PBS高端访谈:到目前为止,我们所了解到的俄罗斯客机失事事件

 　　GWEN IFILL: So, what do we know so far?

　　For more, I'm joined by Alan Diehl, a former investigator¹ for the National Transportation Safety Board, and the author of "Air Safety Investigators²: Using Science to Save Lives."Alan Diehl, I want to walk you through some of the theories we have heard so far today and which we heard just now in that tape. Let's talk first about the complete midair collision or failure. What is the possibility of that?

　　ALAN DIEHL, Former NTSB Investigator: Well, the wreckage³ — the wreckage location pattern suggests that there was some kind of inside breakup, but I don't think this happened at 31,000 feet, even though it spread over several miles.

　　That's a fairly tight pattern, and there's been report that the data was streaming as low as — down to as low as 5,000 feet. So the problem may have began at 31,000 feet, but I believe the aircraft was relatively⁴ intact down to lower altitudes, perhaps as low as 5,000 feet.

　　Now, we do know the tail is three miles from the main wreckage and there is other debris⁵ and bodies scattered⁶ in the area, but I don't think this aircraft came apart, like, for example, the Malaysia 17 flight did when it was hit by a large missile over Ukraine.

　　GWEN IFILL: So it's not consistent with a midair explosion, at least not at that height?

　　ALAN DIEHL: I would say not, Gwen.

　　But, of course, having done this 40 years, everything is very preliminary and I can only speculate. I think the Egyptians will do a very thorough job. We know that, oftentimes, people say this is like putting a jigsaw⁷ puzzle together. Only, many times, you don't have all the pieces.

　　I think we have got all the pieces right now. The recorders were in good shape. The Egyptians had analyzed⁸ those. I think that was why they discounted the missile strike theory. And, of course, the wreckage is in a desert area. This is not like the Ukrainian crash, where it was scattered over a very wide area. People were pilfering⁹ things, we think, and maybe even the rebels were removing things.

　　So I think we have got all the parts of this jigsaw puzzle, but it's going to take a little time for all the players to come together. It's not just the Russians that are doing the investigation¹⁰. We're using the Egyptians. We know there are five countries.

　　GWEN IFILL: Right.

　　ALAN DIEHL: And particularly with the French involved, I think we're going to get to the bottom of this, and fairly expeditiously¹¹.

　　GWEN IFILL: You mentioned the fact that the plane's tail was some distance away from a lot of the other wreckage.

　　There's also — there were also reports today that there had been damage to the plane's tail some years ago that had been repaired. What's the potential for some sort of weakness or metal stress and failure which would have created something this catastrophic?

　　ALAN DIEHL: Well, we have seen this before. In a 747 over Japan, the worst single aircraft accident in the history, killed 520 people, the tail came off, because a — they're called tail strikes. The aircraft tail bumps the ground on takeoff or landing.

　　So this is a real possibility. But, again, Gwen, they have the physical evidence, and the Egyptians seem to be doing a very good job of protecting that. I have noticed they have even put fences around the primary wreckage location.

　　So, the metallurgists will haul that tail back into the lab and, with electron microscopes and other techniques, establish whether this repair was done correctly or whether there was some sort of metal fatigue¹² involved or even a catastrophic failure for some other reason. I think we will get to the bottom of this when we have the evidence.

　　GWEN IFILL: Well, the black box, is that essential for us to find out whether maybe pilot error could have been involved?

　　ALAN DIEHL: Absolutely.

　　And, of course, as many people have said, everything is still on the table. Another thing that was very curious about this, and, again, these are initial reports confirmed I guess by the Egyptians, that the radar¹³ data suggested that the plane didn't just suddenly dive out of the sky from 31,000 feet, that it actually entered a series of undulations where it climbed and dived — dove a couple thousand feet before it made its final plunge¹⁴ toward the desert.

　　So, that could — we have seen this in the past with these highly automated¹⁵ aircraft, where pilots have been confused and perhaps shut down the wrong system. The automation is fed by other sensors¹⁶. And sometimes these sensors, like in the Air France accident in the South Atlantic, they — in essence, they're feeding erroneous data to the computers and the computers do things that cause the pilots to be confused and contribute to this.

　　Now, you can argue that's pilot error or design error. Take your pick. The lawyers will sort all that out in future years, I guess.

　　GWEN IFILL: Alan Diehl, aviation security consultant¹⁷, thank you for helping¹⁸ us.

　　ALAN DIEHL: Thank you, Gwen.

 

1 investigator   

n.研究者，调查者，审查者

参考例句：

• He was a special investigator for the FBI.他是联邦调查局的特别调查员。
• The investigator was able to deduce the crime and find the criminal.调查者能够推出犯罪过程并锁定罪犯。

2 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 wreckage   

n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏

参考例句：

• They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
• New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。

4 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

5 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

6 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

7 jigsaw   

n.缕花锯，竖锯，拼图游戏；vt.用竖锯锯，使互相交错搭接

参考例句：

• A jigsaw puzzle can keep me absorbed for hours.一副拼图就能让我沉醉几个小时。
• Tom likes to work on jigsaw puzzles,too.汤姆也喜欢玩拼图游戏。

8 analyzed   

v.分析( analyze的过去式和过去分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析

参考例句：

• The doctors analyzed the blood sample for anemia. 医生们分析了贫血的血样。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The young man did not analyze the process of his captivation and enrapturement, for love to him was a mystery and could not be analyzed. 这年轻人没有分析自己蛊惑著迷的过程，因为对他来说，爱是个不可分析的迷。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 pilfering   

v.偷窃（小东西），小偷( pilfer的现在分词 )；偷窃（一般指小偷小摸）

参考例句：

• He was caught pilfering. 他行窃时被抓个正着。
• Pilfering has stopped entirely since they put Angus in charge of the stores. 自从他们让安格斯掌管商店以来，小偷小摸就杜绝了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

11 expeditiously   

adv.迅速地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• They have to be evaluated expeditiously, carefully with the patient fully UNDRESSED. 我看过许多的枪伤患者，但是就只有阿扁的伤口没有上述情形，真是天佑台湾。 来自互联网
• We will expeditiously facilitate trade transactions with the utmost professionalism. 我们会尽快贸易便利化的交易与最大的专业水平。 来自互联网

12 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

13 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

14 plunge   

v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲

参考例句：

• Test pool's water temperature before you plunge in.在你跳入之前你应该测试水温。
• That would plunge them in the broil of the two countries.那将会使他们陷入这两国的争斗之中。

15 automated   

a.自动化的

参考例句：

• The entire manufacturing process has been automated. 整个生产过程已自动化。
• Automated Highway System (AHS) is recently regarded as one subsystem of Intelligent Transport System (ITS). 近年来自动公路系统(Automated Highway System,AHS)，作为智能运输系统的子系统之一越来越受到重视。

16 sensors   

n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句

17 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

18 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。