the faa does not currently have authority to regulate on orbit. the only agencies with any regulatory authority between launch and re-entry events or the fcc for communications satellitesatellite s and noah for remote sensing satellites. the faa interfaces with the fcc and no of regularly through payload reviews and our primary partners in developing orbital debris rules for the department of defense and nasa. the nasa orbital dip grade program office has been a strong partner in the development of faa rules and is a valuable resource. the dod joint space operations center rj spock provides tracking information to pre- detection data that we use to evaluate the effectiveness of launch debris mitigation efforts. only the dod has legislative authority and capability to share space awareness information including notifications of the pending collision and near collisions cooperating space operators that lacks enforcement authority. an issue of oversight and enforcement authority emerges with increasing number of commercial space transportation vehicl

the faa doesn't have authority to regulate on orbit. the only agency with any regulatory authority in between the launch and reentry are the satellites. they meet regularly through payload reviews and primary partners in developing effective orbital debris rules are the department of defense and nasa. the debris program office has been a stone partner in the development of faa rules and is an invaluable resource. the dod space operations center provides tracking information and debris production data that we use to evaluate the effectiveness of the launch debris mitigation efforts. only the dod has legislative authority and capability to share space situational awareness information including notifications of impending collisions and near collisions to cooperating space operators but it lacks the enforcement authority. an issue of oversight and enforcement authority emerges with increasing numbers of commercial space transportation vehicles which will operate differently from communications or observing satellites. rather than travel to

but as far as why it is taking so long i did ask the faa just that. we should note that it came to light because the faa official was speaking at a drone conference just yesterday and started to discuss it. so it didn't come by way of a press release. when asked why we didn't know about it before because the incident happened in march the faa could not immediately answer, anderson. >> do we know who was flying this? >> at this point, we don't know, they are still investigating who was operating it. who was behind it. we know it was painted in camouflage, but who was behind it is still a mystery. >> so there are rules in place for this size of drone? >> well, not this size of drone. the faa has been spending time trying to figure out how to put big drones, predator seasons in the international air space. that is a regulatory process under way. now, for the smaller ones we're talking about here there is basically a letter of understanding, a circular that came out in 1981 which is circulated among the clubs, saying keep it at a certain level. it worked

. >>> new at 5:00, the faa is investigating a close call in the skies above the pacific. two planes nearly collided in what could have been the deadliest airplane disaster in history! the united airlines flight left kona hawaii and headed to los angeles when it almost crashed midair. kpix 5's da lin is live in san jose with the bay area passenger who is taking his frightening experience public. da. >> reporter: liz, certainly a very scary experience for that man flying back to the bay area. now, this near miss incident happened about 3 weeks ago but we're just hearing about it for the first time. in fact, the faa is sending out a special team today to hawaii to investigate what happened. >>> reporter: the vacation of a lifetime in hawaii for this bay area man was overshadowed by a near miss midair collision on the way home. >> turmoil, noise, all the tray tables were rattling. it was a really violent and scary experience. >> reporter: passenger kevin townsend says shortly after his packed united flight left the big island and reached cruising altitude, the plane took a su

well, in the next five years the faa estimates as many as 7,500 drones could be flying in u.s.y given time. the agency has been working on a plan to safely integrate drones into the airspace so that you don't have accidents with passenger aircraft. we should tell you it is illegal for commercial use and the faa only allows obvious to fly drones up to about 400 feet. >> rene, stay with us. i want to bring miles o'brien in, our cnn aviation analyst. miles, how big of a problem potentially is this? >> what's interesting here, you have an industry that's gone far beyond the ability of the faa to regulate it. basically what the faa said in 1981, the last time they addressed this classification of drone which are considered radio-controlled models, was they were supposed to be below 400 feet, stay 300 miles away from an airport and if closer than that, notify the authorities. what has happened is the drone world was self-regulating, self-policing for many years through these radio control models and now it's exploded way beyond these self-policing entities. what you have are people f

the faa is going ohave to work that out. did nothing else, all aircraft are supposed to be able to visually see all aircraft. even professional drones the pilots are located someplace else and they can only see what the tv cameras are allowing them to see outside the aircraft. in some cases they're talking about adding extra planes, extra drones alongside the other one so they can serve as a lookout. they have to work that out, coordinating it with the airlines with the users of the air space from police departments, the tv news stations, all of the user, general aviation have to be coordinated with these things being introduced into u.s. air space. >> it sounds like something the faa is going ohave to work out. jay, thank you very much. >> thank you. >> a developing story in virginia, a hot air balloon hit a power line catching fire. there's a picture. according to police there were three people on board, one pilot, two other individuals, so far no wreckage, the people on board have been found. it happened on eve of the mid

