Five may be liable for Tornado crash

(supersedes previous)(ANSA) - Rome, October 2 - Five military officers may be responsible for a training mission in which two Air Force Tornados collided over Ascoli Piceno on August 19, 2014, judicial sources said. An analysis by two aviation experts has found the collision is "attributable to organizational shortcomings" that created a situation of "extreme danger".
    The names of the five officers have been sent to the public prosecutor's office, which will assess whether charges can be brought.
    Four aviators, one of whom was a female veteran of military operations in Afghanistan and Libya, died in the midair collision that scattered pieces of burning wreckage across a forested area, triggering fires.
    The four casualties were 31-year-old Air Force veteran Mariangela Valentini, her copilot Piero Paolo Franzese, Alessandro Dotto, and Guiseppe Palminteri.
    Investigators at the crash site said at the time human error was a possible cause of the deadly collision.