TYB
Network Rail trials revolutionary approach to aerial operations with British drone companies
Monday 31 Mar 2025
Network Rail and partners Drone Major Limited and Dronecloud have begun trials of “beyond visual line of sight” aerial operations on the railway to test a concept that could bring major improvements for passengers and rail freight customers.
Beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drones have the technology to cover many more miles of track than their Visual Line of Sight equivalents, filling the gap between standard drones and the Network Rail helicopter*.
With delays from trespass becoming one of the most significant causes of disruption on the railway – with over 1.5 million minutes since April 2024 – drones offer a game-changing speed of response.
Similarly, the potential to survey the railway safely from above means Network Rail’s maintenance colleagues could be directed to potential faults quickly, rather than being forced to walk miles along the railway to find them, exposing them to risk and delaying any fixes.
Two trials are underway with the aim of establishing protocols for the safe operation of BVLOS drones on the network and achieve Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) approval for their wider use.
In Birmingham, Network Rail’s Rail Operating Centre has a drone operations centre set up by Dronecloud to provide aerial coverage of the network around the city for incident response and general infrastructure monitoring.
Set up in partnership with drone operator RUAS alongside drone manufacturers Velos Motors & Evolve, the Operating Centre has CAA permission to cover a range of 10km in the area.
The service has already provided its worth after intervening in an incident at Birmingham New Street last year, saving passengers cumulatively hours of disruption by responding quickly.
While the system is being trialled, the drone has to be monitored visually by observers on its flights, although the operator remains at the control point.
Should CAA approval be received – hopefully later this year – the drone will be allowed to fly truly Beyond Visual Line of Sight.
Meanwhile, in Wolverhampton and on the private Severn Valley Railway, Drone Major and Network Rail are trialling a system called Digital Tethering™ to allow for BVLOS drone operations in areas with poor GPS/GNSS (Global Positioning System/Global Navigation Satellite System) coverage.
Both solutions offer faster response to operational incidents while assuring the safety of trains and people on the ground, and safety and privacy for lineside neighbours.
The aim is to gain CAA approval for both aspects so they can be offered to Network Rail regions for use on the railway.
https://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/news/network-rail-trials-revolutionary-approach-to-aerial-operations-with-british-drone-companies
Overnight Drone Attack on Kharkiv Damages Civilian Infrastructure
Mar. 31, 2025, 9:10 am
In the early hours of March 31, Russian forces launched a massive attack on Kharkiv, Ukraine’s. According to the city’s mayor, Ihor Terekhov, all enemy kamikaze drones targeted the city’s Kyivsky district.
The strikes caused fires, and emergency services are working at the scenes. As of 5:55 a.m., a sixth explosion had been reported – preliminarily, again in the same area.
Kharkiv is Ukraine’s second-largest city, located in the northeast of the country, approximately 40 kilometers from the Russian border.
It is a major industrial, scientific, and cultural hub that had a population of over 1.4 million people before the full-scale invasion.
In Kharkiv, two people suffered acute stress reactions and were provided with the necessary assistance, Terekhov reported.
The facade and windows of one educational facility were damaged, windowpanes in nearby high-rise buildings were shattered, and several private vehicles were affected.
“As a result of the blast wave, window glazing in nearby apartment buildings was damaged,” he said.
Russian forces regularly strike Ukrainian regions using various types of weaponry – including attack drones, missiles, guided aerial bombs (KABs), and multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS).
Despite overwhelming evidence and documented cases of attacks on civilian infrastructure, the Russian leadership officially denies that its army deliberately targets civilian populations and infrastructure.
In reality, however, strikes often hit hospitals, schools, kindergartens, energy facilities, water systems, and residential areas – resulting in civilian casualties and widespread destruction.
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/49878
https://t.me/kharkiv_1654/115479
Drone attack. Russians complain about explosions in Kaluga region
Today at 09:40
On the night of March 31, residents of the Kaluga region of the Russian Federation heard loud explosions due to a drone attack.
Shaykivka airfield could have been attacked by drones
The Armed Forces of Ukraine attacked the Kaluga region, according to local residents who heard loud explosions in the sky over Shaykivka at night.
There is an airfield in the village of Shaykivka. There is currently no information about casualties or damage.
The Ministry of Defense of the aggressor country announced that 24 UAVs were allegedly destroyed last night in the Kaluga region, there were no casualties or damage.
An operational group is working on the site.
https://news.online.ua/en/drone-attack-russians-complain-about-explosions-in-kaluga-region-892131/
https://t.me/shot_shot/79149
Mysterious black ring hovers over Seattle—Smoke, UFO, or Supercross stunt?
