2017-02-15

Is it time for venerated pilot Harrison Ford to ground himself for less than

adequate judgment skills to act as Pilot In Command?

The runway is the one with the big "20L" painted on its near-end.

This ignominious incident is worse than Senator Inhoff's landing on a taxiway

because there was a big X on the runway. Old, bold pilots need to recognize

when they become a hazard, and move to the right seat.

================================================== ============
http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news...-228497-1.html

NBC: Harrison Ford Lands On Taxiway

By Mary Grady | February 14, 2017

NBC News reported Tuesday that Harrison Ford mistakenly landed his Husky on a

taxiway at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California, on Monday, after

flying above an American Airlines 737 full of 110 passengers and 6 crew. The

FAA told NBC that Ford was given correct landing instructions by ATC, and he

read them back. But he then flew above the 737 and asked controllers, "Was that

airliner meant to be underneath me?" The passenger plane, AA flight 1546,

“managed to depart safely for Dallas just minutes after the incident,” NBC News

reported.

Ford was cleared to land on runway 20L, which NBC noted is a narrow runway, but

instead he lined up on the paralel [sic] Taxiway C. The 737 was waiting for

takeoff at the edge of 20L, but it's not clear how close Ford's Husky

approached to the airliner. Ford’s representatives have made no comment in

response to NBC's requests for more information, the network said. Ford was

injured in a crash last March, when he landed his Ryan PT-22 on a Santa Monica

golf course. The NTSB's final report blamed the engine failure on the main

metering jet in the carburetor coming loose. Ford, 72, owns several aircraft

and has been involved in several other incidents and accidents. In 1999, he

made a hard landing on a riverbed, while flying a helicopter with an

instructor. In 2000, Ford damaged a Beech Bonanza during a landing. Nobody was

hurt in either incident.

Related Files: Airport Diagram
http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news...ne_diagram.php

================================================== =============

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017...nding-taxiway/

Harrison Ford nearly crashes plane again - this time into airliner before

landing on taxiway

Harrison Ford flying over Malibu with his yellow Aviat A-1C 20 plane in 2012

Credit: FameFlynet

David Lawler, Washington Nick Allen

15 February 2017 • 8:33am

Harrison Ford, who made his name as the swashbuckling pilot of the Millennium

Falcon in Star Wars, has been involved in a potentially serious run-in with a

passenger jet as he landed his small plane at an airport in California.

The Federal Aviation Administration has launched an investigation after Ford's

Aviat Husky flew over the airliner which was on the ground with passengers on

board.

Air traffic control recordings captured the Hollywood star asking "Was that

airliner meant to be underneath me?"

Harrison Ford

Harrison Ford Credit: Anthony Devlin/PA Wire

The 74-year-old Indiana Jones actor was then informed that he had not come down

on the runway he had been instructed to land on but on a taxiway at John Wayne

Airport in Orange County.

Air traffic controllers had cleared Ford for a landing on Runway 20L.

FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said: "The pilot correctly read back the clearance.

The pilot then landed on a taxiway that runs parallel to the runway overflying

a Boeing 737 that was holding short of the runway. The FAA is investigating."

Harrison Ford

A small plane owned by Harrison Ford is seen after crashing at the Penmar Golf

Course in Venice, California in 2015 Credit: Jonathan Alcorn/AFP

It was not clear how close Ford flew to the passenger jet.

The investigation could led to penalties for the pilot ranging from a warning

to a suspension of his licence.

The plane Ford flew over was an American Airlines flight bound for Dallas with

110 passengers and six crew on board.

American Airlines Flight 1456 departed safely for Dallas a few minutes later.

Harrison Ford

Harrison Ford in Star Wars: The Force Awakens Credit: Lucasfilm via AP

Ford collects vintage planes and has a long and good record as an aviator. But

he has had several incidents over the past two decades.

In March 2015 he was seriously injured when his Second World War-era trainer

crashed on a Los Angeles golf course when it lost power shortly after takeoff.

Ford was seriously injured in the crash, breaking his arm and suffering memory

loss. He was praised for avoiding densely populated areas nearby.

