DSV/ROV.

This is coolbert:

If terrorism is suspected in the downing of Air France Flight 447, a lot of resources are going to be have to be harnessed in the hunt for the culprits.

Forensics will be a big part of the effort to find the villains. If indeed, it was a bomb that brought down Flight 447. And just the fact that the plane broke up and disintegrated over the deep ocean presents a big time problem. To do the forensics, recovery of the debris will be paramount. But will be next to impossible. The deep water of the ocean is a difficult "terrain" to operate in. Finding the debris and recovering is a monumental challenge.

For the purposes of further location and recovery, military assets are the ONLY recourse?

[right, now, as we speak, the Brazilian military is deeply involved in the search for debris and bodies! This is already a military operation!]

It will be necessary to employ a variety of military deep submergence vehicles [DSV] and remotely operated vehicles [ROV] in the "hunt" for Flight 447! Manned and unmanned vessels that can search for, locate, and retrive debris and perhaps bodies too!

"Deep Submergence Vehicles are deep diving manned submarines that are self-propelled. The term DSV is generally one used by the United States Navy, though several navies operate vehicles that can be accurately described as DSVs"

"A remotely operated vehicle (ROV) is a tethered underwater robot. They are common in deep water industries such as offshore hydrocarbon extraction. An ROV may sometimes be called a remotely operated underwater vehicle to distinguish it from remote control vehicles operating on land or in the air. ROVs are unoccupied, highly maneuverable and operated by a person aboard a vessel."

DSV and ROV that have the depth and operational ability to reach the abysmal depths are operation by the military of only a few nations. Nations to include:

* United States.

* Russia.

* Japan.

* Canada.

The absolute number of MANNED DSV is very small. NOT ONLY do a very limited number of countries have at their disposal the DSV, but only several classes exist and only one or two examples of each class. AND ALL REQUIRE TOO A MOTHER SHIP TO ESCORT, SERVICE, AND ACT AS A COMMAND POST!

DSV currently available include:

* Alvin class submarine. Alvin, owned by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Alvin has a maximum depth capability of 4500 meters

* DSV-4 Sea Cliff — another Alvin class DSV sub . . . has 6000 meter depth capability

* Nerwin class. NR-1 Nerwin — US Navy nuclear powered research and clandestine DSV submarine, which can roll on the seabed using large balloon wheels Nerwin is currently retired, as of last year!!

* Priz. Priz — a DSRV class of five ships built by the USSR and Russia. The titanium-hulled Priz class are capable of diving to 1000 meters.

* Mir. Mir — a strictly civilian (research) class of two DSVs which were manufactured in Finland for the USSR . . . can carry three people down to depths of 6000 meters.

* Shinkai. DSV Shinkai -- JAMSTEC . . . operates a DSV-series called Shinkai . . . which can submerge to 6500 m (4 miles)

* Pisces class. Pisces class DSVs are three person research submersibles . . . with a maximum operating depth of 2,000 m (6,560 ft)

ROV's that exist in a host of forms and utilities and are probably the way to go, if an when the decision is made for a mid-oceanic deep sea search for Flight 447? Expense will be a major factor? And who will coordinate the effort?

NOT any of this is going to be easy. You can bet, however, if a deep sea search is implemented, the desire to know if terrorism is to blame for the downing of this airliner will be a very big of the agenda.

coolbert.