US 98 at Tyndall Blocked Due to Drone Crash

US 98 at Tyndall Blocked Due to Drone Crash

www.wjhg.com

For the second time in a week, a Drone has been destroyed at Tyndall Air Force Base.

The latest crash came Wednesday morning around 8:25 when the drone crashed alongside US 98 in the Silver Flag area on the east side of the base.

Eye witnesses say the QF 4 drone crashed while taking off, exploded and sent up a large black cloud.

Base and local police and safety officials have closed Highway 98 and are anticipating that it will remain closed for up to 24 hours.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Are these things just falling out of the sky over the us or what?



I am not only now concerned over the domestic surveillance these drones represent, but now they are real threats for bodily as a result of crashes.

Thank god no one has been injured as so far reported.

I recall reading an article mentioned how complicated it is to coordinate domestic drones with consideration for airlines.

With the increase in numbers of drones in US skies, i think it would be fair to assume that these incidents will continue to rise until better controls and procedures are put in place.

God forbid one of these things hits a school or a crowded building. Also cross you fingers that the drone is not carrying a weaponized payload.

Edit here to ad new LINK from RT.com

According to the network, Tyndall officials said the drone was carrying a small self-destruct charge and “had to be destroyed for safety considerations during its return to base following a routine operation.”

Following the accident, the UAV reportedly went up in flames and started a ground fire, prompting authorities to close nearby Highway 98. They’ve reported no injuries.

and Now here is an excerpt from Tyndell Air Force Base Website: LINK

7/17/2013 - TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- An unmanned Air Force QF-4 drone, assigned here to the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group, crashed on the drone runway during take-off at 8:25 a.m. today. No personnel were injured during the incident.

Base and local police and safety officials have closed Highway 98 and are anticipating that it will remain closed for up to 24 hours. This closure is being done strictly as a precautionary measure due to fires resulting from the crash and a small self-destruct charge carried on board the drone. The status of this device is unknown however, it is powered by a short-life battery which will be fully depleted in 24 hours.

The charge is used to destroy the drone if it leaves its pre-approved flight plan. Motorist traveling from Panama City to Mexico Beach, should use Hwy. 22 east to Hwy. 71 south, and from Mexico Beach to Panama City Hwy. 71 north to Hwy. 22 west.

More details will be released as they become available.

It is also unusual that this is the second instance within the month of this happening. What is going on out near Tyndall that has got this drones crashing and burning?

Perhaps local residents are jamming them, similar to experiments conducting by some universities awhile back?
Perhaps flawed technology?
Perhaps new unproven technology?

I leave it to you to offer opinions

www.wjhg.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

This closure is being done strictly as a precautionary measure due to fires resulting from the crash and a small self-destruct charge carried on board the drone.

Source

So, if one happens to fall in a populated area, we have a 'small' explosive charge that detonates when it crashes.
Nice.
They don't need to arm the drones, they are dangerous enough as is.

reply to post by MDDoxs


Yeah, drones falling everywhere, that's even if they make it off the ground first

www.abovetopsecret.com...

Originally posted by butcherguy

This closure is being done strictly as a precautionary measure due to fires resulting from the crash and a small self-destruct charge carried on board the drone.

Source

So, if one happens to fall in a populated area, we have a 'small' explosive charge that detonates when it crashes.
Nice.
They don't need to arm the drones, they are dangerous enough as is.

Exactly, as i mentioned before; God forbid if one of these drones comes crashing out of the sky with a payload of missiles, ontop of the self destruct mechanism.

With the air ways being increasingly congested with these things, I fear it wont be long until something like the above happens.

is it legal in that area to shoot them down?

Heard about a town/area in Colorado that wants to make it legal to shoot down drones if they cross over into the airspace of that town...

who knows....

but yeah, think Orwell 1984 and you'll see that our future is ripe with millions of drones flying over US skies spying on everything/everyone, and there will be much more crashes than this happening on a regular basis

I did a thread about this last year...It was ignored.

People don't seem to care about these largely untested craft.

That is until it lands on your house, besides the carry some nasty stuff.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

reply to post by MDDoxs


You will see a lot MORE of this happening.

Count on it.

