http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/americas/05/27/air.france.447.crash/index.html?hpt=T1
The Air France flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris that crashed in 2009 plummeted 38,000 ft in just three minutes and 30 seconds because pilots lost vital speed data, France's Bureau of Investigation and Analysis (BEA) said Friday.
Pilots on the aircraft got conflicting air speeds in the minutes leading up to the crash, the interim reports states. The aircraft climbed to 38,000 ft when "the stall warning was triggered and the airplane stalled," the report says.
Aviation experts are asking why the pilots responded to the stall by pulling the nose up instead of pushing it down to recover.
Why indeed. Reminds me of Colgan Air at BUF. Many moons ago, when I was buzzing around in a Cessna 150, I knew better. I am also reminded of two 757 crashes in the 90s resulting from bad airspeed data. Or, rather, the inablity of the crews to fly on a partial panel.
It has been a long time since I've been at controls of a plane (granted VFR in a light Cessna). But I did learn to cope with a partial panel, even under the hood.
The Air France flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris that crashed in 2009 plummeted 38,000 ft in just three minutes and 30 seconds because pilots lost vital speed data, France's Bureau of Investigation and Analysis (BEA) said Friday.
Pilots on the aircraft got conflicting air speeds in the minutes leading up to the crash, the interim reports states. The aircraft climbed to 38,000 ft when "the stall warning was triggered and the airplane stalled," the report says.
Aviation experts are asking why the pilots responded to the stall by pulling the nose up instead of pushing it down to recover.
Why indeed. Reminds me of Colgan Air at BUF. Many moons ago, when I was buzzing around in a Cessna 150, I knew better. I am also reminded of two 757 crashes in the 90s resulting from bad airspeed data. Or, rather, the inablity of the crews to fly on a partial panel.
It has been a long time since I've been at controls of a plane (granted VFR in a light Cessna). But I did learn to cope with a partial panel, even under the hood.