In 1999 he crash-landed his helicopter during a training flight in which he and

an instructor were practicing auto rotations in Ventura County, northwest of

Los Angeles. Ford and the instructor were unhurt.

He was flying a Beechcraft Bonanza in 2000 when wind shear forced him to make

an emergency landing at Lincoln Municipal Airport in Nebraska.

Ford and his passenger were uninjured when the plane clipped the runway, but

its wing tips were damaged, officials said.

The actor has also flown successful search and rescue missions including

helping to find a missing hiker and Boy Scout in Wyoming in 2001.

An award was named in his honour by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.

He was flying alone in his single engine Husky during the latest incident on

Monday.

Ford's publicist, Ina Treciokas, declined to comment.

================================================== ========================

http://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrit...gation-9819479

Harrison Ford 'sparks FAA investigation after landing his private plane on

taxiway instead of runway'

The Star Wars actor reportedly mistook a taxiway for a runway at John Wayne

Airport in California

ByLara Martin

21:59, 14 FEB 2017Updated22:06, 14 FEB 2017

Celebs

Harrison Ford

Harrison Ford (Photo: FameFlynet)

Harrison Ford has reportedly sparked an investigation in the US after

mistakenly landing his private plane on an airport taxiway instead of the

runway.

According to NBC News , the Indiana Jones actor was piloting his own plane and

had been instructed to land on a runway at John Wayne Airport in Orange County,

California, but instead aimed for a taxiway.

The 74-year-old’s plane is said to have passed over the top of a Boeing 737 jet

holding 110 passengers and six crew. The jet was reportedly able to take off

safely minutes later.

NBC News claims Ford asked air traffic control: "Was that airliner meant to be

underneath me?”

Harrison Ford stands on his helicopter during a serious check of his aircraft

before a take off from Santa Monica airport

Ford is said to have landed on a taxiway instead of a runway (Photo:

FameFlynet)

Harrison Ford stands on his helicopter during a serious check of his aircraft

before a take off from Santa Monica airport

Ford is a plane enthusiast (Photo: FameFlynet)

He was then informed he'd landed on the taxiway, not cleared runway.

A rep for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told Mirror Online that it

would not identity people involved in aircraft incidents.

The spokesperson told us: “Air traffic controllers cleared the pilot of a

single-engine Aviat Husky to land on Runway 20L at John Wayne Airport Monday

afternoon. The pilot correctly read back the clearance. The pilot then landed

on a taxiway that runs parallel to the runway, overflying a Boeing 737 that was

holding short of the runway.

“The FAA is investigating this incident.”

We have contacted a representative for Ford but have yet to hear back.

Harrison Ford stands on his helicopter during a serious check of his aircraft

before a take off from Santa Monica airport

Ford taking off from Santa Monica airport on 12 February (Photo: FameFlynet)

Star Wars actor Ford is known as an aircraft enthusiast and has held a private

pilot's license for many years.

He was injured in 2015 when his vintage private plane crashed into a Los

Angeles golf course after he reported engine failure to ground control shortly

after take off.

Ford, who is married to actress Calista Flockhart, performed an expert

emergency landing in the Second World War aircraft and escaped with a head

injury and broken leg.

Harrison Ford

Ford frequently talks about his love of flying (Photo: Getty)

He later told The Mirror: “I’ve been flying for 20 years and it was a very rare

thing to happen. It was a mechanical issue and no fault of the maintenance or

anyone else.”

Ford added of wife Calista: “My wife still supports me because she knows how

much it means to me. Maybe I am stupid, but I haven’t changed anything. I still

love flying.

“I started flying as soon as I could get back in my cockpit. I had a cast on my

right leg, but my toes were hanging out so I could put my toes over the pedals

and fly. I’ve been flying ever since.”

================================================== ========================

http://www.newsmax.com/TheWire/harri.../15/id/773739/

Harrison Ford Lands Plane on Taxiway, Flying Over Passenger Jet

Image: Harrison Ford Lands Plane on Taxiway, Flying Over Passenger Jet

Actor and pilot Harrison Ford speaks with the General Aviation Caucus on

Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, March 19, 2013. (Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)

By Clyde Hughes | Wednesday, 15 Feb 2017 09:59 AM

Harrison Ford is in hot water not with the Empire, but the Federal Aviation

Administration for an incident at John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California,

where the "Star Wars" actor reportedly landed his single-engine plane on a

taxiway while flying over a passenger airliner.

