Learjet Landing Accident Mumbai 14 Sep 23
People look at the required visibility on an ILS chart and don't realise that there is a considerable difference between 1000m of haze and 1000m of heavy rain. In haze you will see the approach lights and can expect reasonably stable conditions. In heavy rain it will be lashing down, and even with the wipers on maximum it may not be enough to give you a clear view, and that's before you consider the storm that's producing the rain.
Last week I held for 20 minutes because of because of heavy rain with 1000m vis and wouldn't have tried the approach even if that had been above the minima.
Last week I held for 20 minutes because of because of heavy rain with 1000m vis and wouldn't have tried the approach even if that had been above the minima.
The horizontal vis doesn’t appear too bad as the camera is some distance away, plus the jet is visible as soon as it comes into frame, so there seems to have been at least some vertical vis as well. I found a higher resolution video which more clearly shows the pitch and bank which appear not to be being corrected, even though the ground must have been visible at that point. As you say, something must have gone seriously wrong for an aircraft to end up in that attitude at that height.
Makes for a challenging view in heavy rain. The Bombardier view is that airflow keeps the rain off the windshield. In practice it means you get quite a distorted view as raindrops are constantly running across and distorting the lights even very close to the ground. Takes a lot of getting used to and can be very disorienting if you haven’t seen it before.
Is this for real ?
How do you taxi safely in rain without wipers? So you are at the holding point and ATC says line up after the xx. You have windshields covered in rain.......
Then you start your take-off run with windshields covered in rain, with no airflow and no wipers.
And we use wipers on some wet approaches in Boeings and Airbus. Why would a commercial IFR aircraft not have them fitted.......are you winding me up ? 😁
How do you taxi safely in rain without wipers? So you are at the holding point and ATC says line up after the xx. You have windshields covered in rain.......
Then you start your take-off run with windshields covered in rain, with no airflow and no wipers.
And we use wipers on some wet approaches in Boeings and Airbus. Why would a commercial IFR aircraft not have them fitted.......are you winding me up ? 😁
Is this for real ?
How do you taxi safely in rain without wipers? So you are at the holding point and ATC says line up after the xx. You have windshields covered in rain.......
Then you start your take-off run with windshields covered in rain, with no airflow and no wipers.
And we use wipers on some wet approaches in Boeings and Airbus. Why would a commercial IFR aircraft not have them fitted.......are you winding me up ? 😁
How do you taxi safely in rain without wipers? So you are at the holding point and ATC says line up after the xx. You have windshields covered in rain.......
Then you start your take-off run with windshields covered in rain, with no airflow and no wipers.
And we use wipers on some wet approaches in Boeings and Airbus. Why would a commercial IFR aircraft not have them fitted.......are you winding me up ? 😁
Convair 880/990 as well...
Last edited by JanetFlight; 19th Sep 2023 at 18:16.
I have not flown any commercial types without wipers, but have often been on approach in Airbus/Boeing, in rain and required the wipers to be on - sometimes on high speed. Ditto for taxiing.
And, I cannot check the MEL, but don't inop wiper(s) downgrade the allowable landing category?
So quite how any screen would remain sufficiently clear of distorting rain to preserve good visibility on approach without wipers - even at approach speeds, puzzles me.
And what about starting a take-off roll at night with a rain covered screen - how does that work? Weird.
And, I cannot check the MEL, but don't inop wiper(s) downgrade the allowable landing category?
So quite how any screen would remain sufficiently clear of distorting rain to preserve good visibility on approach without wipers - even at approach speeds, puzzles me.
And what about starting a take-off roll at night with a rain covered screen - how does that work? Weird.
