The Honolulu Star Advertiser reports that:
The Air Force has grounded its entire fleet of F-22 Raptors, including those in Hawaii, because of concerns about the system that delivers oxygen to pilots aboard the fighter jets, a military spokeswoman said yesterday.
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The Hawaii Air National Guard began flying F-22 Raptors last summer in partnership with the Air Force and has nine of the stealth fighters at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.
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The fleet of 158 fighter jets nationwide is on stand-down because of “hypoxia-like” events reported by some pilots, Anderson said. Hypoxia is when the body receives too little oxygen.
Last November an F-22 pilot was killed in Alaska when he lost control of his jet during a training exercise. Since January the Raptor fleet has been restricted from flying above 25,000 feet because of concerns with the plane’s oxygen supply system.
Capt. Jeffrey Haney was killed when his F-22 crashed 100 miles north of Anchorage. Haney was on a training run with another F-22 to practice “intercepts” when his plane disappeared from ground radar tracking and from communications with the other stealth fighter. The married father of two from Clarklake, Mich., did not eject from the plane.
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