PANIC ONBOARD THESE DAYS – not only due to AIR RAGE

cours anglais aviation Toni Giacoia FCL .055 OACI en ligne à distance

Cours d’anglais aéronautique sur FCL ANGLAIS

Panic onboard – That is what happened on a JetBlue aircraft last week. The captain dashed to the bathroom’s door which was locked, got jittery, then running along the aisle, he hollered out insane things such as « They’re going to take us down! ». The passengers wrestled the pilot down, tied him up with seat belts, and he was handed over to the police after landing.

An incident of this kind had already been reported two weeks before. An American Airlines flight attendant had been giving the safety instructions just before takeoff. She suddenly ranted about mechanical issues which were immediately refuted by the other cabin crew members. She kept speaking incoherently about Al-Qaeda, and the 9/11 attacks, about her fears of crashing, etc. A few people managed to wrestle her down, and the passengers were startled and scared as they could hear her blood-curdling screams when she was being handcuffed by the police.

According to these reports, these insane behaviors are believed to be air-rage cases but the flight attendant who got temporarily mad would be deemed bipolar by doctors, and her condition could explain her behavior. As far as the JetBlue pilot is concerned, his neighbors cannot understand as they would see him as a kind person.

Another scary situations occurred in flight this week on Monday April 2, 2012. 80-year-old Helen Collins landed the Cessna 414 twin-engine aircraft in which the pilot – her husband – died a few minutes before at the controls!

Thanks to the video/audio tape hereafter, we can imagine now what was going through her mind as it was the first time she had flown an aeroplane: (video with transcripts – click on the link below)

http://youtu.be/QxZKKDTRgyk

Outstanding Helen Collins hurt her back, and cracked a rib but she managed to bring the plane to a safe stop at Door County Cherryland Airport, near Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin.

Last but not least, HATS OFF to Braden Blennerhassett, an Australian pilot who never panicked last Tuesday as a SNAKE popped out from the dashboard; slithered down his leg while he was landing! Read the SCRIPT and listen to the video link about this story below:

 

Here is how this brave pilot kept his cool on his aircraft (interview):

 

 

 

Another interesting video with the air traffic controller about the emergency message she received:

 

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2125423/Snakes-Plane-Reptile-cockpit-forces-Darwin-pilot-make-emergency-landing.html

 

 

These recent stories – not to mention the latest crash of an F/A-18D Hornet from Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia, on Friday in which the pilots managed to bail out safely before the fighter aircraft crashed into an apartment building fortunately left with no death toll – remind us of this well-worn saying: Flying is simply hours of boredom punctuated by moments of stark terror.

Special thanks to Xavier Cotton – Passion pour l’aviation‘s webmaster – for his help and support, and for passing these video links on to me. Thank you very much indeed. 😉

 

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FLAPERON CONTROL SYSTEM

FLAPERON CONTROL SYSTEMS view

Figure 1-5. – FLAPERON CONTROL SYSTEMS

  1. Wing fold flaperon interlock switch
  2. Flaperon control linkage
  3. Right wing flaperons
  4. Flaperon actuator (right wing)
  5. Flaperon pop-up valve
  6. Wing-fold‚ interlock mechanism
  7. Filter
  8. Crossover cables Flaperon pop-up mechanism and cylinder
  9. Left wing flaperons
  10. 1Flaperon control linkage
  11. Flaperon actuator (left wing)
  12. Crossover cables
  13. Pushrods Left wing flaperons
  14. Throttle quadrant

Longitudinal control systems control pitch about the lateral axis of the aircraft. Many aircraft use a conventional elevator system for this purpose. However, aircraft that operate in the higher speed ranges usually have a movable horizontal stabilizer. Both types of systems are discussed in the following text.

ELEVATOR CONTROL SYSTEM – A typical conventional elevator control system is operated by the control stick in the cockpit, and is hydraulically powered by the elevator power mechanism. The operation of the elevator control system is initiated when the control stick is moved fore or aft. When the stick is moved, it actuates the control cables that move the elevator control bell crank. The bell crank transmits the movement to the power mechanism through the control linkage. In turn, the power mechanism actuates a push-pull tube, which deflects the elevators up or down. If the hydraulic system fails, the cylinder can be disconnected. In this condition the controls work manually through the linkage of the mechanism to actuate the elevators.

