Lots of theories as to why there are 4 engines. THe main reason was that when the plane was being designed in the early 70s there weren't any jets engines small enough and reliable enough to hang just two on the wongs. So they opted for 4 smaller helicopter engines. The added bonus to this was the fact that there are 4 and when one is lost it is nearly a non-event. That leads to the performance issues in Aspen... should a CRJ or ERJ lose an engine at V1 or on the climbout - there is NO WAY with the high density altitude and thrust on just 1 engine will it be able to get out of the valley. However with the BACjet - if 1 is lost there is still lots of power to get outta there. The plane is certified for 3 engine ferries and we train for 2 engine go arounds! The thick wing and barn door flaps make it a great STOL (Short field takeoff and landing) aircraft. We may be slow... but we're sure versitile. Too bad NW doesn't put our avros to use the way they ought to be. And as far as a smooth landing ALL THE TIME... hahaha... true - the trailing link gear is very forgiving and will absorb almost all of our bad landing events - but every one of us has had our share of awful landings! My last one was in CMH on Christmas eve. We all have bad landings once in a while - sometimes the bottom just falls out from under you in a shift in wind or a mini wind shear. Or sometimes one just pulls the power back too early or too late and drives it on. And sometimes firm landings are necessary based on runway conditions etc...

AZJ