. >> the crew, the captain said you can't carry these violins on to our plane and if faa finds out weould get fined, you're out of here. kicked them off the plane. >> what do we do? >> is that really an faa rule or policy in. >> it's interesting you should ask that back in 2012 congress passed the faa modernization and reform act which says passengers are allowed to carry violins on to an airplane. >> this has my blood pressure going. i'm like raging inside for them. >> unreal, guys. we got to fight this. got to fight this. this is wrong. >> we have all three members from time for three, zach de pue, nick kendall and ranam meyer via skype. will you hold up one of your cases so we can see how big these things are. >> this is my violin case. >> looks like a carry-on to me. >> walk us through exactly what happened once you got on that aircraft. >> we were just greeted by a steward that said you have to check those instruments. we said they're valuable instruments. can you give us a chance to put it in the overhead and show you it fits. he said no. we get off the plane and standing on the

. >> the faa estimates as many as 7500 commercial auvs could be flying by 2018.n aerospace advisors works with texas a&m on their operations. while door drop deliveries may be years away, he says lucrative missions already exist. >> the aircraft can be flown without putting a pilot within harm's way, and these aircraft can fly for 12 to 16 hours on a gallon and a half of gasoline. >> betting that the test sites will soon become boom towns, they have already set up shop in corpus christi. >> a lot of economy here is based on oil and gas and manufacturing, and to have something that includes high-tech jobs and such an important future for this community was so important for all of south texas. >> the uav try trade group projects that test site will have an impact of $8 billion statewide. and 1200 new jobs created in the region. >> that's a huge number especially for south texas where we haven't seen a lot of large companies make their base. >> this is the full wingspan of the vehicle. >> cody is working to build an electronically powered uav, and says the test site

they found that they were reporting more because the faa put in an amnesty program. if you turn yourself in, you can't be penalized. but also, that they were on the rise, along with runway incursions, which is collision on the runway as opposed to in the air. so it's on the rise. fortunately, we've got the collision avoidance equipment. but it's a troublesome problem because we want the statistics going down for accident possibilities, not up. >> and that's pretty scary when you hear it. richard, i want you to look at the flight tracker. we have a live flight tracker of all of the flights that are in the air right now. according to cnn safety analyst david soucie, the skies will actually become two times as crowded in the next 20 years. so in light of what mary just said, should we be concerned there is just too much traffic in the air? >> well, there is of course some next generation software coming on board which will accommodate that. that's why the u.s. is spending billions putting in a satellite navigation system rather than a radio-based system. it's took congr

the faa says they are doing this for safety reasons. let's talk about safety.icans die in vehicle crashes in this country. that's a huge number. a lot of the things we are doing is very mundane. they are going to get medicine and pick up dinner maybe something else. what if those things could be delivered to us from drones. we may be saving thousands of lives ever are i year. this is not taken into account by government bureaucrats when they are only thinking about why the law changes. >> the only possible thing that could go wrong they could be blamed our brains can't image all of the good that comes out of it. >> if we spend all of our time living in fear of hypothetical scenarios and basing public policy on them best kate scenarios can never come about. >> innovation dies when you try to obey the bles. i look at the faa rules only one commercial business in the arctic has satisfied all of our requirements. he has to have certified aircraft a licensed pilate and approval for the faa. >> this is how basically lobbying and cronyism starts. they help you in dc i

