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NTSB To Investigate Crash Of Tesla With Autopilot Engaged

FILE - In this file photo, a man sits behind the steering wheel of a Tesla Model S electric car. Federal officials say the driver of a Tesla S sports car using the vehicle’s “autopilot” automated driving system was killed May 7 in Williston, Fla. in a collision with a truck, the first U.S. self-driving car fatality. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said preliminary reports indicate the crash occurred when a tractor-trailer made a left turn in front of the Tesla at a highway intersection. NHTSA said the Tesla driver died due to injuries sustained in the crash.(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
FILE - In this file photo, a man sits behind the steering wheel of a Tesla Model S electric car. Federal officials say the driver of a Tesla S sports car using the vehicle’s “autopilot” automated driving system was killed May 7 in Williston, Fla. in a collision with a truck, the first U.S. self-driving car fatality. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said preliminary reports indicate the crash occurred when a tractor-trailer made a left turn in front of the Tesla at a highway intersection. NHTSA said the Tesla driver died due to injuries sustained in the crash.(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

WASHINGTON — A federal official says a second safety agency will investigate the fatal crash of a Tesla sedan while the vehicle's Autopilot self-driving mode was in use. Rob Molloy heads the National Transportation Safety Board's highway investigations division. Molloy says a team of investigators will go to Florida next week to examine the wreckage of the Tesla Model S. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced last week that it is investigating the May 7 crash near Gainesville to see if the Autopilot system is defective. The agency has said a truck made a left turn front of the car, but neither the Autopilot nor the driver applied the brakes. The driver was killed. Molloy says NTSB's investigation will take a comprehensive look at the entire incident.

 

The Associated Press is a wire service to which WUFT News subscribes.