bad_meetz_evil
04-03-2006, 02:18 PM
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An Air Force C-5 cargo jet crashed and broke into pieces Monday while trying to make an emergency landing near Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, Air Force officials said.
Seventeen people were onboard, a Federal Aviation Administration source said. The condition of the crew was unknown, according to the Air Force.
The crew of the C-5 Galaxy, the largest aircraft in the U.S. military inventory, declared an in-flight emergency and came down short of the runway at Dover about 6:30 a.m., officials told CNN.
The C-5 was being operated by an Air National Guard unit, the officials said.(Watch how the plane cracked into three pieces -- 1:10)
The FAA said the plane had taken off from Dover and crashed while attempting to return.
Allen Metheny, assistant director in the Delaware Department of Public Safety, said some people were taken to hospitals with injuries, according to The Associated Press.
Television images showed the plane had broken into at least three pieces, with the cockpit separated at a right angle from the rest of the fuselage. The broken-off tail assembly was several hundred yards away, AP reported.
The military has 126 C-5s in its active and reserve inventory, according the Air Force's official Web site.
The C-5 can carry 270,000 tons of cargo almost 2,500 miles on one load of fuel. The C-5's wingspan is 28 feet wider than a 747 and the military jet is 16 feet longer than the civilian airliner.
Seventeen people were onboard, a Federal Aviation Administration source said. The condition of the crew was unknown, according to the Air Force.
The crew of the C-5 Galaxy, the largest aircraft in the U.S. military inventory, declared an in-flight emergency and came down short of the runway at Dover about 6:30 a.m., officials told CNN.
The C-5 was being operated by an Air National Guard unit, the officials said.(Watch how the plane cracked into three pieces -- 1:10)
The FAA said the plane had taken off from Dover and crashed while attempting to return.
Allen Metheny, assistant director in the Delaware Department of Public Safety, said some people were taken to hospitals with injuries, according to The Associated Press.
Television images showed the plane had broken into at least three pieces, with the cockpit separated at a right angle from the rest of the fuselage. The broken-off tail assembly was several hundred yards away, AP reported.
The military has 126 C-5s in its active and reserve inventory, according the Air Force's official Web site.
The C-5 can carry 270,000 tons of cargo almost 2,500 miles on one load of fuel. The C-5's wingspan is 28 feet wider than a 747 and the military jet is 16 feet longer than the civilian airliner.