, including commercial. >> and the faa is investigating.mally with the faa. how does the investigation of something like this go about? >> well, as far as the -- i'm sorry, mary. >> go ahead, mary. >> well, the investigation, you know, can be an ntsb investigation or an faa investigation. i had thought that the ntsb was going to dispatch a team, as well. you know, the first thing they do is obviously try to secure all of the elements, the crash site at the ground. they're also doing a behind-the-scenes thing. they're looking at the operation of the balloon, the company. they're looking at the pilot's training. they're looking at the equipment. so the paperwork that goes on behind an investigation may be just as important as what happened in the sky. there are lots of witnesses to that. sometimes the secret's in the paperwork and the training of the crew. >> david, how do you see this playing out, the investigation? >> well, the investigation part, in this type of accident, typically the ntsb will delegate the accident to the faa, who's loca

what the faa did is there's a caveat to this reporting. what the faa did is say, please report these incidents so we know how many are happening and the incidents of course were just flooding in. but then they said, if you report them, nothing will happen to you. you won't be subject to disciplinary proceeding. you might be sent for retraining. the problem is, air traffic control and the faa, the same people cause the same problems over and over again. if you're in trouble this year, you tend to be the person who's in trouble in future years. so the amnesty wasn't needed for good air traffic controllers. the amnesty at the faa protects the bad traffic controllers. for example, i think last week it was a nounced in the news, got his job back. that was the one talking about the dead cat instead of directing traffic. i think amnesty for all people would don't control traffic is wrong. >> makes me more concerned based on what david susie learned. he was able to gleam it. the icao president says air traffic is going to double in the next 20 yea

an the faa has mandated that every plane flying in the u.s. air space have this system. >> so these will all get better shortly. >>> absolutely. when you think about it, you have a huge air space above the united states and when airplanes get close to each other is when they're funneled into these airports. when they're arriving and departing. by necessity they have to be much closer in the air. and that's when the most dangerous interactions take place. the incident in houston i think really underscored that. it was a simple mistake where the controller from what i've heard advised the airplane to make a right turn instead of a left turn and brought it in close separation standards to another plane. and told one of the planes to stop the climb. it's a scary incident. >> in newark it was intersecting runways. in honolulu, it was miscommunication of the air controller. stressful job. are the controllers the weak link? >> i hate to say the controllers are a weak link. they do a fantastic job, they are consummate professionals. but all it takes i

with the inability of local law enforcement and faa to get handle on it. no problem if you have a farmer out in north dakota who has a drone and wants to use that drone to look over his drops or livestock or whatever. if you have people on the beach in los angeles or san francisco or someone out, you know, in queens or brooklyn, someplace, heavy traffic area that is flying a drone around for recreational use it is just a matter of time before those hit an aircraft. every military pilot will tell you there are plenty of people out there like to shoot lasers, low power lasers at aircraft flying. just a matter of time before somebody decides hey it would be a good idea if i take my go pro camera and fly form flight on military aircraft. they will screw it up. there will be a mishap and all likelihood people are going to die. gerri: among them what if terrorists use these little drones. >> that is something that the pentagon looked at a lot. it's a worst-case scenario. really right now no defense. this goes to broader issue whether or not we defend against ter

in fact, the faa has now sent a team of investigators to hawaii to find out what happened.t felt like a near-death experience made the san francisco man dig deeper. how could another plane nearly collide head on with his flight? >> very unique experience and i hope no one else has to go through it. >> reporter: the midair scare happened on april 25th, three weeks ago. but very few people knew about it. so passenger kevin townsend wrote a blog about his experience. >> it felt kind of like the plane had just gone dead in the air and started dropping. >> reporter: today faa and ntsb investigator landed in hawaii to investigate. although the faa calls the timing a coincidence, retired pilot captain dick deeds believes media pressure is what got the ball rolling. >> the major question to find out is, why was the other airplane there? >> reporter: he says after his packed unite flight reached cruising altitude, the plane suddenly took a 600-foot drop to avoid another plane head on. both planes' technology alerted the pilots moments before a potential collision. >> the system in t

this evening, the faa is trying to figure out why it happened.n air traffic controller in training directs a united jetliner to turn putting it on a possible collision with another jet taking off from the airport. seconds later, according to the faa, the controller realizes his mistake. >> stop your turn. stop your climb and stop your turn united 601. >> reporter: the two flights less than a mile away. listen to stunned pilots second later. >> i had no idea what was going on in the tower but it was pretty gnarly looking. >> reporter: putting a spotlight on something that actually happens every day. in the skies over the pacific, at new york's jfk and newark. >> he's real close. >> reporter: the rules of separation in the skies breached. the faa's latest numbers show planes came too close nearly 4400 times in one year. 41 of them deemed high-risk events. >> they are scary and unacceptable but there's a back-up system and people are safe. >> reporter: it's an air traffic system under stress. increasing air traffic and a potential shortage of contro

