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Have you ever thought your plane would crash?
- Thread starter c073186
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I catapulted off the USS Saratoga back in 95. The seastate was bad, it was cloudy and windy and drizzly, the bow was going up and down like a rollercoaster... The planes go from zero to flight speed in 2 or 3 seconds, and as soon as the aircraft left the flight deck, it went about twenty feet as it built up more speed. Although this normal, yeah, I thought the plane was going to go down. What a helluva ride!
I completely understand. The vast majority of airline pilots are really good at what they do, and most care a lot about the comfort of the passengers. It's just that sometimes things get busy and unfortunately getting the word out to the passengers takes a back seat to things that need to get done up front.
For the record, I'm not an airline pilot, but from a flying perspective my job is pretty much the same as theirs, so I'm not *completely* talking out of my ass.
yeah once when they thought there was a suspected terrorist on it, i was pretty much sure i was going to crash or die, but they pulled an emergency landing and all was fine
The flying conditions which seem to bother passengers the most (turbulence) is the one they should worry about the least. It's really nearly impossible to break a modern airplane. If you must worry about something, worry about taxiing at busy airports with parallel or intersecting runways. Runway incursions are surprisingly common, and they are truly dangerous.
Yes, deliberately so. Catastrophic structural failures can happen, but they are very rare.
Not the best example, as that was a result of rather extreme conditions over a number of years (corrosive environment, huge number of pressurization/depressurization cycles in a short amount of time, relatively speaking). I'm thinking more about the ability of a member of the cockpit crew to break off the vertical stabilizer from extreme rudder excursions.
Any time an airplane is operated outside of its established performance envelope, terrible things can happen. This is what produced the Airbus accident in NYC in 2001. Which only goes to show that you can break an airplane, if you really work at it.
na, why so pessimistic?
again i see many people quoting the stats of accidents/fatalities per person, obviously planes will be safer than cars as modes of transportation.
but seriously, there are so much more safety measures put into planes than cars.
guess why car crash tests only crash them for a frontal impact (EuroNCAP) at 64km/h? well, it's compensating for the driver's reaction and braking. otherwise if you do a 120km/h collision they claimed "that there would be no cabin space remaining".
so car manufacturers build their cars pretty much to the safety requirements, whereas for aeroplanes it's so much safer... although I must point out planes such as the B747, B737, A320 and other few are all OLD models from a few decades ago... but their technologies have been extensively updated to be reliable.
when there's an air accident the news media generally make it an important news (like that recent BA B777 runway accident) which was broadcasted on CNN, BBC, Sky and all that. You don't see much car accident on TV as it's such a common occurance.
again, this is a rhetorical question that's occuring throughout some public who hasn't flown a lot or who hasn't flown before - these plane-phobia (idk what's the proper name) will still exist, typically with claustrophobia (I'm claustrophobic, too!).
there are so many planes flying in the air at any given time. I saw a flight plan from a command centre in Popular Mechanics, and there's about 5000 planes flying domestically and internationally in and out of the US.
I've been watching "Air Crash Investigation" on NaGeo, and most of these incidents are preventable. There's one user in the Lufthansa post saying that why don't airlines put parachutes insead of life jackets? well they're too heavy for all passengers and chances are you'll be over water (land is 3/10).
and lastly, to be superstitious, I do pick my dates.
again i see many people quoting the stats of accidents/fatalities per person, obviously planes will be safer than cars as modes of transportation.
but seriously, there are so much more safety measures put into planes than cars.
guess why car crash tests only crash them for a frontal impact (EuroNCAP) at 64km/h? well, it's compensating for the driver's reaction and braking. otherwise if you do a 120km/h collision they claimed "that there would be no cabin space remaining".
so car manufacturers build their cars pretty much to the safety requirements, whereas for aeroplanes it's so much safer... although I must point out planes such as the B747, B737, A320 and other few are all OLD models from a few decades ago... but their technologies have been extensively updated to be reliable.
when there's an air accident the news media generally make it an important news (like that recent BA B777 runway accident) which was broadcasted on CNN, BBC, Sky and all that. You don't see much car accident on TV as it's such a common occurance.
again, this is a rhetorical question that's occuring throughout some public who hasn't flown a lot or who hasn't flown before - these plane-phobia (idk what's the proper name) will still exist, typically with claustrophobia (I'm claustrophobic, too!).
there are so many planes flying in the air at any given time. I saw a flight plan from a command centre in Popular Mechanics, and there's about 5000 planes flying domestically and internationally in and out of the US.
