Bombs dropped on Australia Great Barrier Reef by US Marines
- 9 years ago
Originally published on July 21, 2013
Two U.S. Marine Corp jets were dropped two four bombs into the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park off the coast of Australia this week when a training exercise went wrong, according to U.S. officials.
The two AV-8B Harriers were meant to drop the ordnances on the Townshend Island bombing range nearby, but controllers reported the area was not clear for hazards. As the jets were low on fuel, the pilots were forced to jettison the one inert BDU 45 and one unarmed GBU 12 each into the ocean. The bombs were dropped more than 16 nautical miles south of Bell Cay to minimize possible damage to the reef.
Officials are still looking into how to recover the bombs, which reportedly dropped into a channel roughly 60 meters deep. Authorities say the chances of any of them exploding is very low. The maneuvers are part of of a biennial joint training exercise that brings together 28,000 U.S. and Australian military personnel.
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Two U.S. Marine Corp jets were dropped two four bombs into the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park off the coast of Australia this week when a training exercise went wrong, according to U.S. officials.
The two AV-8B Harriers were meant to drop the ordnances on the Townshend Island bombing range nearby, but controllers reported the area was not clear for hazards. As the jets were low on fuel, the pilots were forced to jettison the one inert BDU 45 and one unarmed GBU 12 each into the ocean. The bombs were dropped more than 16 nautical miles south of Bell Cay to minimize possible damage to the reef.
Officials are still looking into how to recover the bombs, which reportedly dropped into a channel roughly 60 meters deep. Authorities say the chances of any of them exploding is very low. The maneuvers are part of of a biennial joint training exercise that brings together 28,000 U.S. and Australian military personnel.
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TomoNews is your daily source for top animated news. We've combined animation and video footage with a snarky personality to bring you the biggest and best stories from around the world.
For news that's fun and never boring, visit our channel:
https://www.youtube.com/user/TomoNewsUS
Subscribe to stay updated on all the top stories:
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Stay connected with us here:
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Twitter @tomonewsus http://www.twitter.com/TomoNewsUS
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