betting that the faa test sites will soon become drone boomtowns, pennsylvania-based yoel has alreadyset up shop in corpus christi.the start of what school officials hope will be an enduring, well-paying industry in a historically blue-collar region. but until they open the airspace, the industry remains grounded with possible delays to come. >> finally, the big loser may be the most polarized in the draft. johnny manziel. forbes estimates the slide cost manzeil 12 million dollars. round two of the draft is tonight. >>> thank you for watching al jazeera america. i'm del walters. "inside story" is next. for news updates through the day head to al jazeera dot com. happy mother's day to my mom, barbara walters and my mother-in-law, paula walker. see you then. william faulkner wrote the past is not dead, it isn't even past. northern ireland still lives in 30 years of deadly strife, known as the troubles. recorded reminiscence of the bad old days become the subject of a legal battle and it's the inside story.

>> the faa does provide guidance. they work closely with the international council of air shows to come up with pilot certification standards. that will also be part of the investigation in the factual report. we don't have the exact numbers that are required at this point, but that will be part of our factual investigation. >> what part of the investigation will response time for emergency crews fit into your investigation? and why did it take five minutes for them to reach the crash site? >> that fits in the operational factors of the accident. that's a typical part of our investigation is looking at response time. that will be part of the operational factors of the accident. that will also be in the factual report. >> how helpful are the videos? we know there have been video posted on youtube. are you still looking for folks to turn those in? and how helpful is that for your investigation? >> that's always helpful. you get the different angles and viewpoints. i believe we have the accident sequence, so i don't beli

faa they're incompetent and have not been able to make it happen. we have our controllers who are sit agent screens, keeping us safe, but actually great physical cost to themselves and wear and tear. >> what would the answer be, more air traffic controllers or better ones or both? >> the answer i getting to the faa and demanding results and getting this fixed. it's gone on for 20 years and not being fixed now there has to be some accountability. when the the -- the airline industry is not demanding results from the faa. that's the real result. >> what i worry about, all these drones. the first heard the concept of drones, thought there were a few dozen of them, and then a few hundred, and now it's a few thousand, and hear about this incident where passenger jet almost collided with one. are these monitored like regattas? they're -- regular jets? they're getting very close to major airports. who is watching the drones? >> nobody right now. where do you pass from a toy to a big metal object in the sky in at point in time we have to control that becaus

the faa is investigating the incident. >>> birds striking planes can also cause problems for planes. a us airways flight struck a bird just yesterday afternoon. the plane was flying from laguardia airport to ronald reagan in d.c. it turned around and then landed safely. >>> none of the 96 passengers and five crew onboard were hurt. the plane is now being inspected. this is reportedly the second bird strike this week involves a laguardia flight. >>> all right. there's a new boss in the l.a. clippers front office. and he wants to turn things around, in the middle of the donald sterling controversy. what that new ceo says about the whole thing, next. across america, people like basketball hall of famer dominique wilkins, are taking charge of their type 2 diabetes with non-insulin victoza. for a while, i took a pill to lower my blood sugar, but it didn't get me to my goal. so i asked my doctor about victoza. he said victoza works differently than pills, and comes in a pen. and the needle is thin. victoza is an injectable prescription medicine that may improve blood sugar in adults with t

go to the faa to ask permission so he is bypassing nasa completely and we can put nasa to bed except for the unmanned explorers. >> talking about the tesla designer and other things that are visionaries about but bypassing nasa, does that rattle washington? bus they say nasa is the way we do this stuff. >> well, nasa, of course, is controlled by congress, and the president so that's the way we have done it in the past. although obama kept saying that, let's go commercial, and it's like anything else, instead of having a government airplane, we would have a private airplane. >> sounds like a dream to me. when we last spoke, person-to-person, putting this space special together you lamented the fact we have given up something we did ourselves, you proved in apollo 13, took what looked like certain disaster and made an achievement

how would your process change if at all if that authority is granted to the faa? >> the faa would still rely on the data we get from our senses but we'll be providing that dated. today, again we warn others conjunction. we do not have the authority to make a satellite operator move. i can't -- i can make commercial satellites i don't have that authority but they would take our data that we have and use that data in their new role. >> thank you. any other follow-up on that? mr. zamka? >> if i may, the request to have the ability to have an operator be forced to move, that can be done in a number of ways. earlier is better. earlier interaction press agree with the operator as part of the operating process was a quick it would be for which they move in the progress of all would be an industry based consensus on what is the agreeable time to affect a move. all these things involve probabilities and a lot of expense for the operator, frankly. >> all right. i thank the witnesses for the valuable testimony and the members for the questions. the members of the committee m