Mar 31, 2025, 7:27 AM | Updated: 9:27 am
A strange phenomenon appeared on the Seattle skyline Sunday when a near-black cloud-like ring hovered over Lumen Field and downtown Seattle.
“Some believe it’s a UFO, while others think it could be smoke or a rare weather phenomenon,” Seattlesubmissions1, an Instagram account dedicated to the Emerald City with more than 160,000 followers, wrote Sunday alongside a brief gallery of user-submitted photos.
“Have ya’ll seen Nope?” one Instagram user commented. Others commented that it is connected to SpaceX or Elon Musk specifically.
KIRO Newsradio traffic reporter Chris Sullivan posted a video on X of the dark ring formation.
A meteorologist from the National Weather Service confirmed with KIRO Newsradio that they are aware of the unusual black ring, but it was not related to any weather phenomenon.
“It was nothing atmospheric related or meteorology related in terms of what we know, what occurred naturally in the atmosphere or nothing that we saw on satellite,” Jeff Michalski, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Seattle, said.
“This looks like it was all due to the event that was going at Lumen Field.”
Many witnesses agreed, commenting it could be connected to pyrotechnics used during the Supercross Championship, which was held at Lumen Field.
“I was gonna post that cause I was at the Supercross thing and make people think it’s an alien ship,” one Instagram user wrote.
“ITS NOT ALIENS OR ANYTHING ITS A RING OF SMOKE FROM THE MONSTER ENERGY SUPERCROSS.”
https://mynorthwest.com/pacific-northwest-weather/black-ring-seattle-ufo/4069990
https://twitter.com/NEWSGUYSULLY/status/1906717489771536498
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The Coinage Act of 1792: Meaning, History, Requirements
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/the-coinage-act-of-1972.asp
Spider eggs on Mars? NASA scientists spot strange, mysterious object on Red Planet
30 Mar 2025 09:23 IST
Scientists, with the help of NASA's Perseverance Mars rover, found a strange object on the Red Planet.
The object looks like a cluster of hundreds of spider eggs. In a statement, the US-based space agency said that last week, the Perseverance Science Team was shocked by a strange rock comprised of hundreds of millimetre-sized spheres.
The team is now working hard to understand their origin and the mystery behind it.
NASA revealed that it has now been two weeks since Perseverance arrived at Broom Point, which is situated at the lower slopes of the Witch Hazel Hill area on the Jezero crater rim.
They said that a series of light-and-dark-toned bands were visible from orbit in the region. In fact, the rover successfully abraded and sampled one of the light-toned beds just last week.
The space agency said that Perseverance found the strange texture in a nearby rock from this sampling workspace.
NASA informed that the rock has been named "St. Pauls Bay" by the team. It appeared to be comprised of hundreds of millimetre-sized, dark grey spheres.
Some of the spheres occurred as more elongated, elliptical shapes, while others possessed angular edges, perhaps representing broken spherule fragments.
Some spheres even possessed tiny pinholes. Scientists are stunned by what geological process could produce these strange shapes.
Strange objects on Mars
This is not the first time scientists have spotted strange-looking objects on Mars as the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity spotted so-called, "Martian Blueberries" at Meridiani Planum in 2004.
The Curiosity rover has observed spherules in the rocks of Yellowknife Bay at Gale crater.
In 2024, Perseverance found popcorn-like textures in sedimentary rocks exposed in the Jezero crater inlet channel, Neretva Vallis.
Perseverance Mars rover
The Perseverance Mars rover has been exploring Mars since its landing on February 18, 2021.
Its main goal is to search for signs of ancient microbial life and collect samples of rock and regolith for a possible return to Earth.
The rover is equipped with seven instruments, including a radar system called RIMFAX. It also has a robotic arm with a turret that can analyze geologic samples from the Martian surface.
Perseverance landed in the Jezero crater, which scientists believe was once flooded with water and home to an ancient river delta.
The crater is about 28 miles wide and is located on the western edge of a flat plain called Isidis Planitia.
https://www.wionews.com/science-tech/spider-eggs-on-mars-nasa-scientists-spot-strange-mysterious-object-on-red-planet-see-close-up-image-8905669
https://www.ufonews.co/post/david-grusch-takes-center-stage-will-his-new-role-unlock-uap-secrets
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SX6QdLWA30
David Grusch Takes Center Stage: Will His New Role Unlock UAP Secrets?
March 30, 2025
David Grusch, the former intelligence officer who captured public attention with his extraordinary claims about Pentagon UFO programs, has stepped into a significant new role as special advisor to Representative Eric Burlison.
This strategic appointment comes after Grusch’s headline-making Congressional testimony in July 2023 and represents a potential turning point in governmental transparency regarding UFOs.
