[Scan-DC] FW: Lost Navy UAV enters Washington airspace (earlier this month)

[Doug Kitchener]

Thanks, Kurt!  I was going to try to see if I could find out how it ended up, but hadn't had the chance to do so.  Now I know there's no point in going out to try to find the thing!  :)

Reminds me of something that happened many years ago... I worked at Comsat Labs out on I-270 in Clarksburg MD, and there were several guys there who flew radio-controlled planes at lunchtime on nice days... one time a guy managed to fly his plane out of range of his transmitter and we never did find it... it was over a wooded area and We figured it went down in there somewhere, but it never turned up... that whole area is built up now, mostly light industrial... I've always wondered if the remains of it were found when that land was cleared!

To put in a little Scan-DC content, that old RC gear used to operate on 27 "megacycles" in the Citizens' Band!  :)

DK

________________________________
> From: kurtvh1 at hotmail.com
> To: oldsdoug at hotmail.com
> Subject: RE: [Scan-DC] FW: Lost Navy UAV enters Washington airspace
> (earlier this month)
> Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 18:09:59 -0400
>
> Neat story. Here's the Cliff's Notes version of the ending from:
> http://www.navytimes.com/news/2010/08/navy-uav-enters-dc-082510/
>
> Navy operators shifted to another ground control station, according to
> the statement by Firescout program manager Capt. Tim Dunigan, and
> restored the control link with the aircraft, which was commanded to
> return to Webster Field in southern Maryland. The aircraft landed
> without damage or having incurred any injuries.
>
> The cause appears to have been “a software anomaly that allowed the
> aircraft not to follow its pre-programmed flight procedures,” Dunigan
> said in the statement. “We have identified the issue and have aircraft
> operating restrictions that will prevent this from happening again.”
>
>
> Software modification has been developed to remove the anomaly, he said.
>
>
>
> > From: oldsdoug at hotmail.com
> > To: scan-dc at mailman.qth.net
> > Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 15:22:38 -0400
> > Subject: [Scan-DC] FW: Lost Navy UAV enters Washington airspace
> (earlier this month)
> >
> >
> >
> > Sorry, msg to the list got messed up somehow....
> >
> > Whoops...
> >
> > I didn't hear any scanner traffic about it, but I did hear or see a
> news article on it yesterday or today... can't remember where. Wonder
> if PAX notified anybody... NORAD or FAA... and what the ultimate
> destiny of the thing was... did it plop down in somebody's backyard, or
> plow through the roof of the local Giant and blow up the meat counter,
> or self-destruct, or did they regain control of it, or what...
> >
> > Shades of the Payne Stewart Learjet incident...
> >
> > > ----------------------------------------
> > > > From: b_thom at juno.com
> > > > Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 13:14:21 +0000
> > > > To: Scan-DC at mailman.qth.net
> > > > Subject: [Scan-DC] Lost Navy UAV enters Washington airspace
> (earlier this month)
> > > >
> > > > Did anyone hear any radio traffic about this?
> > > > = = = = = =
> > > >
> > > > http://www.navytimes.com/news/2010/08/navy-uav-enters-dc-082510/
> > > >
> > > > Lost Navy UAV enters Washington airspace
> > > >
> > > > By Christopher P. Cavas - Staff writer
> > > > Posted : Thursday Aug 26, 2010 8:11:58 EDT
> > > >
> > > > Navy operators lost control of an unmanned aircraft earlier this
> month and were unable to regain control before the aircraft entered
> restricted airspace around the U.S. capital.
> > > >
> > > > According to a Navy statement, the incident took place Aug. 2
> when, about 75 minutes into a routine test flight, an MQ-8B Fire Scout
> unmanned helicopter operating out of the Patuxent River test facilities
> in southern Maryland lost its control link with ground operators.
> > > >
> > > > The aircraft then flew about 23 miles on a north-by-northwest
> course and entered the National Capital Region restricted airspace,
> part of the Air Defense Identification Zone surrounding Washington,
> D.C.
> > >
> >
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