Originally Posted by
DaveJ75
That's cute. Cos no-one ever missed anything with a RBF flag right...
I'm not championing the covers left on theory. My post was really about a very experienced retired accident investigator noticing that the failure to not paint something that doesn't fly with the aircraft different from things that should be there on start up is a potential start to an accident sequence. To BPF, I don't know enough about how engine temps would be effected by one cover left on. Particularly where there are two intakes. As far as an abstract discussion goes. I do think that there is enough air flow through the other intake to get a start, and that after start, the blocking fabric would at least have come partially into the intake, although it might have been restrained for going all the way by one or more bungee cords in its securing bits. If it was in there, still held back, it would likely be in trail of the intake stream. It is hard to imagine it staying there. The pop sound? Yes, it is just like the sound our vacuum makes when it finally sucks some blockage through into the bag.
There have to be many other holes in the cheese for this one to have happened. Marshaller misses it, pilot, sitting right beside a cover on misses it getting into the plane, covers not counted in the stowing process...lots of things had to go wrong for this to happen. There are photos that are said to be from the taxi out. The accident aircraft, the No. 2, is seen with the left cover showing a hole and no attachments. The second photo shows a hole on the starboard side, but it isn't clear whether that is the accident aircraft. It would seem likely that the No. 2 would be blocked by No. 1, but... I think that in this scenario, even taxi power is going to bring a cover at least partway down the intake tunnel. The straps? If they are gone, it should be back in the compressor and that surely would have made an issue right there.
Not seeing the red strap? Both valid posts. I do remember years ago doing a walkaround on an Aztec on the South ramp at VVR, starting up, getting taxi clearance for a 27 departure, or 26 maybe, and hold at Mike. Go about 50 feet, meet a King Air coming in. Hear him say on Ground "Let that guy in the Aztec know he's dragging a five gallon pail full of concrete". How can you miss a five gallon pail of concrete tied by yellow rope to the tail ring of your airplane, especially as you'd have to walk around it?
The dot in the picture? If it's a video artifact, it is unusual if it would be alone. And that it would survive several frames. There is a large bird that flys by in the opening frames of the Pelton video, coming from the departure area. Drone? I fly a drone, and they get small quick in the sky. And, it does seem to have a bit of DJI drone shape. But, those drones all have GEO zones, no flies, and you would need a custom unlock with paperwork from the airport to fly there. That wouldn't happen, and at least the most common type drone couldn't lift off in that area, or lift off somewhere else and fly there. Other real cheap drones? Don't know.
What is unusual is that nowhere in the sequence, particularly at the pop time, is there any sign of flame at the tailpipe.