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Drones crash (a lot) but the military's safety lessons may help civilians

NBCNews

National Transportation Safety Board

The remains of a Predator B "Reaper" drone, sprinkled across the Arizona mountainside near Nogales, in this April 2006 photo released by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Around 9:30 on the night of May 1, 2011, an Air Force Predator that had been in the air for 18 hours suddenly hurtled towards the ground at 400 feet per minute, crashing near a U.S. base at Jalalabad, Afghanistan.

The soldiers who brought the craft back to camp had to cut off its wings so it would fit in their vehicles. Cause of crash? Engine failure, clogged oil filter.

Five years earlier, over American soil, a similar incident occurred. A Department of Homeland Security drone on a routine border patrol was destroyed after nosediving into hilly scrubland near Nogales, Ariz. Investigations revealed a number of causes: pilot errors, display failures, poor design.

Big drones actually crash a lot. Official statistics on large unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) accident rates vary, but drones are 30 to 300 times more likely to crash than small civil aircrafts, according to one estimate. According to a 2005 Department of Defense report, every 100,000 flight hours saw 191 AAI Shadow UAVs destroyed or in need of drastic repairs, compared to just four manned F-16s.

Drones suffer from the usual aircraft mechanical and pilot failures, but they also grapple with uniquely drone-ish issues: They're harder to launch and land, and lost communication links pose a problem. But as drones spend more time aloft, operators and craft manufacturers have had a chance to find and iron out kinks in the machinery. Most drones today are of the larger military variety, but that'll change. In 2015, regulators will begin granting permits to a wider array of small drone operators in U.S. airspace. Fortunately, they'll have detailed obituaries of hundreds of lost UAVs to help inform their safety guidelines.

Why do they fail?
Because they don't carry a human life, drones are sometimes pushed harder than piloted planes. In one instance, a Reaper drone was running perilously low on fuel as it neared its destination, but controllers felt that the target was important enough to sacrifice a drone. So they kept going, Peter Singer, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institute told NBC News, citing a private Air Force briefing.

In another instance, a drone ran out of missiles. "But they really wanted the target, so they turned that system into a kamikaze," Singer said.

Like manned aircrafts, UAVs can run out of fuel or encounter mechanical failures, John Hansman, an aviation researcher at MIT, told NBC News. Though such problems aren't drone specific, they are significant — a DoD survey showed that 57 percent of accidents until 2005 were caused by flight control issues or engine or transmission problems.

National Transportation and Safety Board

Another 2006 photo of the downed Predator from Nogales, Ariz.

The same DoD survey said 14 percent of failures involved lost communication links. "Even if things move at the speed of light over fiber optics, there’s still a delay," Singer told NBC News.

It's getting better
These days, takeoffs and landings are controlled by a local crew within sight of the craft, while in-air maneuvers are controlled by mission control at a base in the U.S. To help drone pilots, researchers like MIT's Missy Cummings and Raza Waraich are studying ways to develop control systems and environments in which drone operators can operate more efficiently.

The unmanned craft are getting smarter, too. AeroVironment's small military drones can return to their launch point or land at a safe spot if their communication link falls silent, company spokesman Steve Gatlin told NBC News.

A tall tree or hill can interrupt the link, so some AeroVironment drones are programmed to climb in altitude and reestablish that link. If General Atomics' Predator or Grey Eagle UAVs lose contact, they can navigate to different air space and try connecting again. If that doesn't work, the crafts navigate back to the operating base. The Grey Eagle can even land itself.

Air Force stats reflect these improvements. In 2005, for every 100,000 hours of flight time, 22 drones cost the Air Force $2 million or more (each!). By 2012, that number fell to 3.5 per 100,000-hour interval, Air Force Safety Center spokesperson Masao Doi told NBC News via email. According to General Atomics, the original Predator now encounters 8.5 mishaps every 100,000 flight hours.

