Drone operator will try to rescue dogs from La Palma volcano

CNN ^ | October 19, 2021

[ConservativeMind]

The operator will have just four minutes to lure a dog to the net, and another four minutes to fly it out.

“What we don't want is to run out of battery when flying over the lava,” Pereira said.

LOL! That would be a pretty bad thing.

[Fester Chugabrew]

Meshach, Shadrach, and Abenego.

[Fester Chugabrew]

unngh. no spell check for Abednego.

[Olog-hai]

Good old CNN. Helicopters can’t fly near that volcano not because of gas damaging rotors, but because of ash entering the gas turbine engine causing it to fail.

[Olog-hai]

How about Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah?

[The MAGA-Deplorian]

Helicopters are banned from flying to the area because of hot gas that can damage their rotors.

So we’ll send in drones with twice the rotors made from plastic? Yeah drone catching dogs sounds like a winner. Scare them right into the lava

[monkeyshine]

They have been fed by drones dropping packages of food

Manna from heaven.

[heavy metal]

spell dog backwards...

[Bobalu]

A noble endeavor, sounds like something the guys over at hackaday will publicize...

[Fester Chugabrew]

No spell check for those, either.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Well, you COULD argue the ash would damage the TURBINE rotors, not the helicopter rotors (assuming it’s a gas turbine powered helo). But that argument would require a knowledgable reporter, something quite scarce at CNN.

Also, helicopter gas turbine engines probably have an upper limit on air inlet temperature. I can see where you could hit high temperature pockets of air and gas with low oxygen that would cause the engines to either flame out or overheat.

[spacejunkie2001]

love it!

[Olog-hai]

I would guess that there have to be some operators of piston-engined helicopters in the Canary Islands; the ban seems a bit draconian.

[j.havenfarm]

Agreed. In the Lord of the Rings, they used giant eagles with good effect.

[Sgt_Schultze]

[1FreeAmerican]

Actually the drones have been capturing fantastic images and videos - at La Palma and also Iceland’s Geldingadalur. Prolly other locations also. Seen several “last transmission” vids as the drone gets in close, dies, and falls into the hot lava.

In one La Palma vid the drone is close behind one of the gas vents that is shooting hot rocks about 700 meters into the air. The drone is right in the flak and taking hits.

[SunkenCiv]

Someone has been using drones to drop food for the stranded dogs, but this here idea is not going to work, imho.

[EinNYC]

I just hope the drones don’t scare the dogs into the lava, or that the dogs (G-d forbid!) fall from the drone loop into the larva. Isn’t there a cage with a remote control operated lock they could lower down to the dogs?

[Truth29]

I hope we can get an update after the attempt. This is the last thing I could find and it is still before they try: https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/la-palma-volcano-drone-sent-in-to-rescue-dogs-surrounded-by-lava-clvjnk8pg