This blimp was moored at Aberdeen Proving Ground, a U.S. Army facility in Maryland, until 11:54 a.m. when it lit out for the Pennsylvania countryside, according to The Baltimore Sunday.
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The craft even knocked out power to the state police barracks at Bloomsburg before settling in a wooded hollow, where it was swiftly cordoned off while military personnel began arriving to retrieve it, State Police Capt. David Young said. We received reports of the blimp overhead in Columbia County and then of it coming down in Montour County.
The Pentagon has come under increasing scrutiny over its spending, with its internal watchdog inspector general saying the Defense Department has become so overwhelming that it can not be fully monitored. It’s estimated that 30,000 lost their power during the blimp’s escape, with 15,000 still don’t have it back.
PPL Electric said the blimp caused power outages affecting more that 20,000 homes and businesses. Most power is expected to be restored in the next few hours.
The blimp is the kind used extensively in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars to provide surveillance around USA bases and other sensitive sites.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, also reported that the tether had downed power lines.
The town of Bloomsburg fielded numerous calls from people who said they had spied the wayward blimp, a town official said.
After nearly exactly four hours of sweet, untethered freedom, the Army’s runaway blimp finally came to rest in a field in rural Moreland Township, Pa. But what a ride it was!
The 242-foot-long aerostat is made by Raytheon Co. and packed with sensors and other electronic equipment created to detect enemy missiles and planes. After 17 years of research and $2.7 billion in funding, the system has been hobbled by defective software, poor reliability and vulnerability to bad weather.
Raytheon Co. referred questions to the military. “Quite a bit of hubbub for this area, we’re out in the sticks and not too much happens like this”, said one neighbor.
One of the two JLENS aerostats on the ground at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland.
Needless to say there have been plenty of sightings – a huge blimp floating over head is hard to miss – and social media is filling up with spottings under the name @AberdeenBlimp.
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Defence Secretary Ashton Carter said the USA would “get it to descend” but did not elaborate on how.
