Quoting Safety Concerns:-
I think the 727 stall and the same stick back behaviour from the crew finally puts the technology argument to bed. Thanks jcjeant
Yes indeed, thanks jc.
There's one particularly close parallel. The factor that started the 'accident chain' in the 727 case appears to have been a misunderstanding prior to takeoff, resulting in the pitot heaters not being switched on. And we all know that a similar pitot problem initiated AF447's problems - except that the cause in that case was outdated/inferior design.
The 727 pitots froze up in the climb - and apparently relatively high-pressure air trapped inside them, while the unaffected static ports went on measuring the drop in outside pressure, resulted in very high speeds and a very high rate of climb being shown by the instruments. The pilots appear to have concluded that they were in a dangerous overspeed situation and reacted accordingly - and, tragically, fatally.
The AF447 pilots initially lost all airspeed indications. Later on they seem to have received some 'valid indications,' but they were so low (like 60 knots) that they (knowing that the pitos were stuffed anyway) probably felt that they could disregard them. Meanwihle the altimeter was unwinding at over 10,000 feet per minute and the wind noise (with the aeroplane standing on its tail and falling fast) would have been unlike anything they had heard before. They then lost the vertical speed indications as well.....
No way, IMO, that AF447 can just be put down to 'bad flying' alone. Various instrument malfunctions and lost displays (mostly caused, apparently, by the malfunctioning pitot-tubes, which were known to be sub-standard and should have been replaced much earlier) must have played a big part as well?