Tue, Jan 30, 2018
Aircraft Is Lying 18,500 Feet Below The Ocean's Surface
The U.S. Navy contracted Research Vessel (RV) Petrel to survey the location of a C-2A Greyhound aircraft that crashed into the Philippine Sea en route to USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) Nov. 22.
Embarked with U.S. Navy Supervisor of Salvage and Diving (SUPSALV) personnel, the vessel will depart from the Philippines in the coming days and proceed to the C-2A's location at sea. Once on station, salvage experts will deploy a side-scan-sonar and remote operated vehicle to survey and map the ocean floor. After the survey is complete, SUPSALV will analyze the data and assign an appropriate vessel, equipment, and personnel for recovery efforts.
The aircraft, located at a depth of 18,500 feet, was discovered Dec. 29, by a SUPSALV team using a towed pinger locator (TPL-25) system. The TPL-25 used passive sensors to "listen" for the C-2A pinger's frequency. Salvage of an aircraft at this depth is unprecedented and the condition of the C-2A is unknown, making recovery very challenging. Every effort will be made to recover the aircraft and the fallen Sailors, the Navy said.
RV Petrel is a 250-foot research and exploration vessel with advanced underwater equipment and technology, making it capable of exploring to 6,000 meters deep (more than 3.5 miles).
Assigned to Fleet Logistics Support Squadron (VRC 30) forward deployed to Japan, the C-2A aircraft was carrying 11 crew and passengers when it crashed. Eight personnel were recovered immediately by U.S. Navy Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC 12). For the next three days, USS Ronald Reagan led combined search and rescue for three Sailors with the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF), covering nearly 1,000 square nautical miles before ending the search.
An investigation is in progress.
(Source: U.S. Navy news release. Image from file)
More News
Aviation Governance Secured...At Least For a While The National Business Aviation Association similarly applauded the passage of the FAA's recent reauthorization, contentedly recou>[...]
Emphasis On Growing The Future of Aviation Through Concentration on 'AFFORDABLE FLYERS' It's been a number of years since the Latest Edition of Jim Campbell's HUGE SportPlane Resou>[...]
Amazilia Aerospace GmbH, Develops Digital Flight Control, Flight Guidance And Vehicle Management Systems Textron eAviation has acquired substantially all the assets of Amazilia Aer>[...]
Honeywell's Primus Brings New Tools and Niceties for Hawker Operators Hawker 4000 business jet operators have a new installation on the table, now that the FAA has granted an STC f>[...]
Company Celebrates Niche-but-Important Advancement in Industry Standards Echodyne has announced full integration of its proprietary 'EchoFlight' radar into the e American Aerospace>[...]