Is it birdstrikes, or the media?
This week in Salon's ASK THE PILOT:
<<< Modern engines are powerful and resilient, but they don’t take kindly to the ingestion of foreign objects, particularly those slamming into their blades at high rates of speed. The results can be anything from a mild internal burble to a series of violent stalls to a total power loss. Most birds weigh less than a pound, but imagine a wild turkey, a vulture, or a goose. Flying at 250 knots, hitting an average-sized Canada Goose will subject a plane to an impact force of more than 50,000 pounds. >>>
Or the danger of wake turbulence?
<<< I worry that younger, inexperienced crews might not be as knowledgeable as they should be. A few weeks ago I asked a friend who’d just been through new-hire training at a regional airline what he’d been taught about this subject. Not much, really. He had no idea, for instance, that the Boeing 757, though smaller than many other jets, produces the most powerful wakes ever recorded. He’ll be flying 37-seaters into LaGuardia, Washington-National, and other busy airports all the time, in close proximity to 757s. >>>
Against all odds, flying has never been safer. But the inevitable crash is coming. When it does, how will we react?
<<< We are riding strong amidst the safest-ever stretch in the history of modern commercial aviation. In a time when airlines have lost all respect, they have nonetheless maintained an impeccable standard of safety. But the truth is, our luck will run out. There will be a catastrophic accident at some point. Affirming this is not to let our guard down; it’s to recognize the inevitable. Unfortunately, we need to brace ourselves for the reaction. The worst thing about the crash will be the loss of life. The second worst thing will be the media hype and a total lack of context. Rather than acknowledging the sad but inevitable end of a remarkably fortuitous streak, reminding ourselves that flying has never been safer, the mood will be of crisis, fear, and of unseen danger ahead. >>>
The full story is here…
http://www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/...skthepilot262/
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