HORIZONTAL STABILIZER CONTROL SYSTEM – Horizontal stabilizer control systems are given a variety of names by the various aircraft manufacturers. Some aircraft systems are defined as a unit horizontal tail (UHT) control systems, while others are labeled the stabilator control system. Regardless of the name, these systems function to control the aircraft pitch about its lateral axis.

Source: http://www.tpub.com

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RAFALE vs Typhoon/Eurofighter, F-16s, and even F-22Raptor! Guess which gives the others a rough ride?

French Navy RAFALE fighter aircraft takeoff from a carrier aircraft deck
RAFALE to defeat any other fighter aircraft? Photo:©  Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Ricardo J. Reyes

Strange as it may seem, the French have not managed to export Rafale fighter aircraft so far… However, the Rafale has been deemed to be an excellent fighter aircraft so many times – formidable in dogfighting, awesome when it strikes, and its superb CATIA-designed streamlining turns it into a feline grace nonetheless redoubtable whenever it is to be challenged in the skies.

There have already been rumours such as:

Rafales – thanks to its RCS (Radar Cross Section) –  would have beaten F/A-18s Hornet.

– After several dogfights reported between the Rafale and the Raptor, ( Rafale vs F-22 Raptor:  1 – 1 , according to the rumours ) BVR engagement exercises would have been cancelled. Another version deems that F-22s never took part in such exercises, so what did they do there at that time? Sightseeing? Not to mention the F-22’s withdrawal at the Paris Air Show 2009…

– The Rafale was onboard American CVs (aircraft carriers) in 2007, 2008, and 2009. The rumour in forums spread about American fighter aircraft that could not stand the Rafales’ level of performance during exercises.

But who knows, actually? However, some other elements have also been reported. They do not come from forums or blogs. So, can they be called « rumours »?

For instance, I still remember an article from The New York Times dated July 16th 2006. It was reported that the Rafales could outfly F-15, F-16 and F-18 opponents in dogfights. They also won against F-15s and Eurofighter Typhoons in technical and performance evaluations . The American media paid tribute to the French jet but almost nobody knew that in France at that time. How bizarre… Well, it must be admitted that there is a curious fad in France that consists in criticizing everything that works.

Remember, according to French TF1 channel in 2008… This was the balance sheet:

FAF Rafales vs USAF F-16s :  6 – 2

Moreover, the former Red Arrows team leader – Peter Collins – stated last month that it should be done justice to this aircraft for the Rafale would be according to him – as he had just flown a standard F3 Rafale – a « war-fighter par excellence ». He added that he deemed the Rafale to be the best and most complete combat aircraft that he had ever flown. He concluded in saying that if he had to go into combat, on any mission, against anyone, he would, without question, choose the Rafale.

Last but not least, the French Rafales would have slammed – if I may put it this way – the other aircraft in an exercise in the UAE – United Arab Emirates. Even the F-22 Raptor – though 5th generation fighter – could hardly do anything to « tame » this tough challenger. According to Jean-Marc Tanguy’s information, defence journalist, the balance sheet lies in the figures hereafter:

Dogfighting (with Rafale weapons system’s performance lowered on purpose):

FAF Rafales vs RAF Typhoons :  4 – 0

Dogfighting with further Rafale weapons system reduction:

FAF Rafales vs RAF Typhoons :  3 – 1

Final balance sheet (in both scenarii the Rafales did not have full weapons systems…):

FAF Rafales vs RAF Typhoons :  7 – 1

Not to mention Rafales outperform F-16CJs in targeting while in air-to-air and ground attacks thanks to the Rafale’s FSO – Front Sector Optronic.

I read from a remarkable Swiss aviation specialist’s website: AVIA NEWS. Pascal – AVIA NEWS webmaster – let me quote his analysis according to which the Rafale obtained the best score (95%) among the fighter aircraft evaluated for choosing which will replace the Swiss Air Force’s F-5 Tiger. The other two competitors were the SAAB JAS-39 Gripen, and the Eurofighter / Typhoon.

