Rarely have I read so much nonsense (apart from the clear, accurate factual account from lj101).....
The 'landing gear down ferry' is a long-established procedure for the VC10, as are other limited serviceability procedures. There is no way that this would be a 'crew decision', the procedure includes agreed approval and specific engineering requirements. In addition, the landing gear down ferry performance criteria must be met.
I'm astonished that some Nimrod air engineer could decide whether or not to abide by promulgated procedures. Or perhaps there weren't any and it was an ad hoc decision? Was the aircraft captain some wireless operator, or what? Did the Nimrod ODM include landing gear down ferry performance data? Were there any specified procedures for preparing the aircraft for such an event? The idea of perhaps risking landing gear collapse on landing due to the vague possibility of needing to ditch is laughable, to say the least.
Regarding VC10 double engine failures, the guidance was that if the failure occured with the landing gear extended, it was better to leave it in that condition rather than attempt to raise it. When the landing gear sequences, the doors move in such a manner as to induce an angle of attack against the relative airflow and hence to generate drag whilst the landing gear extends and retracts...
Doesn't anybody understand such things these days?
Last edited by BEagle; 21st Sep 2012 at 19:09.