To: Spunk
.....about helicopters being a potential risk for nuclear power plants
I was hired by the Atomic Energy Agency base at Richland, Washington to determine the probability of a helicopter hitting the reactor building. The only helicopters in the area were two A-Stars, both of which were operated by pilots working for the Atomic Energy Commission.
I tried to convey the futility of the analysis but they insisted. I finally came up with the probability of 1 10 9 and they accepted that figure. I submitted my report and it took over six years of vetting and the report was never submitted to the Atomic Energy Commission who commissioned the report in the first place.
During that time they closed their aviation division so there were no more helicopters that could hit the reactor building. After 9-11 they reopened the aviation division and unless there was a pilot that was suicidal there never would be a collision between the helicopter and the reactor building or possibly, one time in 2,739,726 Years.
