Du gaz dans le cockpit du F-22 ?

Du gaz dans le cockpit du F-22 ?

Les nouvelles du F-22, toujours maintenu au sol, sont incertaines et insaisissables. Il s’avère, après diverses analyses réalisées, que les pilotes qui ont eu des accidents de respiration ont des traces de toxicité marquées dans le sang, provenant de gaz toxiques. (La question générale de l’interdiction de vol du F-22 a rapport avec le fonctionnement du système d’alimentation en oxygène des pilotes.) On ignore d’où vient cette toxicité mais on soupçonne fortement qu’elle soit la cause des accidents ; on soupçonne évidemment que les gaz parviennent jusqu’à l’organisme du pilote évidemment par l’intermédiaire du système d’alimentation et l’on ignore, tout aussi évidemment, de quelle façon.

…Bref, le cas du F-22 reste mystérieux, l’avion est toujours au sol et la presse générale commence à s’intéresser à son cas. The Atlantic du 27 juillet 2011 s’en occupe effectivement.

«A few months ago, Air Force leaders noticed some very strange behavior from pilots in the cockpit of F-22 Raptor fighters. Some pilots sounded like they were drunk on the radio; others couldn't even remember how to use the radio during flights. Lab tests revealed not alcohol in the pilots' blood, but a host of toxic chemicals including oil fumes, anti-freeze and even propane. The Air Force grounded the entire stealthy F-22 fleet on May 3rd and launched an investigation. This week, the Air Force Times reports that they're still stumped, which is not the best news for the fantastically expensive and problem-prone F-22s.

»The Air Force has definitely figured out that toxins are making their way into the cockpit, but they don't know how. The symptoms that the pilots were displaying resemble those of hypoxia, a condition due to a lack of oxygen. Captain Jeff Haney exhibited the similar symptoms just before he crashed and died in Alaska in November of 2010. Suspecting that the chemicals entered the cockpit through the jet's life support system, the Air Force is investigating the oxygen masks and pressurization systems, but they've yet to find the link.

»One of the Air Force Times's sources wonders if pilots starting up the jets inside during bad weather might be causing a running-car-in-a-closed-garage effect: “Because of the harsh climate, pilots often start their jet engines inside a hangar before taking off. That could allow exhaust gases to be trapped in the building, sucked back into the engines, and ingested into the bleed air intakes that are located within the engines’ compressor sections that supply the OBOGS, sources said. The layout, sources added, is standard for modern jet aircraft.”

»“But another source said that many of the hypoxia incidents have occurred well into flights or even during a day’s second mission, long after the plane has left the Elmendorf hangar.”»

dedefensa.org