evansb - there is no RAT installed on the aircraft.
From what I understand, once the generators (engines #1 and #4) are lost, there is significant loss of electrical power in the aircraft.
It is equipped with hydraulic generators, but obviously that entails the operation of #2 & #3.
Didn't someone post a fuel diagram for the aircraft? I'm curious if the fuel / lifter pumps feed multiple engines, or if it's possible that they'd lose one engine first, then the others later.
If all were lost in the span of a minute or so, you'd revert straight to essential power (skip right over "emergency" power or whatever the backup hyd. generator level of power is called).
Battery = very few instruments. At night in IMC, AND in mountainous terrain, that is NOT an approach I'd want to fly blind.
The (apparent) series of events, with the crew calling out "we have a fuel PROBLEM" and requesting immediate vectors, followed almost immediately by the crew saying they have "an electrical failure" seems just... too much to ignore.
This is all speculation of course, for conversation sake - so I realize that, I'm just running through potential ideas that check all the boxes we see here.
The lack of rotational engine damage, lack of post-crash fire, ATC comm of "fuel problem" and the lack of any alternate / reserve fuel capacity based on the range and performance data for the flight/equipment, is a significant amount of information considering it only being a couple days post crash.
Just for the sake of argument here - if an aircraft were to run dry, with almost immediate loss of all but critical flight instruments (already a scenario for which a small charter company almost CERTAINLY doesn't train pilots for, considering it's almost unheard of at higher levels as well) what would be the odds of a crew being able to handle
those failures,
and maintain control (with almost dark cockpit) in IMC at night,
then also continue to a successful approach in difficult terrain?
Just seems like once they lost the engines (in said hypothetical situation) it was all over - almost regardless of skill level.
Wasn't it mentioned above that ATC was unable to provide vectors as well, at the end / lower altitudes at least? With nothing but a compass and base instruments.. no thanks.
What's the deal with this crew running the charts and paperwork and skipping right over the reserves / alternate and just saying "ehh, 'f it" - how much pressure do you think the company had on these guys?
From wiki, it seems that was the ONLY active aircraft they operated - the other 3 RJ's are in storage / retired, and their only ATR is in operation with another company.