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With the start of divers and rescue crews to withdraw parts and cuts from a regional passenger plane from the US Airlines and an army helicopter from the Botumac River near the National Reagan Airport in Virginia after its crash last week, investigators will start searching for evidence of how the disaster, which claimed 67 life, It happened.
One of the open questions is whether the military crew that was flying UH-60 Black Hawk was wearing night vision glasses at the time of collision.
How common is the military helicopter pilots to avoid the night vision glasses?
For military pilots, night vision glasses are exactly used as they are by forces on the ground.
according to Army reportThe service began to issue night vision devices to pilots in 1985, and it has consistently gained protective glasses that allow pilots and those who visited a more clear vision with better awareness of depth at night since then.
Beit Higseth, Minister of Defense, said that the army crew involved in a plane crash on Wednesday are required annual training and that they are “”Do you have night glasses?“But Mr. Higseth did not say whether the glasses were being used at the time, and the National Transportation Council investigators said they have not yet known.
How do they work?
The devices work by amplifying light in the field of seeing their wealth. With them, lethal things become brighter-even make stars possible in light-designed cities.
On the contrary, intense lights can be overwhelmed on the user. Military helicopters often wear their glasses on two fingers out of their eyes to allow them to “see” the devices with the naked eye when needed.
Why do investigators not yet know whether the night vision glasses are wearing?
The Black Hawk crew members are certainly carried by the Black Hawk crew are installed on the front of their helmets, allowing them to extinction or down quickly.
But while these designs may keep a pair of night vision glasses in place after gently collided with the cockpit, they do not aim to survive in amazing violence to collide like last week.
Then there was the effect of the helicopter in water after a decrease of about 300 feet.
None of the two events had tore the Aircrew glasses from their helmets, or completely removed their helmets. Such incidents often cut their victims, which may make it difficult for investigators to say categorically whether the Black Hawk crew are using night vision devices at the time of collision.
What will they be looking for and how do they hope to know that?
The investigation examines material evidence from the crash site, including the condition of the bodies and the placement of crew helmets and equipment. Investigators are particularly interested in finding a Google storage bags for the night message. If it is empty, this may indicate that the glasses are used. If the bags are intact with protective glasses inside, it may mean that glasses are not available at the time of collision.
The intensity of the accident also means that researchers will search for signs of damage or separation from related glasses and equipment. Looking at the extent of damage, it may take more analysis to determine whether the glasses are in use and how they were affected during the accident.
“If the glasses are low, they will push the face and cause more injuries to the face structure,” said David Susi, Federal Aviation Safety Inspector and Accident Investigator.
This may be evident in the dissection of the bodies or post -death tests for the residues of the crew.
But the violent effect of the air collision, then the fall to Potomac may have made it impossible to determine.
All these evidence is still under examination.
How much does the helicopter pilots rely on these devices when flying all over Washington at night?
A military helicopter pilot routinely flying patrols along those same roads over Washington and northern Virginia said that many pilots usually flew with night vision glasses linked to their helmets at night, and they did so with them away from their face to allow them to see around the glasses with the bare eye in Sometimes.
Although the image that is seen through electronic glasses will present light as green or white, it does not allow pilots to distinguish between red or green lights on another plane that will indicate their glasses.
The pilot, who asked not to be identified because he was not allowed to publicly talk about standard flight procedures in the country’s capital, said that flying in highly lit areas, such as cities, could prove a challenge.
The military pilot said that any restrictions on the peripheral vision of the pilot or the perception of the depth resulting from wearing night vision glasses are diluted through frequent training and night pilot. A moment of looking – depending on the situation or the environment.