What about smaller flying robots?
The military tends to fly big UAVs, but the drones that may soon dot the skies over local municipalities are smaller, weighing under 55 lbs. For now, safety data on civil drones is scarce, Gerald Dillingham, a civil aviation expert at the Government Accountability Office told NBC News.

In preparation for a more drone-friendly U.S. airspace, the Federal Aviation Administration is working with the DoD. They signed an agreement in 2011, in which the DoD agreed to share military drone data on safety with the civilian regulatory agency.

Meanwhile, the FAA has begun collecting accident reports from companies that apply to test their drones domestically, and will set up six test sites within the U.S. to help establish the airworthiness of smaller UAVs.

"It’s still not black and white," Dillingham said about applying data from military crashes to civilian safety concerns. However, "I do still say that some information is a lot better than no information."

7 Marines killed during explosion at Nevada's Hawthorne Army Depot

Fox News

An explosion at a military ammunition storage facility in Nevada during a Marine Corps training exercise killed seven U.S. Marines and wounded several others, military officials said.

The North Carolina-based Marines with the 2nd Marine Division were killed late Monday when a 60-millimeter mortar exploded during a live-fire training exercise at Hawthorne Army Depot as they were preparing to fire it.

The Marines immediately issued an indefinite moratorium on firing of all such mortars worldwide until an investigation clears as safe the type of weapon and ammunition in the tragedy. The moratorium could last for weeks or months.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity said it was not immediately clear whether the mortar exploded prematurely inside its firing tube or whether more than a single round exploded. The official was not authorized to speak about the accident. 

The cause of the incident remains under investigation. The investigation will focus on whether the Marines followed procedures to properly fire the weapon, whether there was a malfunction in the firing device or in the explosive mortar itself, the official said.

The identities of those killed were not released pending notification of their families, officials said in a statement from the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp LeJeune, N.C.

"We send our prayers and condolences to the families of Marines involved in this tragic incident. We remain focused on ensuring that they are supported through this difficult time," said Maj. Gen. Raymond C. Fox, the force's commander. "We mourn their loss, and it is with heavy hearts we remember their courage and sacrifice."

 Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno, the area's major trauma hospital, took nine patients, including one who died, three who are in serious condition and five who are in fair condition, according to spokeswoman Stacy Kendall. All the patients are men under the age of 30, she said. Kendall described their injuries as penetrating trauma, fractures and vascular injuries.

The 60mm mortar is a weapon that traditionally requires three to four Marines to operate but it's common during training for others to observe nearby. 

Earlier, Russ Collier, an official at the facility, told KRNV-TV that the explosion was an accident unrelated to the ammunition that is stored at the military facility near the small desert community of Hawthorne.

The 147,000-acre depot, established in 1930, is about 140 miles southeast of Reno. The facility stores and disposes of ammunition, and provides long-term storage for industrial plant equipment. It's comprised of nearly 3,000 buildings — including igloos, supply warehouses and munitions sheds — throughout more than 230 square miles.

Since World War II, when the facility became the staging area for ammunition, bombs and rockets for the war, Hawthorne has held an important place in U.S. military history. The Nevada Division of Environmental Protection said the depot employed more than 5,500 people at its peak. Nevada was chosen for the location because of its remoteness in the wake of a crippling explosion at the government's main depot in New Jersey in the 1920s.

The facility had an operating budget of $270,000 and a payroll of $2.88 million in fiscal year 2009, according to its website.

Nevada's political leaders expressed their sympathy on Tuesday.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., gave his condolences to victims of the explosion during a morning speech on the Senate floor.

Nevada Republican Sen. Dean Heller tweeted, "Thoughts and prayers are with the families who lost a loved one in the Hawthorne Army Depot explosion. Grateful for their service."