the faa is using it to document are tornadoes. for faa the answer is simple. the agency says there are no shades of gray in faa regulation. anyone who wants to fly an aircraft, manned or your honor manned, conflicting rulings have raised questions over just how much oversight the government has. still as drones become more common, when news breaks, chance he are you'll be watching it through eyes of drones. roxannroxanna sabiri, al jazeer. >>> series finale, for borderland, we'll see it's more treacherous for women. >> father pressliano takes the women to a pharmacy. blfng. >> the fact that women are putting shots because they know they're going to get raped, we have to understand the sacrifices women are going omake in order to have a better life. >> it's sick to know that as a woman, not only do you have to worry about feeling sick, breaking an ankle, you also have to worry about being raped. this world is an evil world. >> final episode of borderland airs on al jazeera america this sunday at 9:00 p.m. eastern time, 6:00 p.m. pacific. >>> joirnls al jazeera

operations have been transferred to the faa chicago center in aurora.ich usually handles high-altitude traffic. we invite you to stay with us for continuing coverage of this story. we will also coverage of this story. we will also be able to tell the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups: the police, who investigate crime and the district attorneys, who prosecute the offenders. these are their stories. you're lucky your plane didn't land earlier. it would have taken hours to get across the bridge. we could have splurged 2.50 and taken the tunnel. killing ourselves breathing that air. where did you fly in from, honey? lagos, nigeria. africa, oh. that's about, what, ten hours on a plane? what time is it here? five minutes, it's tomorrow. i can't keep my eyes open. jet lag, huh, it's a bitch. guy came in last night from paris. said the best cure was a hot bath and a bottle of cognac. ( chuckling ) i visited my sister down in tampa.

but the faa won't comment or confirm that. but the faa said, quote, the controller issued instructions to both pilots to safely separate the aircraft. the closest proximity between the two planes was 0.87 miles laterally and 400 feet verdictically about two miles southeast of the airport. the faa has taken steps to prevent any similar occurrences in the future. >> close call averted. molly, thank you. just last month, two aircraft one landing the other taking off nearly collided in newark, new jersey. and in 2012, three commuter jets almost crashed into each other above washington, d.c. and in 2011, another narrow miss between incoming and outgoing flights, this time over chicago. >>> if you're planning to travel this holiday weekend, be prepared. extreme weather heading into the holiday. storms ripping through central virginia sparking tornado warnings and leaving significant damage in the wake. heavy winds toppling trees as the rain-soaked ground was too weak to hold their roots. at least one home destroyed in new york, majo

now some of the faa worry that may not be soon enough to prevent a disaster.at the close call raising questions. >>> plus vladimir putin on ice. he racked up impressive stats in a weekend of hockey. but was he playing a little too good? that's ahead. >>> the "washington post" is looking at news if jeb bush is running. he's said to be a very private person. the former florida governor suggests he'll decide later this year. meanwhile florida republican marko rubio says he's ready to be president. >>> "usa today" says wages are likely to climb this year. with unemployment dropping the limited supply of workers will force pay hikes. one economist predicts an average raise of about 3%. >>> "the wall street journal" says the fcc may revise plans as soon as today for regulating broadband internet. the changes will prevent companies from dividing web traffic by speed. last month they came under heavy criticism saying it would allow companies to pay for faster delivery. >>> a hero mom tells cbs boston that her young son mattered more than she did. christina said when f

as for hobbyists, the faa only allows recreational drones to fly up to 400 feet.i. the kidnappings in nigeria and monica lewinsky. hillary clinton's critics hit hard on all three fronts. how will she handle it? >>> another controversy. hgtv banning this show. the benhams say they are getting rid of their show because of the agenda. we are talking to brian salter next about the backlash. (vo) oh. my. tongue. finally. (announcer) all-new friskies saucesations. a taste experience like no other. in cheesy, creamy, homestyle, or garden sauce. friskies. feed the senses. yeah. i heard about progressive's "name your price" tool? i guess you can tell them how much you want to pay and it gives you a range of options to choose from. huh? i'm looking at it right now. oh, yeah? yeah. what's the... guest room situation? the "name your price" tool, making the world a little more progressive. (music) defiance is in our bones. defiance never grows old. citracal maximum. calcium citrate plus d. highly soluble, easily absorbed. without standard leather. you are feeling exhilarated w

