Unmanned Spy Planes Crash in Afghanistan

[Judi Lynn]

Unmanned Spy Planes Crash in Afghanistan


By AMIR SHAH
Associated Press Writer

April 11, 2004, 3:23 PM EDT


GARDEZ, Afghanistan -- Two unmanned drones crashed a block away from a ceremony where American and Afghan officials were inaugurating a courthouse Sunday -- and the event went ahead as planned.

One of the drones, which was circling above the closely guarded ceremony, plunged behind the nearby governor's residence during U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad's speech. Addressing dignitaries at the gleaming white-and-yellow courthouse, he seemed not to notice.

The second drone came down soon after a few hundred yards away, next to another government building in this city 60 miles south of the capital, Kabul.

American and Afghan soldiers scrambled over walls to retrieve the wreckage of the white drones, and one emerged with what looked like a broken-off tail fin.
(snip/...)

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-afghan-crashed-drones,0,847804.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines

[StClone]

1. All that's needed to complete this comedy

Is U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad leaving his mike on at the urnal...

[markses]

4. LOL

Or a guest appearance by Enrico Palazzo. ;-)

[whatelseisnew]

2. Reminds me of the helicopter 'crashes'

which all turn out to be shoot downs

One crash I might believe with reserved suspicion, but two?

[0007]

3. `Da wheels are coming off I believe...what do one of these

suckers cost us?

[sspiderjohn]

5. An interesting thing about this report . . . .

Like most reporting about Afghanistan, this story takes place in the Kabul area. I observe that apart from the Kabul area up to the Paki border (hunting for OBL), I don't hear or read much about the rest of Afghanistan anymore. Western reporters don't go to other parts of the country. Why is that?

(Warning . . . I'm going to get on my Afghanistan stump again) Because the rest of the country is in dangerous chaos and ruin! The only things thriving are the female slave trade, the opium poppy crop (now supplying 3/4 of the world's opium), thugs, terrorists and warlords. That's what we've REALLY done for Afghanistan -- they were better off under the Taliban. Just like Iraqi's are now asking for Saddam back.

[The Land of the Free]

9. hey

are you nuts?

[sspiderjohn]

10. I heard most of this AGAIN on a CNN report just last night --

Nick Robertson reporting from Kabul (he's no fool) -- admittedly he didn't mention the slave trade, but I've heard about that on other reports discussing how Afghani women have exchanged the freedom of not wearing a veil for the terror of rape and being kidnapped and sold into slavery (especially young girls).

[ithacan]

12. he's absolutely right

all the info coming from both places indicates that this is the sentiment.

Of course for people who rely only on US media they won't believe it, because US media is not telling Americans the truth.

[0007]

13. Are they muzzled or full of fear that another job will be hard to find?

What is it?

[ithacan]

14. fear

combination : Fear of retribution, plus whoring for corporate interests.

Plus a whole bunch of ignorance

[BrotherBuzz]

6. How easy is it to jam the radio signals?

What are the chances of a malfunction of two drones at the same time? Hmmm, makes me wonder. Can a "Radio Shack" wizard bring these things down with off the shelf components?

[Ready4Change]

7. That was my thought, too.

.

[truthisfreedom]

8. ahh, UFOs, probably. 8^)

[Ravy]

11. Reminder. It is FEDERAL LAW to turn off your cell phones while being

surveiled.

[rustydog]

15. OH MY GAWD ! Saddam attacked with his drones?

Oh, that's right, America had the only operational drones capable of delivering missiles and such.
My bad.