452 Planes Must Be Inspected

Well, that didn't last long. One week after the US Air Force lifted its grounding of the oldest F-15 Eagle fighters in its fleet, on Wednesday the jets were grounded once again -- due to what officials termed "possible fleet-wide airworthiness problems."

As ANN reported, the Air Force grounded all F-15s, including newer F-15E Strike Eagles, following the November 2 downing of a Missouri Air National Guard F-15C. Investigators say in-flight structural failure was the cause of that crash; the single pilot onboard was able to eject, suffering non-life-threatening injuries in the process.

Air Force officials allowed F-15Es to resume active duty assignements in Iraq and Afghanistan November 14; older models were allowed to resume flying November 21... but now, officials say the ongoing investigation into what brought the Missouri ANG Eagle down has revealed a potential problem through the F-15 fleet.

Investigators are concerned with longerons -- or metal rails -- that hold the F-15 fuselage together. Those parts were flagged by investigators early on, as officials ordered the entire fleet of F-15s inspected for possible air frame fatigue damage.

The latest grounding applies to 452 older F-15s -- more than 60 percent of the USAF Eagle fleet -- until each is inspected, and possibly repaired.

FMI: www.af.mil