PUSH TO ATTEND IMPORTANT MEETING PROBABLY COST RICHARD ROCKEFELLER HIS LIFE IN JUNE, 2014 CRASH–SAFETY BOARD

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PROBABLE CAUSE OF  ROCKEFELLER PLANE CRASH DETERMINED
by
Peter Katz
Special to WPCNR –
The National Transportation Safety Board has determined the Probable Cause of the accident at White Plains, NY, in which Richard Rockefeller, the son of David Rockefeller and great-grandson of John D. Rockefeller was killed.
The accident occurred on Friday, June 13, 2014. The NTSB’s investigation revealed that Rockefeller arrived at the airport on the morning of the accident and requested that his airplane be brought outside and prepared for an immediate departure; this occurred 1 hour 15 minutes before his scheduled departure time.
Radar data showed that the airplane departed 23 minutes later. According to air traffic control data, shortly thereafter, the ground and departure controllers contacted the tower controller and asked if the airplane had departed yet; the tower controller responded, “I have no idea. We have zero visibility.”
Weather conditions about the time of the accident included a 200-ft overcast ceiling with about 1/4-mile visibility.Only five radar targets identified as the accident airplane were captured, and all of the targets were located over airport property. The first three radar targets began about midpoint of the 6,500-feet-long runway, and each of these targets was at an altitude of about 60 feet above ground level (agl).
The final two targets showed the airplane in a shallow right turn, consistent with the published departure procedure track, at altitudes of 161 and 261 feet agl, respectively. The final radar target was about 1/2 mile from the accident site. Witnesses reported observing the airplane impact trees in a wings-level, slightly right-wing-down attitude at high speed. Examination of the wreckage revealed no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or anomalies of the airplane.
The pilot’s personal assistant reported that the pilot had an important meeting that required his attendance on the day of the accident flight. His early arrival to the airport and his request to have the airplane prepared for an immediate departure were actions consistent with self-induced pressure to complete the flight.
Due to the poor weather conditions, which were expected to continue or worsen, he likely felt pressure to expedite his departure to ensure he was able to make it to his destination and to attend the meeting. This pressure may have further affected his ability to discern the risk associated with departing in low-visibility and low-ceiling conditions.
As noted, the weather conditions were so poor that the local air traffic controller stated that he could not tell whether the airplane had departed.
Such weather conditions are highly conducive to the development of spatial disorientation.
Further, the altitude profile depicted by the radar data and the airplane’s near wings-level attitude and high speed at impact were consistent with the pilot experiencing a form of spatial disorientation known as “somatogravic illusion,” in which the pilot errantly perceives the airplane’s acceleration as increasing pitch attitude, and efforts to hold the nose down or arrest the perception of increasing pitch attitude can exacerbate the situation.
Such an illusion can be especially difficult to overcome because it typically occurs at low altitudes after takeoff, which provides little time for recognition and subsequent corrective inputs, particularly in very low-visibility conditions.
The NTSB determined that the probable cause(s) of this accident was Richard Rockefeller’s failure to maintain a positive climb rate after takeoff due to spatial disorientation (somatogravic illusion). Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s self-induced pressure to depart and his decision to depart in low-ceiling and low-visibility conditions.
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Hutch Traffic Another Reason to Say NO on FASNY. Duration of Project 10 Years Not 8 (2 Year Break in Construction)

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THE LETTER TICKER. JULY 15, 2015:

Dear Mayor and Common Council,
Our thanks to Senator Chuck Schumer for coming up all the way from Washington, DC, or from Brooklyn, on Tuesday, July 7th, to draw attention to Westchester having some of the most dangerous parkways in NYS. . .and for singling out the Hutchinson River Parkway at Mamaroneck Avenue as having one of the worst accident records.  Mayor Roach was also at the news conference as Traffic Safety is one of his priorities.
(Editor’s Note: Senator Schumer announced yesterday in a news conference to which WPCNR was not invited, more money for Westchester County Police to enforce traffic rules on Westchester roads, one of the roads cited is the Hutchinson River Parkway.)
We’ll take all the help we can if it makes Traffic safer.  Our only concern is that at times our Washington politicians are good at identifying problems that we all know about. . .then recommending task forces, audits and committees that spend money that our government doesn’t have. . .and in the end citizens rarely see any real solutions.  So we’ll help our friends in Washington out with a heads-up. . .the problem with the Hutchinson River Parkway and accident rates is. . .there are just “too many cars with distracted drivers” on the Hutch particularly during the AM and PM commute times.    
As background the Hutch is a 2-lane winding highway in each direction with few shoulder or emergency lanes.  It was designed back in the 1920’s, around the same time as the old Ridgeway Golf Course, and like many of our neighborhood streets in the Southend of WP, the Hutch was never designed for the larger and wider vehicles of today. . .nor the volume of traffic that travels on the Hutch each day.
Our view from 40+ years of living in Westchester County is that the number of cars on the Hutch appears to have doubled or tripled particularly during the AM and PM commutes. . . leading us to a simple formula:  More cars + More Distracted Drivers = More Accidents.   If Senator Schumer figures out a way to reduce the number of cars traveling on the Hutch in the AM or PM commutes. . .we’ll most likely see the accident numbers go down.
We wonder if anyone has informed Senator Schumer that while he is trying to study the current Traffic situation to help reduce future accidents. . .that the City of White Plains has been reviewing a FASNY Project for the past 4+ years. . .that if approved will add another 2,000 Vehicle Trips each day to the current Hutch levels. . .as well as to the current WP daily Traffic in our Southend of WP?
After reading the City’s recent Agenda Packet. . .we all know that FASNY’s 950 proposed student cap is only lasting a few short years. . .so it can’t be considered real mitigation.  And with FASNY’s decision to create a North Street Entrance their increased volume of Traffic will create worse conditions for WP students, seniors and other citizens in the Southend.
The WP School Board had to step in to express their displeasure with FASNY Traffic and the North Street Entrance. . .yet the recent Agenda Packet did not include any offsetting mitigation for the Traffic problems pointed out by the School Board.  It’s also hard to believe that FASNY’s own Traffic advisors were trying to direct more FASNY Traffic onto North Street and Mamaroneck Avenue Intersections of the Hutch that Senator Schumer is now complaining about. 
If Councilman Kirkpatrick is right about FASNY’s success and potential future growth. . .FASNY’s Traffic numbers will be so high that we may have our own Times Square-type gridlock and NYC accident levels in the Southend of the City!
Sadly for the residents of the Southend there has been no “permanent” mitigation on FASNY’s Traffic. . . so if approved FASNY will bring. . .out-of-town Distracted Parents or their Uber Drivers rushing to school. . .mores Student Drivers. . . and FASNY Buses. . .resulting in More Accidents to our City just on a volume basis.  Our FASNY Traffic formula for White Plains is:  the More FASNY Students and Staff + the More FASNY Cars and Buses  = the More WP Accidents 
 