"I am deeply saddened to hear of the incident at the Hawthorne Army Depot this morning," Republican Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval said in a statement. "The men and women who work and train there put service ahead of self each and every day. Kathleen and I wish to extend our deepest sympathies to those killed and their families. Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been injured and we pray for their speedy recovery."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/03/19/explosion-during-training-at-hawthorne-army-depot/#ixzz2O0liSGnf

’So scary’: Midair jet scare cuts David Copperfield’s journey in half

 

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Expectant couple dies in crash; baby born at scene

usnews

Photo: Shimon Gifter

By Alexander Smith, BreakingNews.com, and Tracy Connor, NBC News

A young couple en route to a hospital to have their first child was killed in a car crash in New York City early Sunday but the baby was born at the scene and survived.

Nathan and Raizy Glauber, both 21 and Orthodox Jews, were using a car service to go to the hospital when another vehicle crashed into the side of theirs at an intersection in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, Hasidic community activist and family friend Isaac Abraham said.

Nathan Glauber was pronounced dead at Beth Israel Hospital, while his wife died at Bellevue, the New York Post and The Associated Press reported.

Pictures of the scene were posted on Vos Iz Neias, a news site that covers the Jewish community.

The couple's son was delivered at the scene and was taken to a hospital in serious condition, said Abraham, who is also a neighbor of Raizy Glauber's parents and lives two blocks from the scene of the crash.

Abraham said: "The child is in a serious condition in Beth Israel Hospital, in Manhattan. Now we just pray with the child that all medical efforts keep him alive."

He added: "I know Raizy because I saw her grow up from a child."

The driver of the vehicle that hit the couple's car fled, police told the AP. No arrests have yet been made.

The Post reported that a BMW was involved and that it was the driver of the BMW who fled the scene, at the intersection of Kent Avenue and Wilson Street.

The condition of the car service's driver is unclear, police said, according to the AP.

Video/ Tube worker jumping from runaway train in London

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Muere en accidente líder de Movimiento Cristiano Liberación en Cienfuegos

Martinoticias

Según ha circulado en páginas de Facebook y Twitter, el líder del Movimiento Cristiano Liberación en la provincia de Cienfuegos, Antonio Rodríguez, habría fallecido durante un accidente automovilístico en el que también resultaron lesionados dos sacerdotes jesuitas.

Los sacerdotes accidentados son Ramón Rivas e Ignacio Cruz Magariño, quienes fueron atendidos en el Hospital Provincial "Gustavo Aldereguia Lima"de Cienfuegos. Ya se encuentran fuera de peligro.

La noticia salió originalmente de la cuenta de Twitter del escritor y exprisionero político Bernardo Arevalo Padron, premiado por el PEN Club Internacional, y residente en la localidad de Aguada de Pasajeros, donde tuvo lugar el trágico accidente.

Aylin Navarro precisa por su parte en su cuenta:"el accidente tuvo lugar en el entronque del antiguo central Perseverancia, en Aguada de Pasajeros".

Ivanlibre apunta por otro lado:"Demasiada 'coincidencia' que otro miembro del  MCL muera en 'accidente automovilístico', el mismo día en que Rosa María Payá habla en Ginebra".

Agrega ivanlibre que el fallecido se nombra Antonio Rodríguez, y los dos sacerdotes heridos iban rumbo a La Habana. 

Bridge collapses after firework explosion on truck in China

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[Polemica] Muerte de Payá: amnesia, silencio y confusión

cubaencuentro

Arnaldo M. Fernández

Por doquier se tacha de amnesia —inducida por la Seguridad del Estado— que Jens Aron Modig, ya en Suecia, insistiera en que iba dormido al sobrevenir la muerte de Oswaldo Payá. También se insta por doquier a Ángel Carromero, ya en España, para que rompa el silencio, a pesar de que consta su confesión en video y su abogado español en la sala, así como periodistas extranjeros en pantalla, vieron el desfile de la prueba en el juicio a puertas cerradas.

El silencio de Carromero en España se atribuye a otra inducción de la Seguridad del Estado, pero así se pierde de vista que si el aparato de inteligencia del castrismo es tan eficaz como para callar gente fuera de Cuba, jamás hubiera planeado matar a un opositor de manera impredecible, esto es: empujando a un auto fuera de la vía, sin saber de antemano quiénes van a perecer y corriendo el riesgo de complicaciones diplomáticas si fallecieran ciudadanos extranjeros.

