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| Britain |
| Both 777 engines failed TWO MILES from Heathrow, 600 feet off ground |
| 2008-01-19 |
| Doesn't appear to be terrorism involved. Some additional pictures and info at the link. The real hero of the Heathrow crash landing was revealed yesterday as a man named Coward. Straight after the drama Captain Peter Burkill was praised for safely bringing down his stricken Boeing 777 with 136 passengers on board. But Captain Burkill admitted yesterday that Senior First Officer John Coward was at the controls when the plane suffered a catastrophic power failure in both engines 40 seconds from landing. The initial investigation report confirmed both engines had failed two miles from the airport. "Flying is about teamwork - and we had an outstanding team on board yesterday," said the 43-year-old father of five. "I am proud to say that every member of the team played their part expertly, displaying the highest standards of skill and professionalism. No-one more so than my senior first officer John Coward - who was the handling pilot in the final stages of the flight - and did the most remarkable job. My first officer, Conor Magenis, also assisted continually." |
| Posted by:gorb |
| #11 Close Deacon Blues, but not exactly. See: http://www.whittsflying.com/web/page3.14Use_of_Flaps.htm |
| Posted by: Old CFI 2008-01-19 21:41 |
| #10 I'm thinking that since they had zero power they left the flaps up on approach to minimize drag / keep speed up, but when they decided they were low they then lowered the flaps to get some extra lift. |
| Posted by: Glolurong Jones1696 2008-01-19 17:28 |
| #9 Two miles, at landing speed. is between 30 seconds to one minute. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2008-01-19 15:49 |
| #8 Why can't other geeks do this to the cockpit's computer flying on autopilot!??? With the right setup at both ends you can. It is how UAVs like the Predator operate. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2008-01-19 15:28 |
| #7 Why can't other geeks do this to the cockpit's computer flying on autopilot!??? Dell computers optionally contain software to allow remote control. Autopilot systems don't. (Or not to my knowledge, anyway .....) |
| Posted by: lotp 2008-01-19 14:56 |
| #6 Reminiscent in approaching the drama of the Gimli glider |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2008-01-19 14:48 |
| #5 I can explain, Barbara. There are movable flaps at the trailing edges of the wings that can be lowered. This increases wing area and therefotre lift. They also increase drag as they are pointed at a down angle. Flaps are ALWAYS lowered when an aircraft takes off and lands. The extra lift is needed at these times because the aircraft has not attained cruising speed. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2008-01-19 12:16 |
| #4 Uh, did we say 'had to use the wingflaps?' We meant to say 'had to flap the wings.' /MSM |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2008-01-19 12:05 |
| #3 Paraellum, can you explain that for those of us with no pilot experience? |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2008-01-19 11:34 |
| #2 I get a telephone call from INDIA. It is the Dell service team rep, who I had been in contact in the afternoon by a chat box about the loss of audio in my old Dell computer. He tells me he wants to take control of my computer and repair it. He then takes control of the computer, while I have some supper. After trying to repair the computer audio, he finally decides to restore the computer back 6 days. WORKED LIKE A CHARM. Audio is back!! Amazing, it all worked. My internet wireless link, which is about 1 mile over the water, goes to India and back again. Doesn't it make you a little uncomfortable though that a geek in India can get inside your computer and screw around with its guts? Why can't other geeks do this to the cockpit's computer flying on autopilot!??? |
| Posted by: Danielle 2008-01-19 11:27 |
| #1 According to a friend of the captain, he had to use the wingflaps to supply enough lift to clear the fence. Once again we see how ignorant reporters are. |
| Posted by: Parabellum 2008-01-19 10:48 |