Air traffic controllers Monday afternoon allegedly cleared the pilot of an

Aviat Husky, later identified as Ford, to land on Runway 20L at the airport,

the Orange County Register reported.

"The pilot correctly read back the clearance," FAA spokesman Ian Gregor told

the Register. "The pilot then landed on a taxiway that runs parallel to the

runway, overflying a Boeing 737 that was holding short of the runway."

The newspaper reported that landing on a taxiway is a violation of FAA safety

rules.

"Any pilot who violates FAA regulations can face penalties ranging from a

warning letter to a license suspension or revocation," Gregor said, according

to the Register.

The airliner Ford passed was an American Airlines 737 carrying 110 passengers

and a six-person crew, NBC News reported.

Ford, 74, has been involved in a number of crashes and near-crashes connected

with his flying hobby over the years, NBC News noted. The actor crash-landed a

World War II-era airplane on a golf course in Santa Monica in 2015 after the

engine failed. In 1999, he crash-landed a helicopter in Ventura County,

California, during a flight lesson. The following year, while making an

emergency landing at the Lincoln Municipal Airport in Nebraska, Ford's six-seat

Beechcraft Bonanza scraped the runway.

According to People magazine, Ford was hospitalized for weeks after he was

rushed to the UCLA Medical Center after the 2015 accident. Ford reportedly

suffered a broken pelvis in that incident.

Along with his Hans Solo character in the "Star Wars" franchise, the busy actor

has been connected to other movie serials including the "Indiana Jones" series

and the Tom Clancy series that included "Patriot Games" and "Clear and Present

Danger."

Ford broke his left leg in 2014 during the filming of "Star Wars: The Force

Awakens" in London, forcing him to be hospitalized in the middle of movie's

production, The Guardian reported.

================================================== =======================

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...over-airliner/

Harrison Ford is involved in another aviation mishap. FAA is investigating

taxiway landing over airliner.

By Peter Holley February 14 at 6:34 PM

Harrison Ford is being investigated by the FAA. (Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

for Walt Disney Studios)

Nearly two years ago, actor Harrison Ford was hospitalized for “moderate

trauma” after he crashed a small, vintage plane on a Venice, Calif., golf

course.

On Monday, Ford — an avid pilot and vintage plane collector — narrowly avoided

another, more serious incident while landing his single-engine Husky at John

Wayne Airport in Orange County, Calif., according to NBC News.

A spokesman with the Federal Aviation Administration said the incident unfolded

after air traffic controllers cleared the pilot to land and the pilot correctly

read back the clearance. “The pilot then landed on a taxiway that runs parallel

to the runway, overflying a Boeing 737 that was holding short of the runway,”

the spokesman said.

The incident is under FAA investigation, but the spokesman would not name the

pilot.

[Harrison Ford injured in small plane crash at California golf course]

NBC News reported that Ford can be heard on air traffic control recordings

asking, “Was that airliner meant to be underneath me?”

Air traffic controllers replied by telling Ford that he had landed on a taxiway

instead of the designated runway, which is a violation FAA safety rules, NBC

reported.

NBC reported that the American Airlines flight had 110 passengers and a

six-person crew on board.

Ford, the star of the “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” movie series, is an

experienced pilot who has been inducted as a Living Legend of Aviation, but he

has been involved in several dangerous incidents.

As The Washington Post’s Emily Yahr reported in 2015, Ford had crash-landed a

plane in Nebraska in 2000, just months after he crash-landed a helicopter in

Los Angeles.

In 2013, during a visit to Capitol Hill, Ford talked about his passion for

flying, Yahr noted: “’Aviation helped me reinvent my life.”

================================================== ==========================

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...ane-AGAIN.html

'Was that airliner meant to be underneath me?' Harrison Ford, 74, nearly

crashes his plane AGAIN, this time into a Boeing 737 with 110 passengers on

board

Actor Harrison Ford was involved in a near miss with a Boeing 737 full of

passengers in California on Monday

Hollywood legend was flying his single engine plane Husky when he

mistakenly aimed for the taxiway at John Wayne Airport rather than the runway

He barely missed the American Airlines 737 loaded with 110 passengers,

flying just over the top

Ford was captured on air traffic control recordings asking: 'Was that

airliner meant to be underneath me?'