Igual se descarta que haya intentado antes matar a Payá a la vista pública provocando un accidente en Rancho Boyeros. En camino al hospital, luego de ser baleado a la salida del hotel Washington Hilton, Ronald Reagan y sus acompañantes ponderaron si el atentado había sido perpetrado por la KGB. Reagan mismo descartó enseguida la sospecha con argumento devastador: «No hubieran fallado».

Si el servicio de inteligencia castrista —discípulo aventajado de la KGB y la STASI— hubiera decidido matar a Payá en el paraje de La Guabina, tras haber fallado en Rancho Boyeros, no hubiera quedado sobreviviente para contarlo y obligar enseguida —como se alega— a preparar testigos en el lugar, inducir amnesia en los sobrevivientes —incluso estando fuera de Cuba— y enredarse en juegos de alta política para encubrir un asesinato extrajudicial.

Rosa María Payá reveló por fin que el mensaje incubador de la sospecha vino de Modig y rezaba: «Ángel dice que un auto nos golpeó y nos sacó de la carretera». Así se explica la amnesia de Modig: su mensaje original acredita que no fue testigo de vista en medio de los hechos, sino de oídas después de los hechos. También se desvanece la fuerza probatoria del cacareado mensaje. Si Carromero soltó que «un auto nos golpeó y nos sacó de la carretera» fue para ocultar de inmediato su responsabilidad, pero a la postre confesó y fue convicto en juicio.

En su desgracia inconsolable y luego de pasar por tantos sinsabores bajo el acoso de la Seguridad del Estado, la familia de Payá jamás podrá convencerse de que ocurrió un accidente, pero Carlos Payá puede solicitar al gobierno español cómo le consta que falleció su hermano —también ciudadano español— y Madrid tendría que dar al menos extracto del expediente judicial. Lo que sí no puede tragarse es que Carlos Paya refiera que hubo pacto entre La Habana y Madrid «así de simple: Ofelia Acevedo acusa, Ofelia Acevedo recibe una indemnización, se cierra el caso y en 72 horas Ángel está en casa», porque la viuda no podía acusar aunque hubiera querido: la ley penal cubana no autoriza la acusación a instancia de parte salvo en delitos contra el honor.

La clave radica en que el mayor de la policía que notificó a la viuda dijo verdad: «La revolución no asesina». Queda sobreentendido: «si no es necesario». Aunque puedan darse ejemplos de tal necesidad, no es el caso de Oswaldo Payá, quien ni siquiera fue detenido en la Primavera Negra (2003) a pesar de haber presentado el Proyecto Varela (2002) y aprestarse a otra tanda (2004). A la postre, el proyecto tuvo que mudarse a Madrid (2008), expiró allí y Payá no tuvo más remedio que enrumbar por El camino del pueblo (2011) hacia «una Comisión Nacional integrada por miembros del gobierno y de la oposición democrática y por otros…».

¿Para qué matarlo entonces? Este camino no desembocó en amenaza alguna para el régimen, sino que concitó más división entre los disidentes. La Agenda para la Transición Cubana (ATC), liderada por el ex preso político [15 años cumplidos] Francisco Pastor Chaviano González, largó en su Declaración de Jaimanitas (2011): «El compatriota Payá negó a ultranza que la unidad fuera necesaria y un par de semanas después sale con el Camino del Pueblo, asegurando que era un llamando a la unidad (…) Parecía un ardid de este hombre que se encuentra totalmente solo, para hacer ver lo contrario recogiendo firmas y nada más. Nos juraron que no, que se trataba de un cambio, pero después el mismo ha estado esquivando un compromiso serio con la unidad, mientras espera el otorgamiento del Nobel para darnos un puntapié. Para pícaros y habilidosos ya tenemos bastante con los 52 años de Castro, y el Sr. Paya ha utilizado estas habilidades varias veces con sus compatriotas».