Furthermore, the Dutch did compare various fighter aircraft in 2002. Who remembers? The RNLAF – the Royal Netherlands Air Force – carried out this study and the balance sheet came out in the Dutch press:

Here are the ratings reported:

F-35 = 6.97

RAFALE = 6.95

Eurofighter = 5.83

F-16 Block 60 = 5.80

Well, we must admit that the JSF / F-35 Lightning II is the best fighter among those that were assessed. However it was a close shave, wasn’t it?

You will find an excerpt below of Jean-Marc Tanguy’s post from his blog « Le Mamouth« :

French Navy's Rafale multirole fighter aircraft on deck with shooter
Rafale on deck – U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Ricardo J. Reyes

La première confrontation engageant quatre Rafale contre quatre Typhoon s’est terminée par un 4-0 en faveur des Français. Malgré, explique-t-on, l’emport d’un armement air-air fictivement dégradé. Après avoir un peu dégradé encore l’armement, le Rafale l’a encore emporté, 3-1.
Le Rafale a été confronté au F22 lors d’un vol, mais dans un cadre limité au combat air-air à vue. Il n’aurait été dans le collimateur du chasseur américain qu’ à une reprise, explique t-on aussi. CLIQUEZ ICI pour lire L’ARTICLE ENTIER en français

Citation du Mamouth – Le Mamouth courtesy

Photos: U.S. Air Force Link

Rafales on movie below:

You can read more recent information here: https://airforces.fr/2010/02/14/french-fighter-aircraft-performance/

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U-2 – Strategic reconnaissance a/c

The Dragon Lady is said to be difficult to fly, but remaining for more than 12 hours in its cockpit must have been an actual ordeal…

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Depot Efforts Continue to Keep T-38s Flying

USAF T-38 Trainer Aircraft

The T-38 Talon is a twin-engine, high-altitude, supersonic jet trainer. It is used primarily in Air Education and Training Command for undergraduate pilot and pilot instructor training. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Steve Thurow)

AIR FORCE LINK Courtesy
by Wayne Crenshaw
78th Air Base Wing Public Affairs

10/20/2008 – ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. (AFNS)

Members of the 573rd Commodities Maintenance Squadron here continue to put in long hours to make sure Air Force pilot training doesn’t come to a halt.

Many members of the squadron have been working 10-hour days, seven days a week to make a new aileron actuator lever for the T-38 Talon used to train pilots. A T-38 crashed in April, killing the instructor and student. A faulty aileron lever was declared a contributing factor in the crash. The problem threatened to ground all T-38s, but officials at Warner Robins Air Logistics Center and at Air Force Materiel Command’s two other depots, Hill AFB, Utah, and Tinker AFB, Okla., took on the task of developing a replacement lever. While about 32 people have hands-on involvement in the lever work at Robins AFB, the importance of the work results in the squadron participating in weekly, worldwide conference calls to update progress of the work. Tommy Hunnicutt, deputy director of the 573rd CMMXS, said he expects the squadron personnel to boost their output to 75 levers per week, which would put completion of the contract at about Nov. 14. That would be well ahead of the original completion date of Dec. 26.

Mr. Hunnicutt said that initially Robins AFB was not in the repair picture. However, the other two depots had problems getting their prototypes approved for the item that requires precise, intricate milling. That raised concerns about how long the fix could take, Mr. Hunnicutt said, and that’s when the 573rd CMMXS got the call. After getting the contract July 30, squadron engineers got a prototype approved Aug. 25 with relative ease. Unit personnel are now producing 50 levers per week. The contract calls for the squadron to produce 250 left hand levers and 250 right hand levers. The levers control the ailerons, which are located on the rear of each wing and are used to control the aircraft during a turn.

Due to the age of the T-38, the original aluminum forgings used to make the levers are no longer available, which is why the parts had to be manufactured from scratch.

Air Force officials currently operate 546 T-38s, a twin-engine jet that serves as the primary trainer for Air Force pilots. It also has the same basic airframe as the F-5 Freedom Fighter, and Mr. Hunnicutt said the F-5 aileron levers also will be replaced.

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