the faa says planes got close to each o nearly --faa 's spokesperson says all events are different and unique. there is no trends and similarities. cbs news at reagan national airport. >>> the donald sterling scandal maybe nearing an end. tonight david has the later. >> donald sterling is giving up his ownership to his wife shelly sterling. sterling has been banned from the nba and fine $ed $2. 5 million to a girlfriend. >> the nba appointed a new ceo for the clippers and said it would force sterling to sell the team. clippers can be worth more than $5 million. >> i don't know if he's giving up the fight. he says a long legal fight would devalue the team's sales price. >> what you are seeing is not sterling saying oh, i don't prefer litigations, it is him recognizing the business realities that would mean even if you were to win in litigation, he would lose on the business run. the business of the nba going on and the league is moving forward with a hearing on june 3rd which the owner could terminate sterling and his wife ownership of the team. los angeles. >> adam silver says he has t

the faa statement seems to point toward the tower itself. they said an air traffic controller ininstructed the pilot of 601 to make a right turn after departing from runway nine. the controller then noticed that aircraft was heading into the space normally reservers toed runway 15 left. that prompted the urgent conversation with flight 601 to stop the turn into the other's air space. >> scary stuff. mike, thank very much. fliers are wondering what is going on because on average they shell out 300 buck0sen a one-attribute, and more than 20% of that goes to the federal government. so we keep spending but the near collisions keep happening. where is all the money going? the read from some pilots. captain tracy price is president of the airlines security consultants group, and our trace gallagher, who knows a thing or two about this. he is a private pilot him. gentlemen, welcome. tracy price to you first. what do we do? >> well, i think we recognize that there are in excess of 30,000 airline operations, just commercial airliners, every day. that

however, the faa saying that this trainee was able to correct the problem immediately.int out one other thing, wolf. ever since that technology, the collision avoidance technology has been placed in cockpits we haven't seen any actual collision and of course, that is a good thing. >> that's a very good thing, indeed. rene, thanks very much. >>> let's bring in aviation correspondent richard quest to talk more about the close calls in air. is it getting close, richard, better? a lot more planes are flying all the time. >> right. and the interesting thing, of course, is whether or not it's actually getting worse or whether we're merely hearing more about them. the numbers involved are extremely small. and that, of course, is deceptive. you're talking if you look at the last data for 2012, 300,000th of 1% of flights had what we might describe as a near miss. the problem, of course, it's a very small number, but the consequences are so devastating. if you also factor in things such as better reporting, amnesty for air traffic controllers who do report, an entire reporting st

the faa has already been on-site. the national transportation safety board will investigate why this pilot drifted into the wires, leading to these three deaths. dan? >> still some hope that possibly somehow they could have survived. david kerley on the ground for us this morning. this whole scene was witnessed by a crowd of people who had come out for what they thought was going to be a fun event on a warm, spring evening. and just moments ago, i spoke to amanda patterson and ricky burch, who were right there. so, amanda and ricky, first, thank you very much for returning to the scene to talk to us this morning. amanda, let me start with you. how close were you? and what exactly did you see? >> we were at some of the vendors at the meadow event park, when we got wind of what was going on. we just saw some people that were part of the e.m.s. team, reacting. and with their -- on their walkie-talkies. when we saw that, that's when we noticed the balloon up in the sky. it was a fair distance away. all we saw at the time

the faa called the station and warned against further drone use. >> the faa is not dragging its feeterate. >> james is the former secretary of transportation. >> the biggest right now is how to make sure that the aviation space remains safe. >> reporter: was this something that caught the faa off guard, if you will how fast the technology has evolved? >> that movement in the marketplace is something very few people anticipated. it's hard to fault the faa by being a little surprised by that. we're all pretty surprised. >> reporter: the uncertainty is causing tension for businesses who see an opportunity for growth. >> we want to see regulation that enables this industry to rapidly grow while protecting citizens' privacy and safety. >> reporter: the faa says developing the regulations and standards for the use of these drones is a complex task. they say they want to get it right the first time. >> jeff thank you so much. >> i would love to own a drone. just love it. >> it just makes you want one. >> charlie, you could. pick up the phone. get me one, too. >> all right. now to this story

