General aviation/airplane news and chat

[T & P]

Interesting... CX are going to certify the A350 for single pilot operation (in the cruise for now).

EXCLUSIVE Cathay working with Airbus on single-pilot system for long-haul

Cathay Pacific (0293.HK) is working with Airbus (AIR.PA) to introduce "reduced crew" long-haul flights with a sole pilot in the cockpit much of the time, industry sources told Reuters.

www.reuters.com

Completely unpersoned operation is obviously the end goal here. It makes a lot of sense but there will be shrieking from reactionaries.

Was reading about this yesterday. Apparently in case of an emergency the pilot resting would be automatically notified and summoned to return to the cockpit at once. How can Airbus guarantee this set up will be foolproof, security wise? If the off-duty pilot is to be given the power to somehow open a locked cockpit door from the outside, how can they ensure he might not be forced to do so by hijackers/ wrong ‘uns on board to gain access to the cockpit?

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Was reading about this yesterday. Apparently in case of an emergency the pilot resting would be automatically notified and summoned to return to the cockpit at once. How can Airbus guarantee this set up will be foolproof, security wise? If the off-duty pilot is to be given the power to somehow open a locked cockpit door from the outside, how can they ensure he might not be forced to do so by hijackers/ wrong ‘uns on board to gain access to the cockpit?

Why not build the pilot rest area into the cockpit? I looked around a Lufthansa 747 that had two bunk beds just outside the door. But tbh if one pilot is devoted to taking the plane down it it not a massive deal for him to slash the jugular of the fella sat next to him...

 

[T & P]

Yeah I guess it wouldn’t be that complex to have the pilot rest area in the cockpit or with direct access to it from the lower deck

 

[DownwardDog]

How can Airbus guarantee this set up will be foolproof, security wise?

The same way they guarantee the FADEC won't shut the engines off and kill everyone on take off - testing, validation and certification.

80% of all aircraft accidents are caused by pilot error or other human factors. More automation will be a net safety benefit.

 

[DownwardDog]

The upper deck rest area on the 400F was sybaritic luxury.

 

[A380]

Can you actually sleep in the crew rest areas? The ones that are buildt into the hold areas? I imagine the noise and other people coming in and out would prevent ‘proper’ sleep and just key you doze? Or do you get used to it?

 

[A380]

 

[spitfire]

The upper deck rest area on the 400F was sybaritic luxury.

Good spot for a Scalextric.

 

[DownwardDog]

Can you actually sleep in the crew rest areas? The ones that are buildt into the hold areas? I imagine the noise and other people coming in and out would prevent ‘proper’ sleep and just key you doze? Or do you get used to it?

If you can't you won't last in long haul aviation. See also: sleeping in a hotel during the day while the adjacent room gets cleaned.

 

[spitfire]

If you can't you won't last in long haul aviation. See also: sleeping in a hotel during the day while the adjacent room gets cleaned.

Same on the road. Sleeper buses can be quite lively into the early hours so the ability to crash out despite various rock and roll animals arguing animatedly over the pros and cons of different amps is a good skill to acquire.

 

[2hats]

Emergency landing on water at night.

Boeing 737 cargo plane makes emergency water landing off Hawaii

A decades-old Boeing Co (BA.N) 737-200 cargo airplane with two people on board made an emergency nighttime landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Honolulu, Hawaii, early on Friday, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said.

www.reuters.com

 

[spitfire]

Emergency landing on water at night.

Boeing 737 cargo plane makes emergency water landing off Hawaii

A decades-old Boeing Co (BA.N) 737-200 cargo airplane with two people on board made an emergency nighttime landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Honolulu, Hawaii, early on Friday, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said.

www.reuters.com

a lucky escape. Good piloting.

 

[T & P]

A happy resolution

 

[DownwardDog]

A-10 in the 'Black Snake' paint job. I mean it's ultimately pointless but that shit is lit.

 

[teuchter]

80% of all aircraft accidents are caused by pilot error or other human factors. More automation will be a net safety benefit.

How many automation failures are rescued by human pilots though?

Plus, what data is out there, for the rate of failure of fully automated flights? Presumably fairly limited at present.

 

[teuchter]

This happened in 2007 but I had never seen or heard of it before, and YouTube just suggested it to me.

That's cutting it a bit fine is it not? The tip of the left wing must have been not much more than a metre off the ground...

It would maybe be 2m off the ground if it were a model plane flying about 20m away from the camera.

 

[T & P]

Carry on flying, says government green plan

The policy has been ridiculed by environmentalists who say the government is putting too much faith in innovation.

www.bbc.co.uk

At last some good news

 

[Elpenor]

I just imagined Carry On Flying featuring Sid James as a Pilot, Babs Windsor and Hattie Jaques as cabin crew and Kenneth Williams as the flight purser.

 

[Teaboy]

Carry on flying, says government green plan

The policy has been ridiculed by environmentalists who say the government is putting too much faith in innovation.

www.bbc.co.uk

At last some good news

What else are they going to say? What else did you expect them to say?

If they're no going to stop flights which directly import deadly variants of a virus which needlessly kills thousands and economically ruins the country they ain't going to say stop flying to save the future environment.

 

[Storm Fox]

What else are they going to say? What else did you expect them to say?

If they're no going to stop flights which directly import deadly variants of a virus which needlessly kills thousands and economically ruins the country they ain't going to say stop flying to save the future environment.

Come on now, what kind of government what do that to its citizens, it's total hyperbole.
<Checks Notes>
Oh...
<Goes back to hiding under the duvet>

 

[T & P]

I just imagined Carry On Flying featuring Sid James as a Pilot, Babs Windsor and Hattie Jaques as cabin crew and Kenneth Williams as the flight purser.

Frankly, that is the one major theme missing from their catalogue.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Frankly, that is the one major theme missing from their catalogue.

They missed a trick with that one, turbulence making wobbly bits wobble could have taken up at least half the film.

 

[Sprocket.]

They missed a trick with that one, turbulence making wobbly bits wobble could have taken up at least half the film.

Shakes on a Plane.

 

[A380]

Carry on in the cockpit?

 

[2hats]

Emergency landing on water at night.

Boeing 737 cargo plane makes emergency water landing off Hawaii

A decades-old Boeing Co (BA.N) 737-200 cargo airplane with two people on board made an emergency nighttime landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Honolulu, Hawaii, early on Friday, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said.

www.reuters.com

The NTSB have released images of the aircraft, 200m down on the seabed, illustrating how it lost an engine and broke up forward of the centre wing box during the ditching.

 

[T & P]

Plane spotters save lives

Pilot praises RAF Lakenheath plane spotter for saving his life

Ian Simpson alerts an airbase after seeing sparks and flames coming from the rear of a jet.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[HAL9000]

take of an Antonov An-225, start at about 3 minutes 25 seconds

 

[T & P]

Bless the Ukranians, upholders of the metric system in a world dominated by imperial figures

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

RAF C17 @ Heraklion airport yesterday

 

[spitfire]

Wheeeeee!