Star Wars actor has been in a number of crashes in his vintage aircraft

over the years

In 2015 he was flying a vintage plane in Venice, California when the engine

failed and he made a crash landing on a local golf course, suffering head

injuries and a broken arm

By Hannah Parry For Dailymail.com

Published: 16:26 EST, 14 February 2017 | Updated: 06:32 EST, 15 February 2017

Harrison Ford had a near miss on Monday when he almost crashed his

single-engine Husky plane into a Boeing 737.

The actor, who was in a serious plane crash in 2015, had been instructed to

land on runway 20-L at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California.

But the 74-year-old mistakenly aimed for a taxiway, just passing over an

American Airlines 737 loaded with more than 100 passengers and a six-person

crew.

'Was that airliner meant to be underneath me?' he asked Air Control.

Scroll down for video

+13

Harrison Ford (pictured inside his Husky Aviat A-1C before a take off from

Santa Monica airport on Monday) nearly crashed his single-engine Husky plane

into a Boeing 737

+13

He was spotted inspecting the small, single engined aircraft before take off,

shortly before his near miss

+13

He was captured on air traffic control recordings asking: 'Was that airliner

meant to be underneath me?' (pictured flying over Santa Monica Monday before

the incident)

+13

Ford mistakenly aimed for a taxiway, just passing over an American Airlines 737

loaded with more than 100 passengers

more videos

The Federal Aviation Administration say that controllers had given Ford clear

instructions to land on the runway, as landing on a taxiway is a safety

violation. They say the actor read the instructions back yet still somehow

ended up aiming for the taxiway.

The American Airlines flight 1546 was still able to take off for Dallas just

minutes after the incident, NBC News reports.

The FAA has now launched an investigation which could result in anything from a

warning letter to Ford losing his licence.

Ford's reps had no official comment on the incident.

Ford, a vintage plane collector, has been involved in a number of crashes over

the years.

Most famously, in 2015 he crash-landed a World War II-era airplane after the

engine failed. The aircraft plummeted into a Santa Monica golf course during

the crash in which Ford suffered head injuries and a broken arm.

But Ford was actually praised for keeping his cool and managing to glide his

airplane into the crash landing. Moments before the crash, in audio of his

conversation with air traffic control, an unemotional Ford was heard asking for

an emergency landing because his engine had failed.

He said he was not going to be able to make the runaway at Santa Monica Airport

so he picked a long green at the nearby Penmar golf course to land out of the

way of the congested neighborhood.

After plunging 3,000ft and hitting a tree on the way down, Ford was rushed from

the scene bleeding heavily from a head wound.

+13

Ford was spotted carrying out checks on the Husky Aviat A-1C - believed to be

the same plane that crash - before take-off yesterday

+13

Actor and producer Harrison Ford is a collector of vintage aircraft and private

planes which he keeps at the airport

Ford's publicist Ina Treciokas said the actor had no other choice but to make

an emergency landing.

'Harrison's been a great pilot. You can see by the fact that he survived this

forced landing that he is a skilled aviator,' Paul Mitton, who produced a

documentary about Ford's love of flying, told CNN.

Aviation expert Rick Dake told People that Ford's landing was amazing

considering the unforgiving nature of the World War II-era plane.

'Everything he did was perfect,' Dake, of Aviation Consulting Experts, told

People.

He says less-experienced pilots training on the plane during World War II would

often crash because the plane tended to flip when the engine fails.

'That alone is testament to the great ability Harrison Ford had. He made a

180-degree turn with the engine seizing up on him. He almost made it to the

runway,' Dake said.

'He was able to keep that plane away from the houses and land it with the least

impact on the community. That was the best place he could have landed it. He

was 100 per cent doing exactly what an excellent aviator would do.'

He also crash-landed a helicopter in 1999 and was forced to perform an

emergency landing the following year in a Beechcraft Bonanza at Nebraska's

Lincoln Municipal Airport.

