Glueball
I am still surprised at the weights of the Airbus vs Boeing aircraft.
I seem to recall the folowing:
- B737-200 [120 pax]as having a basic weight of about 27 tonnes
- B737-400 [150 pax]about 34 tonnes
- A319 [130 pax] about 42 tonnes
- A320 [150 pax] about 44 tonnes
- I guess B727 [ 160? pax] about 45 tonnes
So, a full A320 at MLW of 64.5 tonnes vs a B727 at ??? tonnes. Remember that certification requirements - quite possibly the B727 was over-engineered compared to todays aircraft on the braking front. Certainly, the reverse on high bypass engines is ineffectual in comparison the the clam shell reversers on B737-200's! and, yes, I know reverse is not part of the certification process.
I think that modern certification requirements for evac etc are more stringent, but that simulation of some things has reduced engineering safety factors in others, maybe including braking/stopping, in order not to impose financial penalties on operators.
This may be an incident that reaps the rewards
