1988 Remscheid A-10 crash

1988 Remscheid A-10 crash
Accident summary
1988 Remscheid A-10 crash site © Steve Ouellette, 1988
Date	December 8, 1988
Summary	Crash during low-altitude flight
Site	Remscheid, West Germany 51°11′11″N 7°09′38″E / 51.18639°N 7.16056°E / 51.18639; 7.16056Coordinates: 51°11′11″N 7°09′38″E / 51.18639°N 7.16056°E / 51.18639; 7.16056
Passengers	0
Crew	1
Fatalities	6, including 5 on the ground
Injuries (non-fatal)	50 (all on the ground)
Survivors	0
Aircraft type	A-10 Thunderbolt II
Operator	United States Air Force
Flight origin	Nörvenich Air Base

The 1988 Remscheid A-10 crash occurred on December 8, 1988, when a United States Air Force attack jet, an A-10 Thunderbolt II crashed onto a residential area in the city of Remscheid, West Germany. The aircraft crashed into the upper floor of an apartment complex. In addition to the pilot, five people were killed. Fifty others were injured, including many seriously.

According to press reports^[1] the plane was engaged in a low-altitude flight exercise. It belonged to a unit from Bentwaters Air Base but at the time of the accident was stationed at Nörvenich Air Base.^[2]

Aftermath

When the number of cancer cases in the vicinity of the accident rose disproportionately in the years after, suspicion rose that the jet, contrary to US statements, may have been loaded with ammunition containing depleted uranium.^[3]^[4]

In 2002, however, a test of soil samples from 250 meters around the crash site revealed no traces of depleted uranium.^[5]

Another possible explanation for the increased cancer rate in the surroundings, which gained credibility because no uranium was found, is that the aircraft carried JP-8 fuel. This jet propellant is considered highly toxic and may have spread around the area of the crash.^[6]

References

↑ "West Germany / United States Plane Crash NBC News broadcast from the Vanderbilt Television News Archive". Archived from the original on 2009-05-27. Retrieved 2009-05-25.
↑ House of Commons Hansard Debates for 12 Dec 1988
↑ Journal of Environmental Health Aug 2005
↑ Remscheid | DasErste.de
↑ http://www.munlv.nrw.de/extern/archiv/munlv/pressemitteilungen/ue020410.htm
↑ JP-8 Militär-Treibstoff

External links

New York Times: U.S. Plane Crashes Into German City

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Aviation accidents and incidents in 1988 (1988)
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Oct 17 Uganda Airlines Flight 775
Oct 19 Indian Airlines Flight 113
Nov 2 LOT Flight 703
Dec 8 Remscheid A-10 crash
Dec 21 Pan Am Flight 103

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