I've been watching "Air Crash Investigation" on NaGeo, and most of these incidents are preventable. There's one user in the Lufthansa post saying that why don't airlines put parachutes insead of life jackets? well they're too heavy for all passengers and chances are you'll be over water (land is 3/10).
and lastly, to be superstitious, I do pick my dates.
Bingo! I knew someone would pick up on that.
Reminds me of a couple of interesting stats. Over 1/2 of the earth's population (about 3.5 billion souls) have flown on a 747.
And, at any given moment, on average there are over 1,500 737's in the air simultaneously. (And added up, the 737 alone accounts for almost 32,000 years of continuous service!)
Lotsa planes, lotsa people. And that's only two airframes from one manufacturer. I'd say that for the most part, we've got the whole commercial aviation thing down pretty well. As had been noted, it's because accidents are so rare that they make news. I think it has more to do with a lack of understanding and a loss of control that many people are fearful or worried about their safety.
this includes me!
another trivia: I've been on these planes:
Boeing 747, 767, 777
Airbus 330, 340
with the following airlines:Airbus 330, 340
Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Japan Asia Airways, China Airlines, Dragon Air.
And another trivia: the B737 is the most common aeroplane and you'll find that almost everywhere. Ironic that I haven't been on them.
Another 1: Airbus' A340 can be easily identified with 1 deck and 4 engines.
Next: All Airbusses can be identified with the grey patch where horizontal-rudder/fin/stabiliser joins the body - where Boeings do not have them:
Left top: A320, Left bottom: A380
Right top: B783, Right bottom: B777
(images from wikipedia)
ok, enough trivia!
Nope, I am always confident that I will make it out alive, even during heavy turbulence. If you want to know if you are in trouble or not, check the expressions of the flight attendants. If they look scared, then you might have something to worry about. If not, just sit back and enjoy the ride.
but there's always that little voice in the back of my head who pops up right when we're about to land that says "You're doomed."
Ha ha ha!
That made me laugh a lot
I didn't fly until I was 21, but it was a doosie from SFO to JFK. When we were coming in for the landing at JFK the fog was so thick I couldn't even see halfway down the wing. Being my first flight I was definitely nervous, but I tuned my headphones in to the tower chatter and listened to them tell the pilots exactly what they needed to do. It was pretty interesting.
Now I've flown plenty of times and I'm not too concerned about turbulence or things like that. I still enjoy it too, and it's a heck of a lot more convenient!
I HATE flying.. well, not the experience.. but the fear of crashing. My greatest fear is dying in a plane crash, and I can't stand it when people say' But flying is safer than driving'
Yes.. it may be, but I'm driving MY car. I maintain it, I'm responsible.. don't drink and drive, etc. With a plane, I never know what the hell is going on. Pilots could be drunk, sleepy, suicidal (like that Egypt Air crash) And then the ATC factor scares me too. Who knows if the person manning the traffic is an idiot.. or plain tired.. and makes mistakes? Runway incursions, mid-air collisions, etc..
The worst part is aircraft maintenance. Airline companies are so busy offering tickets for ridiculous prices.. how do you expect them to stay in business? Simple.. cut down on maintenance. Look at the recent SouthWest incident.. I'm sure it's everywhere in the industry. Dodgy maintenance practices.. to save the corporate a few million bucks.. like shoddy maintenance practice on an engine which eventually lead to the engine falling off a AA flight.
Also, a common myth is 'Oh well, if the plane crashes at least it's quick" Uh.. no, it's not. In fact, if you've been in a car accident you know it happens so fast there's barely time to react.
In a plane crash.. there's usually a lot of time to know you're doomed. I always think of that Japanese airliner which crashed after 30-40 minutes or so.. and all the passengers wrote goodbye notes to their loved ones (some wrote with their own blood because they didn't have paper)
Also, the technology that lead to flying is so old now (like cars) Why don't they come up with something better and safer?! Like those UFOs I'm sure they have anti-gravity machines somewhere in the military. We have faster and lighter computers.. but still the same flying machine technology from the 50s.
I'm not scared of dying.. just dying in a damn plane When I fly in business or first, it makes me mad because I don't even enjoy the experience. My palms are cold and sweaty the entire time, I have my seat belt on the whole flight lol. To make it worse, my flights are usually 27-30 hours You should see me while on the way to the airport, I'll look for *any* excuse to get out of flying.