FASNY’s immitigable Traffic situation, like FASNY’s wrong selection of our residential area for their regional school campus and FASNY’s continued misinterpretations of our Comprehensive Plan, Special Permit process and other WP laws. . .all should have been known by FASNY upfront. . .if FASNY had done a proper due diligence before they closed on their purchase of the old golf course.
Didn’t the Court of Appeals case Clark v. Board of Zoning Appeals of Town of Hempstead rule that it was the responsibility of a developer, like FASNY, to find out upfront about potential Traffic problems or Zoning and Special Permit nuances. . .and if they didn’t find out upfront because of their own incomplete due diligence. . .then the developer, FASNY, is still responsible and at fault?
The bottom line is that after 4+ years of numerous FASNY plan changes, including the failed choice of the North Street Entrance and the Closure of Hathaway Lane. . .FASNY’s Traffic situation is actually worse, has not been mitigated and will likely be a greater problem going forward if Councilman’s Kirkpatrick’s projections come true.
Thanks for your concern.
Team Rhodes
Marie and Ron Rhodes
P.S.   We have to inform you that we made a mistake in our prior email. . .when we reported that in the Agenda Packet FASNY’s Construction was reduced from 10 years down to 8 years.
In rereading the Agenda Packet. . .FASNY’s Construction is still Phase I with 4 years, a 2-year break, then Phase II with another 4 years of building for a total 10-year Construction period.  Either way 8 or 10 years of Construction in a residential neighborhood is not the right thing to do. . .and the important thing we wanted to bring to your attention now is. . .just like with Traffic. . .with Construction. . .there has not been any mitigation presented by FASNY or their City Enablers.
Unfortunately we got misled by the June 29th 261-print page Agenda Packet, like the City’s prior 152-print page SEQR Findings Report of December 19, 2013, that was released for Public review. . .without Executive Summaries. . .without Listings of Major Project Changes with page numbers. . .and without Table of Contents or Indexes.  Releasing reports that are funded with Public tax payments. . .without any helpful links or ways for Council members and residents to access and quickly understand key changes. . .is really a sign of disrespect. . . shows a lack of transparency. . .and is just not professional.
Isn’t it time for Council  members to take control of the large developer review process to make it more transparent and professional. . .as we all know the current review process with FASNY surely hasn’t worked. . .and hasn’t been fair to Council members who serve part-time or to the citizens of White Plains?
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Bad Check Ring Cracked by D.A.

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WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. From the Office of the Westchester District Attorney. July 14, 2015

Westchester County District Attorney Janet DiFiore announced that Sire Lewis (DOB 07/27/84) of 1 Glenwood Avenue, Yonkers, New York, was arraigned today on a Felony Complaint charging him with:

  • one count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, a class “C” Felony,
  • one count of Criminal Possession of a Forgery Device, a class “D” Felony,
  • twenty two counts of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Second Degree, class “D” Felonies.

As part of a year long investigation into complaints by business owners of fraudulent checks being cashed, the District Attorneys office determined that this defendant used a number of women as “mules”, sometimes dressed in hospital scrubs to allay suspicion, to cash fraudulent checks containing stolen account information from businesses in the metropolitan area. He would then promise the mules a percentage of the cashed check.

The defendant gained access to a company’s account information, then created forgeries using the stolen account number and had a mule go to various banks to cash the forged checks.

Based on a multi jurisdictional investigation and surveillance, a warrant was obtained and executed at the defendant’s residence.

The defendant had twenty-two forged business checks purporting to be drawn on the business checking accounts of Dependable Ambulette Inc. located in Valley Stream, Long Island and AK International Architectural Wood of Whitestone, Queens on his person.

In addition the defendant possessed various check forging paraphernalia including:

  • hundreds of pages of blank check stock,
  • Epson DS30 Scanner,
  • Versacheck Check Writing Software discs,
  • HP Desk Jet 2540 printer, copier and scanner,
  • Dell Laptop attached to an HP LaserJet P1102W containing blank check stock in the document feeder,
  • approximately $6,000 in US Currency.

In addition, the defendant had secreted in his apartment a .38 caliber Charter Arms handgun stolen from Hampton, Virginia.

The defendant was arrested by investigators from the District Attorneys office with the assistance of the Yonkers police.

He was arraigned today in Yonkers City Court and remanded.

The defendant’s next appearance will be on August 18th, 2015.

The defendant faces a maximum sentence of fifteen years prison.

Assistant District Attorney Steven Vandervelden, Chief of the Organized Crime and Criminal Enterprise Bureau and Assistant District Attorney Cheryl Lee of the Identity Theft Unity are prosecuting the case.

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