MrSoft
23rd Sep 2007, 09:06
I am a regular (for my sins) on Ryanair Leeds Bradford to Dublin.
I noticed that often when returning to LBA, the crew don't proceed to the turning point at the end of the runway, but slam on the brakes and do a 180deg pirouette on the main runway.
The effect is quite spectacular (especially if you're sitting over the wings) - akin to being rotated in an office chair. As we all know our friends in FR don't hang about.
My question is, does this not place a strain on the main gear and/or tyres? Especially at LBA it seems to be literally grinding a hole on the spot. Equipment is standard Ryanair 737-800 with winglets.
Just curious. Any engineers out there who would care to comment?
I noticed that often when returning to LBA, the crew don't proceed to the turning point at the end of the runway, but slam on the brakes and do a 180deg pirouette on the main runway.
The effect is quite spectacular (especially if you're sitting over the wings) - akin to being rotated in an office chair. As we all know our friends in FR don't hang about.
My question is, does this not place a strain on the main gear and/or tyres? Especially at LBA it seems to be literally grinding a hole on the spot. Equipment is standard Ryanair 737-800 with winglets.
Just curious. Any engineers out there who would care to comment?