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AMC completes KC-135 Accident Investigation Board

  • Published
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AMCNS) --  Air Mobility Command has released the results of its investigation into the May 15, 2005, mishap involving a KC-135R aircraft assigned to the 128th Air Refueling Wing, Milwaukee, Wis.

An Accident Investigation Board, convened by AMC, concluded the cause of the accident was unforeseen, unforecasted and unavoidable severe clear air turbulence.

Two passengers were seriously injured when the aircraft encountered turbulence at 37,000 feet, then dropped 400 feet. Several other passengers and crew members also sustained minor injuries. The aircraft made an emergency landing at Turks and Caicos Islands, where the crew obtained immediate medical treatment for the injured.

The aircraft was flying members of the Virgin Islands Army National Guard from Jacksonville Naval Air Station, Fla., to Cyril E. King Airport, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, when the incident occurred.