Quienes tachan a Modig de amnésico y a Carromero de guardar silencio padecen de amnesia con respecto a cómo trabaja la Seguridad del Estado y guardan silencio al respecto de que nunca fue necesario matar a Oswaldo Payá. Para saber bien de qué estamos hablando: 25 mil y pico de firmas no sirven para nada en un electorado de 8 millones ni el entierro de Payá fue el de Chibás. Lo que están haciendo con dar vueltas y más vueltas a la muerte de Payá es subestimar al castrismo como torpe régimen que asesina por gusto. El castrismo es peor. Tanto es así que ha pasado más de medio siglo y no acaba de aparecerle un contrario con arrastre popular.

Dramatic footage: Woman faints and falls on Madrid's Metro rail track

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Empleada de limpieza secuestra un tren que luego choca contra un edificio

58 injured when commuter ferry crashes in Manhattan

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Drain explodes in woman's face in China

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UK police unable to identify man who fell from sky to his death

The Canadian Press

E-FIT image (Electronic Facial Identification Technique)

LONDON - Police believe he was from Africa, probably from Angola, but they don't know his identity.

The mystery began in September when residents of a suburban street in the Mortlake neighbourhood of West London woke up on a quiet Sunday morning to find the crumpled body of a black man on the sidewalk of Portman Avenue, near a convenience store, an upscale lingerie shop and a storefront offering Chinese medical cures.

Detectives believed at first the man was a murder victim and cordoned off the area. Within a day, however, police concluded the man — probably already dead — had fallen to the ground when a jet passing overhead lowered its landing gear as it neared the runway at nearby Heathrow Airport.

The apparent stowaway had no identification papers — just some currency from Angola, leading police to surmise that he was from that African nation, especially as inquiries showed that a plane from Angola was beginning its descent into Heathrow at about that time.

The macabre explanation made perfect sense to residents, who are familiar not only with the roar of the jets descending, but are also able to see the planes lower their landing gears as they pass overhead, said Catherine Lambert, who lives a few doors down from the spot where the man landed.

"You could see him, his body was contorted," she said. "It was a beautiful blue day, really sunny, but we had to keep the children inside. I didn't want the children to see, and to have to explain to them and put fear into them every time a plane goes over."

A post mortem conducted two days after the body landed listed the cause of death as "multiple injuries."

In the days afterward, some neighbours put flowers on the spot where the stowaway was found, and a small group of Angolans who live in the London area came to place more flowers and to pray. Lambert, 41, said there is lingering sadness, since the man has not been identified and there has been no way to tell his family he is gone.

"I felt, what was he running away from? What made him think he could he could? And how will his family ever know? He's a lost soul now; his father and mother are probably waiting for him to make contact," she said.

A London police spokesman, who wasn't authorized to speak on the record because of force policy, said Sunday that police are appealing to the public for help identifying the man based on a composite image of his face and a photo of a tattoo on his left arm. The tattoo showed the letters "Z'' and "G'' inked on his upper arm, with a horizontal line through the "Z''.

Police also said attempts to identify the man with the help of Angolan authorities had been unsuccessful. They stressed there is only "circumstantial" evidence linking the stowaway to that country.

In a statement, police said the man is believed to be an African of slight build between the ages of 20 and 30. He was wearing jeans, white sneakers and a grey sweatshirt when he was found on Sept. 9, police said.

Although firm figures are not available, in recent years there has been a rise in the number of stowaways trying to get to Western Europe by hiding in the undercarriages of passenger planes.

Aviation safety specialist Chris Yates of Yates Consulting said Sunday that poor airport perimeter security at a number of airports in Africa — including the main Angola airport at Luanda — and in other parts of the world has made it easier for people to stow away on planes, but that most attempts fail.

"They so often end in fatality because more often than not stowaways climb into the wheel base or cargo hold, and those areas are not necessarily pressurized," he said. "When you start moving beyond 10,000 feet, oxygen starvation becomes a reality. As you climb up to altitude, the issue becomes cold as well, the temperature drops to minus 40 or minus 50 degrees centigrade, so survival rates drop."

