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March 18, 2024

NTSB Investigates Fatal San Antonio Crash Involving Semi-Autonomous Mustang Mach-E

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) probes a deadly San Antonio collision involving a semi-autonomous Ford Mustang Mach-E. The investigation scrutinizes the circumstances leading to the crash, shedding light on the challenges and safety implications of emerging autonomous vehicle technologies.

Tragedy struck on a San Antonio highway last month when an electric SUV collided with a stalled vehicle, resulting in one fatality.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has teamed up with local authorities to dissect the circumstances surrounding the fatal event, as the high-tech Mustang Mach-E involved was operating under its semi-autonomous features at the time of the incident, as reported by KENS 5.

Details from the San Antonio Police Department indicate that on February 24, the driver of the Ford Mustang Mach-E ran into a Honda CRV that had stopped, with no functioning lights on Interstate 10. The driver of the Honda, 56-year-old Jeffrey Johnson, was rushed to the hospital but later succumbed to his injuries.

The NTSB has declared its intent to scrutinize the wreckage in San Antonio, signaling preliminary findings could be released by mid-April, according to FOX San Antonio.

Though marketed as a bridge to autonomous driving, the NTSB underscores that no fully autonomous vehicles have hit the market in the United States, with existing systems like Ford's BlueCruise still requiring the driver's active engagement.

The Ford Mustang's partial-automation feature has come under scrutiny before, as questions about the safety and reliability of such technologies continue to mount.

The NTSB and SAPD collaboration marks a critical examination of the boundary-pushing tech, tales of progress and modernity colliding with the gritty realities of asphalt and human frailty. The NTSB, heralding its investigation on X, stated: "The NTSB, in coordination with the San Antonio Police Department, has opened a safety investigation into the February 24 collision between an electric-powered Ford Mustang Mach-E sport utility vehicle, and a Honda CR-V on Interstate Highway 10 in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas." This ongoing story will see additional information added as it becomes available.

Source: Hoodline

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