The accident-prone actor has also injured himself on the ground too. While

filming 'Star Wars: Episode VII', the door of Solo's Millennium Falcon

spacecraft fell and broke the actor's leg.

+13

Ford (pictured at Santa Monica airport Sunday) just missed the passenger jet

after he accidentally landed on the taxiway

+13

Ford stands on his helicopter during a serious check of his aircraft before a

take off from Santa Monica airport on Sunday

+13

+13

Monday's near miss comes two years after he crashed his plane into a golf

course, breaking his arm. Pictured on the left at a film premiere in October

2013, and with wife Calista Flockhart at the 2014 Academy Awards on the right

He discovered a passion for flying somewhat late in life but Ford embraced it

with gusto and flew his collection of planes as much as he drove his collection

of vintage cars.

The actor was 52 when he started taking flying lessons and over the years the

Indiana Jones star has amassed an impressive aviation collection.

He keeps the aircraft at the Santa Monica Airport which is where he was where

he had taken off from in his two-seater PT- 22 shortly before he crashed on a

nearby Venice golf course in 2015.

Now 74, Ford would be too old to fly a commercial aircraft who have a mandatory

retirement age of 65.

However, the FAA have no age limit on private pilots. The only additional

requirement is that pilots above the age of 40 must pass medical exams every

two years instead of every five.

In an interview with The Mail On Sunday back in 2010, the Blade Runner and Star

Wars actor talked about some of the planes in his collection and the reasons he

loves flying so much.

'Flying is like good music: it elevates the spirit and it's an exhilarating

freedom.' he said. 'It's not a thrill thing or an adrenaline rush; it's

engaging in a process that takes focus and commitment.

Ford has a long range jet, a Citation Sovereign, a turboprop aircraft capable

of operating on unimproved airstrips; and a de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver single

engine bush plane.

He also has a 1929 Waco Taperwing open-top biplane, an Aviat Husky, which is a

two-seat fabric-covered bush plane, and a Bell 407 helicopter.

In 1999, Ford was flying his helicopter along the Lake Piru riverbed,

north-east of Los Angeles, when it went down in a hard landing during a

training session.

The actor, who was in a serious plane crash in 2015, had been instructed to

land on runway 20-L at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California

(pictured is the damaged remains of his plane from his 2015 crash)

+13

The 74-year-old had mistakenly aimed for a taxiway, passing just over an

American Airlines 737 loaded with 110 passengers and a six-person crew (his

2015 crash)

Neither the actor nor his instructor were hurt although the helicopter was

severely damaged.

He later said the incident gave him the opportunity to buy a new helicopter.

He once described crashing a plane as being like scraping a bumper and said he

used his planes as much he used his cars.

'I'm so passionate about flying, I often fly up the coast for a cheeseburger,'

he said in 2010.

The Hollywood star often flies to and from his ranch in Wyoming and has used

his helicopter there to aid Search and Rescue crews locate missing hikers.

With his need for speed, Ford collects vintage cars and motorbikes,

He has about a dozen motorcycles including several BMWs, a couple of Harleys,

Hondas and a Triumph.

He has vintage cars too including a rare 1955 forest green convertible Jaguar

XK 140 worth about $150,000.

Ford is married to actress Calista Flockhart and they have a teenage son Liam.

HARRISON'S BRAVADO EQUALS THAT OF HAN SOLO AND INDIANA JONES

Harrison Ford is as much the daredevil in real life as Han Solo, Indiana Jones

or the other larger-than-life characters he's played on the screen.

While his fictional adventures in 'Star Wars' and as bold archaeologist Jones

have thrilled audiences, the star has run into real-life danger - and sometimes

pain - while indulging in his love of aviation, fast driving and the

unpredictability of filmmaking.

On Thursday, the actor's vintage plane crash-landed on a golf course in Los

Angeles shortly after taking off from a nearby airport. Ford, 74, who had

reported engine failure to air-traffic controllers, suffered moderate injuries

and was taken by ambulance to a hospital.

Beyond joy-riding in the skies, Ford also employs his skills as a pilot,

acquired in his mid-50s, to help in search-and-rescue efforts.

