Is it my imagination or are there different rules for different airplane crash operations? I seem to remember that there were very strict boundries established after the Egypt Air 990, JFK Jr and TWA 800 (?) crashes - military/Coast Guard ships only. No private vessels, no media, no nothing!

Now I hear that private vessels are/were being used in the Alaska Air crash (as well as many others in the past). Why the discrepancy?

If I were paranoid I would assume that Alaska Air truly failed as a result of mechanical/electrical/human/etc. error where as the other flights mentioned above ended prematurely as a result of something other than mechanical/electrical/human/etc. error?

What do you think?

-- Brian (btanguay@earthlink.net), February 02, 2000

Answers

I remember TWA 800 using private craft at first.

Initally help from ANYBODY is recieved gratefully until the pros show up.

-- Johnny (jljtm@bellsouth.net), February 02, 2000.

Hi Johnny;

Thanks for the response. I guess I wasn't very clear.

Why are there different procedures after "the pros show up?" In some cases the area is quarantined and in other cases private vessels are allowed, even welcome, to help with the salvage effort?

It is this inconsistency which has me confused and wondering...

-- Brian (btanguay@earthlink.net), February 02, 2000.

The biggie is what kinds of vessels were available. In the Alaska Airlines case, the squid fishing boats with those powerful lights were a tremendous asset in the (then) rescue effort. Off Long Island the private vessels weren't similarly equipped and didn't have an advantage in their prescence.

Second, the Long Island crash was thirty or more mile off shore. The Pt Mugu crash was less than ten miles off shore. The news choppers don't need a flight plan to go out less than twelve miles, so the Alaska Airlines crash was in a free flight area. TWA 800 was beyond twelve miles and the news choppers would've needed to file flight plans and get clearance to enter the W-107 airspace.

Most importantly, it was still daylight when the MD-80 went down. Pictures of something interesting coud be had. In fact it was just at the start of the 4pm PST news broadcast period. All the TV stations were going to be there so as not to be beaten by the competition.

TWA 800 happened at night, after the east coast news broadcast cycle. And the pictures that were taken (by fixed-wing aircraft at that) only showed spots of fire from floating jet fuel, not very interesting TV viewing. Especially compared to live footage of planes, boats and helicopters frantically searching for survivors as seen from a helicopter flying above it all.

Basically, it wasn't anything conspirital, it was just different circumstances for each event.

WW

-- Wildweasel (vtmldm@epix.net), February 02, 2000.

There are also USCG Auxiliary members who sometimes work along with the CG on search and rescue missions (although I didn't see any working on the AA crash). This is a civilian branch of the CG whose members are trained by and work with the regular CG under CG orders. They use their own boats, with added equipment required, and are official CG boats during such missions.

-- Evelyn (equus@barn.now), February 02, 2000.

Does it have to do with hope of survivors? In the Ivory Coast crash, one survivor said more people could have been saved if help had come more quickly!

-- Mara (MaraWayne@aol.com), February 02, 2000.

Here in Alaska, its S.O.P. for Kodiak U.S.C.G. ( Air Station ) to put out a call about flares sighted in such in such area or radio beacon signals at position xyz, For any vessels in the area please respond and lend assistance.

So use of private vessels is not uncommon, at least not in the Gulf of Alaska or the Bering Sea...

-- Capt Dennis (capden@hotmail.com), February 03, 2000.