monday pilot died on a regular training mission in Texas. Another one crashed in Nevada desert on 7 August.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20000831/us/f_16_crash_3.html

By the way, in total 8 so called Falcons crashed this year. Keep on flying those and you'll find yourself graved in it pretty soon:) At least that's what statistics suggest.

Privet!

Errr, well you must consider this:
1) the number of F-16s flying worldwide
2) the fact that with a single engined aircaft, loss of power results in ejection and/or crash!

...there is also another thing to consider, when comparing with Russian/Soviet aircraft designs.
The US has always put much greater faith in their electronics than the USSR did, hence no mechanical back-ups where installed. Add to that the increasing technical complexity of modern software driven control systems and automated design, the 'issue/problem' may lie well up the design chain.

As Russian design is now entering into this type of design philosophy, they too should be wary of such things.

Case in point: The IAF Su-30MKI second batch are to be digital FBW aircraft. If an issue as small as fuel grade, can cause so much problem, a software issue could cause an aircraft loss.

To a paying customer this is not acceptable...

Z

[Редактировалось Zed (01-09-2000 в 22:36).]