He said the man who crashed to the pavement in Mortlake had probably lost consciousness and died within the first hour of his flight.

Police said the body is being held for possible repatriation in case the man's identity is established.

Mortlake residents and business people speak of a similar death in recent years, but disagree about the timing and the details.

"People say the same thing happened a few years ago a few blocks away" said Jay Sivapalan, 29, who works at the Variety Box convenience store half a block from where the body landed. "We are near Heathrow and when they lower the landing gear, the body falls out."

Others believe the incident may have happened 10 years ago. Police said they had no information about other stowaway deaths.

Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera dies in plane crash

rest in paradise, jenni

Photo: Miguel Sierra / EPA

Federal authorities inspect the site of the plane crash in El Tejote locality, Nuevo Leon State, Mexico, where Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera along with six other people died as they were travelling from Monterrey, in northern Mexico, to Mexico City.

By NBC News and news services

Updated 9:05 p.m. ET: Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera died in a plane crash Saturday night, her father and brother confirmed on Telemundo.

The wreckage of the plane was found Sunday in northern Mexico with no apparent survivors, authorities said.

The wreckage was found in the Ejido La Colorada, Municipality of  Nuevo Leon. Gerardo Ruiz Esparza, secretary of communications and transport, said that the plane is not recognizable, but the evidence suggests it was the aircraft carrying the singer, Telemundo reported.

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San Onofre nuclear plant generator might have been tampered with, utility says

Mike Blake / Reuters

The San Onofre nuclear power plant lies along the coast between Los Angeles and San Diego.

By NBC News staff and wire reports

Security has been beefed up at the San Onofre nuclear power plant in Southern California after it was discovered that a generator there might have been tampered with, the plant operator said. The plant has been out of service since January due to a leak in a steam generator.

Southern California Edison said it discovered engine coolant in an oil system in the backup diesel generator in late October during routine monitoring. An internal probe found evidence of potential tampering, though it could not be confirmed.

The presence of coolant posed no safety risk, the company said.

The news is the latest blow to San Onofre's majority owner, which earlier this month said the cost of the prolonged outage at the damaged nuclear power plant has topped $317 million. San Onofre's Unit 2 and Unit 3 reactors have been shut down since January after operators discovered a leak in a steam generator tube in Unit 3.  More >>

Bus hits Miami airport overpass, killing 2

i hope the driver wasn't a kubiche.

Betty Yu / NBC 6

Crews assist at the scene of the bus accident at Miami International Airport on Saturday.

By NBC News staff and wire reports

A bus hit an overpass at Miami International Airport on Saturday, killing at least two people and injuring more than two dozen on board, officials said.

One person died at the scene and another at a hospital. 

Three other passengers were listed in critical condition, NBCMiami.com reported.

The bus, which officials described as "heightened" but not a double-decker as originally reported, hit the overpass going into the airport's arrivals section on Saturday morning, airport spokesman Greg Chin said. The bus was going about 20 mph when it clipped the roof entrance.

Chin said 32 people were on the bus, and all have some sort of injuries. The arrival area remained blocked off by fire trucks and police cars Saturday morning.

A Miami-Dade Fire Rescue dispatcher said 26 people were transported to various hospitals. Most of the injured were able to walk away from the bus, she said.  

Miami-Dade police Lt. Rosanna Cordero-Stutz said the bus is privately owned and typically used for tours. It was not immediately clear where the bus was headed, but Cordero-Stutz said the driver was unfamiliar with the area and did not intend to wind up at the airport.

Suzette Laboy / AP

The bus was lodged into this overpass at the Miami International Airport on Saturday.

Buses are supposed to travel through the departure area, not the arrival section, because it has a higher clearance for large vehicles, Chin said.

The overpass had a clearance of eight feet and six inches, while the bus was about nine feet tall. 

The names of the victims were not immediately released.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.