Posted on 11/12/2013 5:40:06 PM PST by Behind Liberal Lines
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Officials at the 174th Attack Wing suspended all Reaper drone flights in Central New York Tuesday after one of the unmanned aircraft crashed into Lake Ontario about 12 miles from the eastern shore during a routine training flight.
A Coast Guard helicopter and search vessel were unable to recover the $4 million drone, which crashed about 1 p.m. Tuesday, and were forced to call off the search late in the afternoon because of bad weather, said Col. Greg Semmel, commander of the 174th Attack Wing of the Air National Guard.
Semmel said he did not know what caused the accident. A safety investigation board appointed by Air Force commanders based in Langley, Va., will investigate the incident. Semmel estimated the investigation could take a month or so to complete.
No decision has been made yet on when Reaper training flights will resume, Semmel said.
The drone crashed into the lake about 20 miles northeast of the Port of Oswego, and about 12 miles from the eastern shore, Semmel said.
The 174th Attack Wing trains pilots and sensor operators to fly the MQ-9 Reaper, a 36-foot-long drone with a 66-foot wingspan that can be armed with Hellfire missiles or other armaments for combat missions.
The Reaper that crashed Tuesday was unarmed and had been in the air about three hours when it went down in the lake, Semmel said.
When the Reapers are unarmed, the 174th Attack Wing flies them across a wide swath of Upstate New York, from west of Rochester eastward to near Blue Mountain Lake, and from Syracuse north to the Massena area. When the drones carry missiles, they are restricted to military air space in Northern New York, Semmel said.
(Excerpt) Read more at syracuse.com ...
Obama fell asleep at the joystick.
Sounds grim to me.
Pull!
Unarmed? Flying mock attacks on 0bama’s enemies waiting for him to give the kill order?
Now—Who else is looking for that drone & all the technology it contains???
Justin Trudeau?
Disclaimer?
Unarmed? Flying mock attacks on 0bama’s enemies waiting for him to give the kill order?
What is your basis for asking?
Not my fault?
Are there any Chinese subs in Lake Ontario???
I guess this explains the near-constant presence of protestors on the road just outside the main entrance to the 174th TFW.
Weather today turned ugly here this afternoon, with a mix of snow, sleet, and freezing rain.
“Semmel said he did not know what caused the accident.”
.308 cal. hail?
Officials at the 174th Attack Wing suspended all Reaper drone flights in Central New York Tuesday after one of the unmanned aircraft crashed into Lake Ontario about 12 miles from the eastern shore during a routine training flight.Operation "Divin' Duck" has been a complete success.
Headline is funny. “Military drones grounded ... after crash”.
Unless the drone crashed into a cloud, it hit the “ground”, i.e. was “grounded”.
Ain’t the English language great to play with?
Or...the operator said, "Watch this Immelmann maneuver.."
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