+13

Harrison Ford is as much the daredevil in real life as Han Solo (pictured)

Indiana Jones or the other larger-than-life characters he's played on the

screen

Here are a few of his closer brushes, some more dramatic than others, as well

as heroic moments:

The scar on his face that lends him a rakish look was earned, he's said, in

'a mundane way.' In 1964, he was speeding to a job at a department store in

Orange County, California, when his car veered off the road and into a

telephone pole as he fumbled for his seat belt.

In 1999, Ford crash-landed his helicopter during a training flight in which

he and an instructor were practicing auto rotations in Ventura County,

northwest of Los Angeles. Ford and the instructor were unhurt.

He used his helicopter in 2000 to pluck an Idaho Falls, Idaho, hiker off

11,106-foot Table Mountain in Teton County, Wyoming, and fly her to a hospital.

One year later, Ford and another searcher helped find a missing Boy Scout

in a forest south of Yellowstone National Park. 'Boy, you sure must have earned

a merit badge for this one,' said Ford told the cold and hungry teenager after

whisking him to safety by chopper.

Ford was at the helm of a Beechcraft Bonanza in 2000 when wind shear

forced him to make an emergency landing at Lincoln Municipal Airport in

Nebraska. Ford and his passenger were uninjured when the plane clipped the

runway and its wing tips were damaged, officials said.

In 2014, he was filming 'Star Wars: Episode VII' in a studio outside London

when a door of Solo's Millennium Falcon spacecraft fell and broke the actor's

leg, requiring surgery on it. He recovered and returned to complete his work on

the movie.

In 2015, he suffered his most serious crash at the helm of the Ryan PT-22

Recruit vintage plane which he managed to crash land on a Santa Monica golf

course.

================================================== =========================

http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2017/...port-incident/

FAA Investigating Harrison Ford For Reportedly Landing On Taxiway Instead Of

Runway

February 14, 2017 8:38 PM

Filed Under: Harrison Ford, Plane Incident

SANTA ANA (CBSLA.com) — A plane belonging to Harrison Ford was involved in an

incident at John Wayne Airport, sources told CBS2/KCAL9 Tuesday.

The incident occurred Monday afternoon when air traffic controllers cleared a

single-engine plane for landing at the Santa Ana airport, according to FAA

spokesman Ian Gregor.

After correctly reading back the clearance, the pilot landed on a taxiway that

runs parallel to the runway, overflying a Boeing 737 that was holding short of

the runway, Gregor said. Visibility was clear at the time of the landing.

An FAA investigation is underway.

“How could an experienced pilot do something like this?” former commercial

airline pilot Ross Aimer wonders.

fordplane FAA Investigating Harrison Ford For Reportedly Landing On Taxiway

Instead Of Runway

A photo of the plane Harrison Ford was flying Tuesday taken at an earlier time.

Sources told CBS2/KCAL9 the tail number of the plane was registered to Ford and

that he was flying the aircraft at the time of the incident. The 74-year-old

actor’s publicist declined to release a statement.

American Airlines said they were aware of the incident and reported it to the

FAA and NTSB “for further investigation”.

Ford was reportedly heard on air traffic control saying: “Was that airliner

supposed to be underneath me?”

“This is a violation of pretty high degree to land on a taxiway,” Aimer said.

“Not only that, but to land perhaps on top of a commercial airliner.”

Aimer added that this could cost Ford his pilot’s license if he is found to be

in violation.

It wouldn’t be the first aviation-related incident involving Ford: in 2015,

Ford crashed a World War II-vintage plane on a Venice golf course shortly after

taking off from Santa Monica Airport.

A general view at the Penmar Golf Course after a single-engine plane piloted by

actor Harrison Ford crashed on March 5, 2015 in Venice. (Photo by Rich

Polk/Getty Images)

A general view at the Penmar Golf Course after a single-engine plane piloted by

actor Harrison Ford crashed on March 5, 2015 in Venice. (Photo by Rich

Polk/Getty Images)

The single-engine Ryan Aeronautical ST3KR Ford was piloting lost engine power

before it clipped the top of a tree and crashed in an open area of the golf

course, according to federal investigators.

Ford was hospitalized for several days for treatment of broken bones.

================================================== ========================

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/l...214-story.html

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