The timing of his four-month appointment is particularly noteworthy as it coincides with Representative Anna Paulina Luna’s efforts to organize a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) meeting that would bring together key figures in the UAP disclosure movement, including Grusch, former Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP) director Luis Elizondo, and officials from the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO).
Unfortunately, the meetings remains in the planning stages as of March 2025, with no confirmation yet of the meeting having taken place.
The reinstatement of Grusch’s security clearance plays a central role in his ability to function effectively in this new position.
His clearance was not active during his July 2023 Congressional testimony, but Representative Burlison successfully advocated for its renewal, passing an amendment specifically encouraging this action.
By November 2023, the reinstatement process had been completed, providing Grusch with the necessary credentials to access classified information relevant to his advisory role.
This development significantly enhances his capability to guide Congressional investigations into the matters he has previously brought to light.
As noted by investigative journalist Ross Coulthart, Grusch’s appointment places him in a unique position to directly influence the direction and depth of Congressional inquiries into UAP-related matters.
His insider knowledge allows him to advise lawmakers on precisely what information to request regarding UAPs, potentially steering his previous investigations toward more concrete outcomes.
Representative Burlison’s dual positions on both the House Oversight Committee and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) subcommittee create multiple avenues through which Grusch’s claims about alleged secret Pentagon programs can be investigated, increasing the potential for meaningful oversight.
The substance of Grusch’s previous claims remains startling in its implications for our understanding of non-human intelligence.
In a June 2023 interview with News Nation, he asserted that the United States possesses “quite a number” of non-human vehicles that might originate from extra dimensions rather than necessarily from other planets.
Although Grusch has acknowledged never personally witnessing non-human intelligence, he maintains he has been convinced by testimonies from witnesses he considers highly credible.
His public statements have also referenced potentially concerning UAP activity, including incidents involving nuclear site probing, and he has alluded to “agreements that could jeopardize the future,” though he has noted that specific details remain classified.
Central to Grusch’s allegations is the existence of crash retrieval programs specifically designed to recover what he terms “non-human origin technical vehicles.”
He has described elaborate reverse engineering efforts focused on these recovered materials and has claimed that his requests to access these programs were denied, leading to what he characterizes as reprisals against him.
During his Congressional hearing, Grusch confirmed the existence of “multi-decade programs” involving specific corporations and what he described as funding misappropriations.
The materials recovered in these programs, according to Grusch, possess unusual properties, including anomalous isotopic ratios and heavy atomic metals.
He has also expressed concern about workers involved in handling these materials suffering injuries due to nuclear, radiological, and biological risks, suggesting that academic research could benefit substantially from access to these materials.
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Grusch’s public statements have referenced several specific UAP cases that he considers significant.
He has discussed the 1947 Roswell incident, claiming that multiple witnesses observed recovered bodies and dismissing the Air Force’s 1994 report on the matter as a “total hack job.”
He has also mentioned a 1933 recovery in Magenta, Italy, allegedly the first such recovery in Europe, which involved a partially intact vehicle documented by Mussolini’s regime.
The 1967 Malmstrom Air Base incident, where UAPs reportedly tampered with nuclear missiles and shut down 10 ICBMs, figures prominently in his accounts as well.
Beyond these historical cases, Grusch has suggested the existence of numerous UAP videos beyond the three declassified in 2020, with some purportedly showing spacecraft of extraordinary size.
The formal beginning of Grusch’s journey as a whistleblower dates to May 2022, when he filed a PPD-19 urgent concern with the intelligence community inspector general.
This report detailed what he described as a “multi-decade UAP crash retrieval and reverse engineering program” to which he had been denied access.
The personal cost of these actions has been significant, as he claims to have faced “very brutal” professional and personal retaliation.
Over a four-year period leading up to his public statements, Grusch interviewed more than 40 witnesses and collected what he considers compelling evidence, including photography, official documentation, and classified oral testimony.
He has reported providing specific locations to the Inspector General and intelligence committees during approximately 11.5 hours of testimony.
The seriousness with which he views these matters is underscored by his expressed fears for his life and claims of knowledge regarding others who have been harmed in what he characterizes as government cover-up efforts.
A significant challenge facing Grusch and other potential whistleblowers in this field involves navigating the complex web of government classification systems.
According to experts familiar with these systems, a four-month investigation timeframe — which aligns with the duration of Grusch’s current appointment — provides insufficient opportunity to navigate the complex clearance requirements and access protocols necessary for comprehensive disclosure.
The Department of Energy operates under its own classification system, separate from standard military and intelligence frameworks, making oversight significantly more difficult than with other federal agencies.
Under the Atomic Energy Act, information about atomic weapons, special nuclear material (SNM) like uranium-235 or plutonium, or their use in energy production would be classified as Restricted Data (RD).
