IMHO the use of the term ‘coffin corner’ w.r.t. commercial operations generates inaccurate impressions of the boundaries of normal operations and the safety margins provided by the certification process.
In some specialised military operations it may be necessary to all of the available performance; with this there is some risk.
In commercial operations the safety margins, as in posts above, and together with altitude, min selectable speed, and buffet boundary limitations, provide protection from hazardous situations (minimising risk) as currently envisaged by regulation (industry experience).
This and similar threads may fail to appreciate these aspects; they fail to define exactly how a hazardous situation might arise. ‘What Ifs’ are useful for understanding and planning ahead, but these have to be tempered with knowledge of the safety aspectsof the subject.
The apparent shortfall in this area suggests that training in commercial aviation is not teaching or explaining performance and aerodynamic aspects in sufficient detail; this might also be reflected by similar discussions on RTO’s and go-arounds, and loss of control accidents.
Last edited by safetypee; 22nd May 2012 at 13:36.