problems started with an faa system that processes air traffic. it affected airports in burbank, san diego, phoenix, las vegas and salt lake city. at sfo most flights are delayed 30 minutes to an hour. >>> a idea to discourage bike thieves by loading bicycles with simple technology. the program that baits thieves. >> phillip king owns three bicycles now, but his favorite was the 91 fuji club given to him by his parents. a couple stole it in the financial district three years ago. >> it was sickening, i had the bike for so long, it was something that was special. >> the rate of theft is astounding. >> now there's a bike stolen every three hours. three times worse than smart phone robberies. >> officers have posted mug shots on craigslist to warn would be buyers. >> gps transmitters have been placed an unknown number of bikes. they are tied to racks hoping that thieves will take the bait. >> we can track them in warehouses, in cars, and welcome for them. there's been several arrests including the thief that stole the bait bike tethered to this chain

but in 2008, the faa banned loose batteries in checked luggage. a limited amount of batteries are still allowed to be checked if packaged properly. the concern is they could short circuit. a short circuit can happen by chance, say a loose battery in a person's checked luggage comes into contact with keys or coins or even jewelry. that can create a circuit for the path of electricity. the current flowing through that short circuit creates extreme heat leading to sparks and fire. lithium batteries burn so hot they can melt the body of a plane. >> nothing brings the fear of god to a pilot like having a fire or smoke in the airplane. you just can't pull off to the side of the road and hop out like you can a car. >> this youtube video shows how quickly it can fuel a chain reaction. in 2006, fire forced a ups lane to make an emergency landing in philadelphia. investigators found electronics containing lithium batteries in the cargo. the pilot survived. and this was what left of the ups plane after it crashed in dubai in 2010. the boeing 747 was containi

within seconds, according to the faa, the controller realizes his mistake. >> 601, stop the turn right stop your turn, stop your turn, flight 601. >> the two planes came within a mile of each other, at takeoff speed that means they were mere seconds from possible impact, passengers from both flight might not have been aware of the near disaster, but the pilots were stunned. >> hey, 601, you know what happen there had? >> yeah, basically crossed over the top of each other. that is what it looks like from my perspective. i have no idea what was going on in the tower, but it was pretty gnarly looking. >> this is yet another high profile incident of airliners getting too close. something that happens every day. in april, two planes nearly collided over the runway at newark airport. >> 4100. >> the controllers directed a united airlines boeing 737 to land. as a smaller express jet was cleared for takeoff on an intersecting runway. the larger plane is nearly out of control when hthey tell it t circumstan circle. the day after this incident, a boeing 757 flying over the pacific came too close

all this comes as the faa investigates claims a flight from hawaii to l.a. went into a steep dive to avoid hitting another plane over the pacific ocean. and two days before that, an express jet cleared for takeoff at newark airport just as the united airlines flight was landing at an intersecting runway. you might be asking, what the heck is going on? and are we still safe to fly? joining me now is mike boyd, aviation security analyst with boyd group international. are we safe to fly? >> i think we're safe to fly. it can be a whole lot safer. these things were particularly the one in newark and houston, it was caught at the last minute. the other ones were a little less severe. they shouldn't be happening at all, and the faa has put an update of our air traffic control system on a back burner, more on a political burner. until we get the right people running the place, until we get better equipment, these things are going to continue. >> you talked about the fact you testified at hearings 20 years ago and little has changed since then. and is it going to wor

now, i hear from a lot of faa folks who e-mail me and usually off the record.what they're telling me is don't make a big to-do out of the really tiny ones. i do remember birds doing a lot of damage getting sucked in planes' engines. i'm thinking if a bird can do this damage that we saw in november, 2009, i shudder to think what a similar sized drone could do. >> i certainly don't want to hit one of them. i don't care what size they are. one of these small drones, whether it be the size of a remote control airplane or even larger, if you suck that up into a jet engine, it can cause a catastrophe and people's lives really are at risk. >> all right. do they show up on radar? i mean, when you're flying around, phil, or is it only the larger drones that might wander into air space or get too close to an airport that catch our attention? when you're looking at those blips on a screen, are those drones among them? >> they're usually not, no. they're not usually large enough to be picked up on radar, and if they're really low, they're going to be underneath radar cover

