This week in Patrick Smith's ASK THE PILOT:


Baby talk from the cockpit

Plus: "dangerous" airports, missing parts, and winglets for dummies


"...Every time that microphone crackles, mostly what we hear is choreographed baby talk. Eyes begin to roll every time a customer service agent or crew member opens his or her mouth. Even the most basic broadcasts are heavily fortressed: the campy legal-speak theater of the cabin safety demo, the squeally condescension of the thanks-for-flying-with-us pitch. Anomalies are typically reworded, intentionally or otherwise, into a lexicon of infantile explanations. Turbulence becomes "a couple of bumps up ahead," the complexities of air traffic control delays are reduced to "waitin' for some rain showers to pass." The desire is to avoid confusion, keep things topical, and never, ever insinuate danger. The result is the shaking of heads and a propensity, often enough, not to believe a word of it..."


"... On a recent Delta flight, passengers refused to board when they noticed, as one source put it, that "a part of the wing was missing."
What was missing wasn't a part of the wing; it was a fairing. Those long, canoe-shaped pods that stick from the back of a wing are called fairings -- aerodynamic coverings that streamline the airflow around the flap mechanisms inside. Their function is chiefly superficial, though when they're missing there might be a slight fuel-burn penalty. The wing itself is not affected, and the flaps can extend and retract normally. Whether one or more fairings can be missing, and what the penalty might be, is spelled out in the plane's CDL (configuration deviation list)

"..that upturned doodad on the wingtip is called a winglet. Winglets come in different shapes and sizes -- some are tall and rakishly canted; others are more modest -- but their function is basically the same: At the tip of a wing, the higher pressure beneath meets the lower pressure above, resulting in a turbulent discharge of air. The winglet smooths this mixing, decreasing drag and, in turn, improving range and efficiency. Because planes have different aerodynamic fingerprints, winglets aren't cost-effective on all models. On some they're available as an option. An airline must consider if the long-term fuel savings is worth the cost of installation. It depends on the type of flying its aircraft are typically engaged in..."


The full article is here...
http://www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/...skthepilot329/

Access to Salon is free. Watch for the “skip this ad” or “enter Salon” links on the gateway page.



Recently in ASK THE PILOT:


Why are airline passengers such slobs. The scourge of onboard trash and what can be done about it:

http://www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/...skthepilot327/



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