The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine accidents, pipeline incidents, bridge failures, and railroad accidents. The NTSB is also in charge of investigating cases of hazardous materials releases that occur during transportation. The agency is based in Washington, D.C. It has four regional offices, located in Anchorage, Alaska; Denver, Colorado; Ashburn, Virginia; and Seattle, Washington. The agency also operates a national training center at its Ashburn facility.
A self-driving car, also known as an autonomous car (AC), driverless car, robotic car or robo-car, is a car that is capable of operating with reduced or no human input. Self-driving cars are responsible for all driving activities including perceiving the environment, monitoring important systems, and controlling the vehicle, including navigating from origin to destination.
Tesla, Inc. is an American multinational automotive and clean energy company headquartered in Austin, Texas, which designs, manufactures and sells electric vehicles, stationary battery energy storage devices from home to grid-scale, solar panels and solar shingles, and related products and services.
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (USCSB), generally referred to as the Chemical Safety Board (CSB), is an independent U.S. federal agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the agency's board members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the United States Senate. The CSB conducts root cause investigations of chemical accidents at fixed industrial facilities.
Mary Louise "Missy" Cummings is an American academic who is a professor at Duke University and director of Duke's Humans and Autonomy Laboratory. She was one of the United States Navy's first female fighter pilots. In November 2021, Dr. Cummings joined the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). She currently teaches at George Mason University.
Mark Victor Rosenker was an American aviation official who served as the 11th chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) from August 2006 through August 2008. He was nominated by President George W. Bush and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Chairman Rosenker was renominated by President Bush for a second term as chair and was going through the Senate confirmation process, which basically ended when President Obama was elected in November 2008. He served as acting chair starting in March 2005 to August 2006 and then again from August 2008 until his resignation from the board in August 2009, when he returned to private life. He died on September 26, 2020, from brain cancer at the age of 73.
Alvin Brown is an American politician from Florida who served as mayor of Jacksonville, Florida, from 2011 to 2015. He was the first African American to be elected to that position. Brown succeeded John Peyton as mayor after winning the 2011 mayoral election. In the 2015 race, he lost his re-election bid to Republican Lenny Curry.
Jerome Hayden "Jay" Powell is an American attorney and investment banker who has served since 2018 as the 16th chair of the Federal Reserve.
Robert Llewellyn Sumwalt III is an American academic, aviator, government official and writer. He was a board member of the National Transportation Safety Board for over 15 years, from August 2006 to June 30, 2021, serving as the agency's chairman from 2017 to 2021. He currently serves as the executive director of Embry-Riddle's Boeing Center for Aviation and Aerospace Safety.
Deborah A.P. Hersman is a former board member of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board who served as its 12th chairman. She completed two terms as chairman and was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on October 16, 2013, for a third term. On March 11, 2014, she announced she would join the National Safety Council as its president and CEO. She is currently the chief safety officer at Waymo.
Christopher A. Hart is an American lawyer, government official, and pilot. He served as the 13th chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board. He served as Acting NTSB Chairman beginning April 26, 2014, and in June 2014 was nominated by President Barack Obama to serve as Chairman of the NTSB. He was confirmed to serve as chairman on February 5, 2015. Robert Sumwalt succeeded him as chairman in August 2017.
Isabel Andrews Burgess was an American politician and public official from Phoenix, Arizona, who is known for her contributions to transportation safety at the federal level, including her tenure on the National Transportation Safety Board.
Tesla Autopilot is an advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS) developed by Tesla that amounts to partial vehicle automation. Tesla provides "Base Autopilot" on all vehicles, which includes lane centering and traffic-aware cruise control. Owners may purchase an upgrade to "Enhanced Autopilot" (EA) which adds semi-autonomous navigation on limited access roadways, self-parking, and the ability to summon the car from a garage or parking spot. The company claims the features reduce accidents caused by driver negligence and fatigue from long-term driving. Collisions and deaths involving Tesla cars with Autopilot engaged have drawn the attention of the press and government agencies.
The sinking of MV Conception occurred on September 2, 2019, when the 75-foot (23 m) dive boat caught fire and eventually sank off the coast of Santa Cruz Island, California, United States. The boat was anchored overnight at Platts Harbor, a small undeveloped bay on the island's north shore, with 33 passengers and 1 crew member asleep below decks when a fire broke out shortly after 3 a.m. Five crew members, whose sleeping quarters were on the top deck, survived while everyone else on board died. The crew members were forced by the fire to jump overboard but not before placing an initial mayday call to the Coast Guard and attempting to alert the passengers. The crew retrieved the Conception's skiff and motored to a nearby boat where a second radio dispatch was made. The rescue and recovery operations were coordinated by the United States Coast Guard.
Tesla, Inc. has been criticized for its cars, workplace culture, business practices, and occupational safety. Many of the criticisms are also directed toward Elon Musk, the company's CEO and Product Architect. Critics have also accused Tesla of deceptive marketing, unfulfilled promises, and fraud. The company is currently facing criminal and civil investigations into its self-driving claims. Critics have highlighted Tesla's downplaying of issues, and Tesla's alleged retaliation against several whistleblowers.
Katherine Andrea Lemos is an American safety professional and the former chairperson and CEO of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB).
Elon Musk's Crash Course is a 2022 New York Times–FX documentary film directed and produced by Emma Schwartz with reporting by Cade Metz and Neal Boudette. The documentary explores the promises made by Tesla's CEO Elon Musk in regards to self-driving cars and contrasts that with the fatal accidents that have occurred using the technology.
On June 27, 2022, the Southwest Chief, a passenger train operated by Amtrak, derailed near the small town of Mendon, Missouri. The derailment was caused by the train striking a dump truck that was obstructing the crossing of County Road 113, about three miles (4.8 km) southwest of Mendon. Four people were killed in the wreck: three passengers on board the train and the truck driver, with up to 150 people injured.