Yes.. it may be, but I'm driving MY car. I maintain it, I'm responsible.. don't drink and drive, etc. With a plane, I never know what the hell is going on. Pilots could be drunk, sleepy, suicidal (like that Egypt Air crash) And then the ATC factor scares me too. Who knows if the person manning the traffic is an idiot.. or plain tired.. and makes mistakes? Runway incursions, mid-air collisions, etc..
The worst part is aircraft maintenance. Airline companies are so busy offering tickets for ridiculous prices.. how do you expect them to stay in business? Simple.. cut down on maintenance. Look at the recent SouthWest incident.. I'm sure it's everywhere in the industry. Dodgy maintenance practices.. to save the corporate a few million bucks.. like shoddy maintenance practice on an engine which eventually lead to the engine falling off a AA flight.
Also, a common myth is 'Oh well, if the plane crashes at least it's quick" Uh.. no, it's not. In fact, if you've been in a car accident you know it happens so fast there's barely time to react.
In a plane crash.. there's usually a lot of time to know you're doomed. I always think of that Japanese airliner which crashed after 30-40 minutes or so.. and all the passengers wrote goodbye notes to their loved ones (some wrote with their own blood because they didn't have paper)
Also, the technology that lead to flying is so old now (like cars) Why don't they come up with something better and safer?! Like those UFOs
I'm sure they have anti-gravity machines somewhere in the military. We have faster and lighter computers.. but still the same flying machine technology from the 50s. I'm not scared of dying.. just dying in a damn plane
When I fly in business or first, it makes me mad because I don't even enjoy the experience. My palms are cold and sweaty the entire time, I have my seat belt on the whole flight lol. To make it worse, my flights are usually 27-30 hours You should see me while on the way to the airport, I'll look for *any* excuse to get out of flying.
well, will you feel safer when you fly your own plane, or machined/programmed pilots instead of human pilots?
Don't the mind the flying, it's the take-offs and landings that I also start hearing that little voice....
Coming in to land at Heathrow once was interesting - must have been about 30 feet up from the runway, wheels down when the Pilot put power to the engines and yanked us back fairly sharpish. Fair enough I thought, Italian Pilot, probably flies like he drives - it was only when we were circling again that he mentioned over the intercom that the reason we had to pull out of the landing was that there was another plane still on our runaway
At least he spotted it - bit worrying that ATC didn't notice though.....
Coming in to land at Heathrow once was interesting - must have been about 30 feet up from the runway, wheels down when the Pilot put power to the engines and yanked us back fairly sharpish. Fair enough I thought, Italian Pilot, probably flies like he drives - it was only when we were circling again that he mentioned over the intercom that the reason we had to pull out of the landing was that there was another plane still on our runaway
At least he spotted it - bit worrying that ATC didn't notice though.....
At least he spotted it - bit worrying that ATC didn't notice though.....
The tower may well have altered the pilot, and this situation could well have been created by a pilot taxiing who didn't correctly copy a ground control instruction. Try listening to a ground or tower frequency at a busy airport some time. You'll be amazed by the volume of chatter and wonder how they get it right so consistently.
i did not know you could do that i want to go to an airport, like right nowwwwww...i love flying...
Better than having an old pilot. You'd only be doing half the speed the plane could do the entire way, he wouldn't have seen the plane on the runway until it was too late, and then blame it on those damn kids and their loud music and their big planes
You'd need an aviation-band radio and you'd have to look up the frequencies for any given airport, but sure, you can listen in. When I was learning to fly I used to carry one on commercial flying trips. Hearing the "big boys" do it at major airports helped me learn radio procedure.
Duff-Man says...I fly frequently - at least once a month between here (Victoria) and Albuquerque - that normally means six planes I am on due to connections. Aside from a bit of occasional turbulence I've never had any issues. The roughest landing I ever had was on a 737 from Pittsburgh to Toronto several years ago. It was very windy and we had a few good bounces on the way down.
Oddly enough, I just finished watching a pgm on Discovery about several "incidents" where aircraft computers have gone wrong, combined with pilot error and confusion. Interesting stuff.....oh yeah!
Oddly enough, I just finished watching a pgm on Discovery about several "incidents" where aircraft computers have gone wrong, combined with pilot error and confusion. Interesting stuff.....oh yeah!
Delta? I've taken that flight too, sans the sudden drop.
I don't fly terribly often, but I do enjoy the experience (well, except for airport security). I also must admit, I enjoy the occasional turbulence.