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It's not cosmic rays. It's fuel and oils. Benzene is the OG carcinogen. Military machines are like working with farm equipment, heavy dangerous and with ok-ish
by gonzo41 4y ago
It's not cosmic rays. It's fuel and oils. Benzene is the OG carcinogen.
Military machines are like working with farm equipment, heavy dangerous and with ok-ish ppe which is usually not enough.
Just look at the burn pits fiasco.
- icegreentea2 4y agoGround crew increased risk is probably coming almost completely from exposure to carcinogens in the materials they're working with. However, the gap between ground crew rates and air crew rates, plus known similar effects in civilian airliner crew (https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/aircrew/cancer.html https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/aircrew/cancer.html) indicates that it's likely that a significant component of increased risk for pilots and aircrew may be related to high altitude. This doesn't rule out something like... increased exposure to flame-retardants (or something) (fabrics, other materials, or maybe off-gasing into air supply) that may be carcinogenic.
- amluto 4y agoDo fighter planes use bleed air for cabin air the way that almost all commercial jets do?
- stametseater 4y agoThey do pressurize the cockpits, but the pilots breath through their masks. At high altitudes, the cockpit air isn't pressurized enough to prevent hypoxia so they need masks.
- amluto 4y agoWhere does the air in the masks come from? I assume it’s a mix of bottled oxygen and something else.
- lockhouse 4y agoThe problem is, cancer frankly isn't the Pentagon's problem, because it usually develops after service members leave active duty. They kick this problem down the road to the Department of Veteran's Affairs instead.
- mgarfias 4y agoMy dad got the VA to kick him down some cash for his diabeetus 40 years later. Something bout agent orange exposure. I do wonder if there’s a link between that agent Orange and the stupid adrenal tumor I had.
- paulpauper 4y agoThe study found that aircrews had 87% higher rates of melanoma and 39% higher rates of thyroid cancer. Men saw 16% higher rates of prostate cancer. I don't think Benzene is the main risk factor for those type of cancers . Benzene causes blood cancers, lymphomas.
- gonzo41 4y agoYeah sun exposure is, and ground crew spend a lot of time on the runway, where if it's concrete, uv hits you from the ground like when you're at the snow. So people are working in the blazing sun, with stack of thermally reflective surfaces around. My point was more that there's more common risk factors. And for the flight crew, maybe they should ease off on volleyball :P
- the__alchemist 4y agoRadar too for fighters. (Sidelobes)
- rythmshifter 4y agoRadar is off or disabled while on the ground
- the__alchemist 4y agoIt's on and enabled while airborne.
- exq 4y agoRadar is non-ionizing, no?
- the__alchemist 4y agoCorrect, and AFAIK there is no evidence for a link to any specific negative effects. I think it would surprise no one if ones were found from long-term exposure.