but two aircraft coming this close airborne is extraordinary, because under faa regulation, aircraft should be at least one thousand feet apart vertically and several miles apart horizontally. so obviously this is an extraordinary incident. >> extraordinary. and how big of a danger could the drone pose to the airliner? is this something that could bring down a jet? >> absolutely. if an aircraft jet engine, what they call ingested a drone, it certainly could bring down the aircraft. the faa official pointed out this is not a bird, but this is plastic, metal, and also potentially a lithium battery. so this could potentially be catastrophic. >> thank you so much. we appreciate it, breaking that story. >>> and now our other top breaking story tonight, the kidnapping of nearly 300 girls in nigeria. they had four hours of advance warning before the girls were kidnapped by boko haram. but they say the government failed to act. tonight a top nigerian government official exclusively tells me they're investigating the report. just moments ago, i spoke to nigeria's deputy minister of defense. h

the faa has to move quickly. make a decision. where can these things be flown, what kind of regulations on them and what kind of security are we looking at in terms of security threats, someone could put together with these things. they're not doing that. they're just talking. >> they depth even have to be loaded with any sort of weaponry or the like or explosive material. if they're just in the vicinity of an airport, that alone could be a danger. right? >> sure. i'm sure they could be geared -- engineer to home in on an airplane. i don't want to be an alarmist here but homing in on the world trade center was unheard of 20 years ago. these are the kind of things they have to think about. and the faa frankly has to move quickly. >> michael, we're not trying to scare you on this, but as i said when we were fir trying to democracyize the drones for commercial use, that we were thinking only a few of them. now you're getting to the thousands and you have to do something. >>> we want know what you think about all of this. tweet us. w

it released new recommendations to boeing and the faa.onduct short circuit tists on board -- tests on board an airplane. test all permanent lithium batteries. develop better battery test standards. and appoint an independent over sight panel. this comes a year after the federal aviation administration pronounced the batteries safe for passenger flights. >> this has a certain sense of urgency to it. >> reporter: he believes the ntsb which can only make recommendations is trying to force the faa and boeing to do all these things. >> they are saying we are not happy with the work you have done on the 787. we are concerned any aircraft could have problems. they think they are not safe yet. >> reporter: in a statement today boeing said we remain confident in the safety and integrity of the battery solution which was developed by boeing and approved by the faa last year. we will keep on this. tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. >> and on www.ktvu.com we posted our full 2 investigates report, including more of the video of the batteries failing and

faa says increased the processing power of the aaffected computer. >> maul explain towing advertising banner crashed in a home near denver look at the result. no one inside at the time thank goodness. pilot was able to parachute out of the cockpit and call for help. usa today reports he made sure no one was hurtment then used a garden hose to try to put out a fire caused by the crash. >> happening now traffic on i-15 outside los angeles look at it. still backed up for miles after an overpass cut fir and collapsed this afternoon. this is video of the fire and firefighters battling wind and flames near this area. bridge is still burning tonight. chp says it will be closed until at legislature tomorrow afternoon possibly longer. keep in mind this is the main link between los angeles and las vegas. workers already tearing down the bridge. cal trans says speed limit parts custom made and hard to replace that means work will take 6 months. a mess. >> drought conditions have led local leaders in the east bay to implement tough water limits starting tomorrow. the san ramone service district a

the faa since ordered changes to the runway layout. >> the common theme is we have a lot of aircraft in high density air space. >> reporter: april 25th northeast of kona, hawaii, a united 757 on a collision course, flying at 33,000 feet, 600 miles an hour when their collision avoid dance alarms went off. the united plane dove 600 feet to avoid a head-on. controllers mistakenly put both planes at the same altitude. they are looking at the role veteran or new controllers played. >> if the humans are making the same errors over and over again, we need to look deeper and say, is there a procedure problem? >> reporter: despite the involvement of controllers, the faa sees no similarities with any of these incidents, but it is looking at whether the large number of retiring controllers is in any way a contributing factor to the problem. brian? >> tom costello in washington tonight. thanks. >>> bowing to pressure, donald sterling agreed to surrenderer his stake in the la clippers to his wife. sources are telt -- telling nbc news, shelley sterling is moving forward with the sale of the team.