If UAP materials involve SNM or nuclear technology, they would likely fall under this designation, classified from the start as “Born Secret.”
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Congressional oversight committees face their own challenges in this arena, with members sometimes mistakenly believing their security clearances grant broader access than they actually do.
Even possessing Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) clearance alongside Department of Energy Q clearance still requires specific need-to-know authorization for particular Special Access Programs (SAPs) and Restricted Data.
This layered system of access restrictions creates substantial barriers to disclosure, even for individuals with seemingly high-level security clearances.
Advocates like former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Christopher Mellon have argued that much of this information could be declassified without compromising national security.
However, success requires precise identification of which policies require amendment — a task that has proven challenging for lawmakers without specialized knowledge of classification systems.
The practical significance of Grusch’s appointment becomes clear when considering Representative Burlison’s comments about Grusch’s value in helping lawmakers ask the right questions.
In an interview with NewsNation, Burlison emphasized that Grusch would lead the team in formulating appropriate inquiries. For representatives like Luna or Burlison, who may possess limited specialized knowledge about UAP matters, determining the correct questions to ask in specific contexts presents a substantial challenge.
Grusch’s expertise and insider perspective can fill these knowledge gaps, potentially enabling more productive investigations despite the limited timeframe available.
As the UAP disclosure movement continues to evolve, Grusch remains a pivotal figure whose claims represent both the potential for breakthrough revelations and the persistent challenges of navigating highly classified government programs.
The planned SCIF meeting between Grusch, Elizondo, and AARO representatives could mark a significant step forward in this ongoing process, potentially bringing together key figures with diverse perspectives on the UAP phenomenon and the classification systems that have kept much of this information from public view.
Whether Grusch’s appointment will lead to substantial new disclosures remains to be seen, but his positioning within Representative Burlison’s team undoubtedly places him at the center of ongoing efforts to bring greater transparency to one of the most enduring mysteries of our time.
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>Tesla discovered how to send radio signals into deep space
HPSCI Ranking Member Himes on Grusch: “I took very seriously some of the allegations"
Mar 29, 2025
Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) — Ranking Member, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI)
Does the name ‘David Grusch’ ring a bell to you?
Key Himes:
“Yeah, yeah,” Rep. Jim Himes exclusively tells Ask a Pol.
What do you make of one of your colleagues — Eric Burlison — hiring him on staff?
“Oh, I didn’t know that was happening,” Himes says.*
HIMES v. GRUSCH:
“I don’t have particular thoughts on Grusch,” Himes says.
“I took very seriously some of the allegations he had and AARO (All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office) and others investigated, and I don't see any evidence that there was any sweeping of things under the carpet.
I asked specific questions about his specific testimony, and a lot of what he had was, first of all, hearsay, if you will.
It wasn’t his personal experience. And secondly, a lot of this is misinterpretation of real things.”
Air Force “programs that contemplate the possibility that there could be anomalous materials”
“For example, the Air Force has programs and others have programs that contemplate the possibility that there could be anomalous materials or whatever,” Himes tells us.
“To date, I have seen no evidence that any of these programs actually have any evidence whatsoever of any UAP, unusual materials, unusual life forms, etc.”
Caught our ear:
“I have a question for you,” Himes says when he sees Laslo.
“What is it?”
“Can you think of a better rock anthem than the Cranberries’ Zombie?” the HPSCI Ranking Member asks Ask a Pol. “Seriously, it’s like stuck in my head right now.”
“I’ve got Taylor Swift stuck in my head, because NPR played it,” Laslo replies. “I swear, NPR can really throw off your day.”*
*Himes won this round of music roulette, but we’re already plotting revenge…
Ask a Pol Army strikes fear:
Honorable Mention I
“It's been a couple months since I thought about this, and your audience hangs on every word, so I've got to be pretty careful about this,” Himes says.
Honorable Mention II
I think people are gonna be surprised that you know Grusch’s name and that you've looked into it.
“No, he was pretty high profile,” Himes tells us. “And you know, though I'm not always happy about it, the UAP folks are, as the young ones say, in my DMs.”
https://www.askapoluaps.com/p/himes-investigated-grusch-allegations
https://truthsocial.com/@mattlasloreal
Doug Collins - United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs | SRS #187
March 31, 2025
Doug Collins is the 12th United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs, sworn in on February 5, 2025.
A Republican with a track record of public service, Collins served as U.S. Representative for Georgia’s 9th district (2013–2021) and in the Georgia House (2007–2013).
An Air Force Reserve chaplain since 2002, he deployed to Iraq in 2008 and was promoted to colonel in 2023.
With a Master of Divinity and a Juris Doctor, Collins combines faith, law, and military experience in his mission to overhaul the VA by focusing on efficiency, transparency, and veteran care.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaf4rIqIUpU