Originally Posted by
gums
Salute!
Looking more and more like Big B needs to bite the bullet and do something with the engine mounting design and possibly the stabilizer/elevator configuration. Screw MCAS. Fix the aero problem for certification and general good handling characteristics.
It can be done, and was long ago by Lockheed, but......
Back when the earth was still cooling, Lockheed had to modify all of the Electra airliners due to harmonic vibrations and such. Hell, the wings were being ripped off! The public relations war was lost, however, and even though the fix cured the problem, had great results and the legendary P-3 Orion resulted. the damage had been done and folks wouldnt fly the thing.
I can't unnerstan why slots or slats on the nacelles wouldn't help with the pitch moments. Maybe small cannards. Reshape the nacelles?. And so forth. With many features of the old design already certified, doesn't seem to me that re-certifying without the MCAS kludge would not be as expensive as a complete new design, although the billions about to be paid for the lawsuits could influence that proposal.
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I tried to imagine the roller coaster procedure posted here to regain useable trim and had to laugh. Imagine the pax barfing and screaming, plus flight attendants bouncing off the overhead bins and more. And just when it seems to the SLF in seat 23A that things are under control, whooo hooo one more time!!
Gums sends...
I would have thought a wing-tip extension, not to increase span, but to extend the chord further aft, between the aileron and the tip could help (just a line pilot, not a designer), as it is a lot further aft than the MAC.
Obviously need to make sure that that part of the wing stalls last as well.