Solid-as-a-rock A380 aircraft struck… by lightning!

It is not uncommon for aircraft to be struck by lightning but this super heavy Emirates Airbus A380 got hit by a jagged bolt of lightning right over the pilot’s seats.

A huge amount of electric energy must have passed through the airframe of the aircraft during its approach at London Heathrow last week. Amazingly the commercial aircraft escaped damage, and nobody was hurt.

Is it any wonder this airplane may sustain such a stress in a clap of thunder? The size and the nature of the A380 airframe seems to be the right solution to such hazards. Thanks to its thick metal structure, the plane behaved as a perfect Faraday cage:

Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

2nd fuselage with a hole – Southwest Airlines aircraft grounded

A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-3H4 had been forced to make an emergency landing less than two years ago. Another B-737-3H4 has just had a 6′ hole in its fuselage during a flight causing sudden decompression, and emergency landing.

The NTSB is leading an investigation into exactly what happened to this Southwest Airlines flight – a 737 which had a hole come open during a flight from Phoenix to Sacramento at FL 360 (altitude: 36,000 feet that is to say almost 11 kilometers high). It was a harrowing experience for the passengers and the crew members. Watch the video:

Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

Discrimination in the skies? UK’s Air Passenger Duty explained

Every passenger departing the UK has to pay a fee. It varies depending where you are flying to, and where you are sitting on the plane. APD – Air Passenger Duty – is divided into four categories or bands based on the distance between London, and the final destination. Watch the video about this « banding system » hereafter:

Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

THE PILOT (Willi Willer / Têtes à Claques) with script

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

Cours d’anglais aéronautique sur FCL ANGLAIS

 

 

Transcript:

Mayday! Mayday! This is Flight DC-one-thirty-two requesting emergency landing « priorité ».
DC-one-three-two what is your emergency?
My onboard agent informs me there is a suspicious passenger on board.
Suspicious? In what way?
He has a nail file.
A nail file?
Yes, and he is filing his nails on my plane!
I do not see the problem.
You know it is against the rules!
Yes, well I would not worry about it.
I wouldn’t worry about it… What if he gouges my eyes out with that file? Who will fly the plane then, eh?
I could fly the plane, Captain.
SHUT YOUR FACE, Henri!
Captain, please, try to stay calm!
No, no, no, no, no… I will not stay calm. OK? Because the passenger also has a canette of grape juice!
So, he likes grape juice…
« So, he likes grape juice… » How do you know it is just grape juice, eh? Maybe there is an atomic bomb in that little canette. Then, what, huh? KA-BOOM!
Look, DC132, I cannot authorize an emergency landing for a passenger filing his nails, and drinking a can of grape juice.
Hey! Tower boy! Do-do you watch CNN, sometimes?
Yes.
Then wake up and smell the jet fuel, huh, huh?
OK! You know, you may be right Captain. We should not take any chances. I am sending two F-18s to shoot you down. Thank you for your vigilance, Sir. We will never forget your sacrifice – Over.
Huh, hello? Hello, tower? Come in, come in, tower?
Well done, « Capitaine »! Smooth…
Tower? This is flight DC132. Hello? Hello?
 
Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail

Air Traffic Control – Interesting voice communications with scripts

Caution: As far as this video is concerned, it would be well advised not to use some of the phrases heard on its soundtrack during an FCL 1.200/1.028 speaking examination…

Facebooktwitterlinkedinmail