The FAA estimates (pdf) that within the next 15 years, more than 20,000 drones will take to the skies in the U.S., including drones operated by police, military, public health and safety agencies, corporations, and the public in general. That number is expected to jump to 30,000 within 20 years from today — a number the FAA refers to as “relatively small.” Currently, the FAA has only given out about 300 licenses to fly drones capable of cruising at more than 400 feet in the air.

Drones: 13 things you need to know from Congress’s new report

Originally posted by whyamIhere
I did a thread about this last year...It was ignored.

People don't seem to care about these largely untested craft.

That is until it lands on your house, besides the carry some nasty stuff.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

I am sorry your thread didnt get the attention it deserved, but we have started to slowly realize how integrated these things are becoming on not only the foreign front, but the domestic ones as well.

The Tyndall Airforce Base is located right next the Gulf, perhaps that Korean Ship carrying military hardware from Cuba has gone them increasing drone activity in the region?

Edit to add link to Thread for the Korean Ship with military equipment

www.abovetopsecret.com...

A QF-4 is not your typical new-era spy drone but is an F-4 Phantom interceptor jet converted for pilotless operation typically for target practice or threat simulation at a weapons evaluations base. Yes, these would leave a nasty smudge if crashed in a residential area. Let's hope they are taking all the proper precautions in using these there.

The technology of remotely controlled drones has been with us for a long time. The best example is in we refer to as RC airplanes... it's a favorite for many hobbyists and enthusiasts.

On the flip, self-piloted drones... those that fly themselves and handle all the jobs of a human pilot, is still in something of an infancy. This kind of ability has long been desired and even predicted. Popular Mechanics and Popular Science have oodles and oodles of stories dating back to the 1930s (and before) predicting that the future held this kind of achievement.

By the way, the self-driving car is a Siamese twin of this... and it has only been recently that working examples have been successfully tested on public roads and highways.

So, yeah... these crashes will occur and yes, it does pose a hazard to the public both in the air and on the pavement until such time as the equipment and programming evolve to a point of infallibility...

... which is kind of an irony in itself; an imperfect species seeking to create perfect technology.

Originally posted by Erongaricuaro
A QF-4 is not your typical new-era spy drone but is an F-4 Phantom interceptor jet converted for pilotless operation typically for target practice or threat simulation at a weapons evaluations base. Yes, these would leave a nasty smudge if crashed in a residential area. Let's hope they are taking all the proper precautions in using these there.

Quite true.

Here is the image of it from RT.com

For those of you that don't know, a QF-4 is NOT an evil man-killing drone. It is a target drone. Take an old F-4 out of the boneyard at DM, retrofit a remote piloting package, then use it for target practice.

I'm guessing it crashed on take-off... not shot down...

They get shot down over the Gulf.

(Thanks to everyone above beating me to it )

reply to post by MDDoxs

Yes we're all much safer because we now have flying bombs above us - and they're not the enemies

reply to post by madmac5150

They get shot down over the Gulf.

Except in this instance it crashed near a public highway.

I think the fact that the number of drones, military active or not, is becoming a real concern with congestion in the skies and the potential for accidents to happen over crowded skies.

Originally posted by Bilk22
reply to post by MDDoxs

 

Yes we're all much safer because we now have flying bombs above us - and they're not the enemies

Indeed.

But perhaps its not the public at large the drones are protecting Perhaps this is all to reinforce the grip the federal government and those pulling the strings above that.

Now, i am not inferring that this crash was the result of a order by the government, but it has been there mandate to increase the number of drones across the U.S.

I am not in any way saying that it is not a safety concern... but, these drone flights have been going on for decades with a pretty damned good safety record. Accidents do happen, but they are actually pretty rare.

reply to post by madmac5150


30k within 2020.

Eventually you will see more accidents, due to the shear numbers if what they say is true. MHO

Originally posted by MDDoxs
Except in this instance it crashed near a public highway.

And how is that different from the MANNED F-22 that crashed in the same area last year? The QF-4 and QF-16 use proven technology for their control links, as well as self destruct systems, and the best safety features they can put into an aircraft. They crash sometimes. Guess what, so do manned aircraft. There are far more manned aircraft flying than there ever will be unmanned aircraft.

reply to post by sonnny1


People keep saying 30K by 2020, without looking at the actual types. Probably 98% of them (rough guesstimate) are going to be hand launched, low altitude, light weight UAVs.