Friday, March 07, 2008
Aeronautical Idiot
(3)
This is a most amazing video, some of which you no doubt saw on the evening news. I was especially fascinated by it because I am a pilot and I know exactly what is going on. The pilot of that Lufthansa Flight was widely praised for his 'skill' in this particular case: he avoided a terrible crash at the last few seconds, saving hundreds of lives. The reality may be different. Here is my take:
The pilot decided to make the approach in spite of a crosswind which exceeded the specifications of the manufacturer for that particular airplane. Tower allowed the approach. Bad idea. As the airplane approached the runway the crosswind increased, causing the airplane to fishtail violently into the wind. This resulted in the airplane drifting off to the right of the runway centerline. Here was the point where the pilot should have 'put the balls to the wall,' got the gear up, and declared a 'missed approach.'
Instead, the pilot decided to try and salvage the landing. sHe straightened the airplane out using huge amounts of left rudder. The airplane rotated left, parallel with the runway. This is the way you drive a car, but a swept-wing airplane is different, especially ten feet above the ground in a heavy crosswind...
The result was that the right wing was presented with the optimum lift-producing airflow, while the left wing was presented with much reduced useful airflow (the left wing was 'hidden' behind the fusalage, and furthermore the left wing was not presented with a 90 degree relative wind like the right wing). As a result, the right wing rose while the left wing dropped, eventually contacting the runway. The lucky pilot was able to recover at the last minute, pumping in full power, and producing a huge 'sandstorm' in the process.
This is a most amazing video, some of which you no doubt saw on the evening news. I was especially fascinated by it because I am a pilot and I know exactly what is going on. The pilot of that Lufthansa Flight was widely praised for his 'skill' in this particular case: he avoided a terrible crash at the last few seconds, saving hundreds of lives. The reality may be different. Here is my take:
The pilot decided to make the approach in spite of a crosswind which exceeded the specifications of the manufacturer for that particular airplane. Tower allowed the approach. Bad idea. As the airplane approached the runway the crosswind increased, causing the airplane to fishtail violently into the wind. This resulted in the airplane drifting off to the right of the runway centerline. Here was the point where the pilot should have 'put the balls to the wall,' got the gear up, and declared a 'missed approach.'
Instead, the pilot decided to try and salvage the landing. sHe straightened the airplane out using huge amounts of left rudder. The airplane rotated left, parallel with the runway. This is the way you drive a car, but a swept-wing airplane is different, especially ten feet above the ground in a heavy crosswind...
The result was that the right wing was presented with the optimum lift-producing airflow, while the left wing was presented with much reduced useful airflow (the left wing was 'hidden' behind the fusalage, and furthermore the left wing was not presented with a 90 degree relative wind like the right wing). As a result, the right wing rose while the left wing dropped, eventually contacting the runway. The lucky pilot was able to recover at the last minute, pumping in full power, and producing a huge 'sandstorm' in the process.
