Atlas Air 767 down/Texas
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I seem to remember that ATC offered a vector around weather when the crew said which way they wanted to go they were told to descend Expedishly to 3000 could've been hooking up straps jump seater leaning forward to watch the approach thrown onto pedestal and throttle.
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But, most of the other scenarios including an intentional crash don't seem likely either.
There was an infamous incident in 1994 where a crewmember tried to crash a freighter:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federa...ess_Flight_705
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Sounds plausible - and remember the Voyager
The possibility of a deliberate act seems less likely when details are compared with Germanwings; in that case the pilot was alone in the cockpit, his colleague unable to return because of the security door, and, in retrospect, the pilot had a clear history of mental illness. In this case there is no suggestion that one pilot had left the cockpit, and in addition there was, exceptionally, a third person very close by, making this flight the least likely one during which to commit suicide. Of course we do not know if any of the three individuals had any relevant medical history, and that could tilt the balance of probabilities...
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I agree with Glueball that with a standard 5 point Boeing seat harness and in turbulence an incapacitated pilot would not be able to make any forward control input let alone the hefty sustained input required to override an autopilot and pitch down 45 degrees. My only suggestion (and this is pretty remote) would be that someone could have been adjusting his seat and in turbulence it slid forward and jammed the control column forward. I hope it does not turn out to be a nefarious act as it would increase a lot of already inappropriate security restrictions on pilots.
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The shoulder portions of the five point harnesses on the 767 are the inertia type - so depending on the 'rate' it's quite feasible for a pilot to 'pitch' forward into the controls. Besides, he didn't need to suddenly 'pitch' forward - slumping forward would be sufficient and is unlikely to be fast enough to trigger the inertia reels.
Airbubba - I don't know if it was basic or an option - but as I recall the 767s I did flight tests on over the last 15 years all had electric seat adjusts - and most were new build freighters.
Airbubba - I don't know if it was basic or an option - but as I recall the 767s I did flight tests on over the last 15 years all had electric seat adjusts - and most were new build freighters.
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Below 10,000 feet the pilots would normally be strapped in by the shoulder harnesses,
Having some poor weather ahead with a lot of red on the radar however, I would expect most of them to strap in properly.
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The shoulder portions of the five point harnesses on the 767 are the inertia type - so depending on the 'rate' it's quite feasible for a pilot to 'pitch' forward into the controls. Besides, he didn't need to suddenly 'pitch' forward - slumping forward would be sufficient and is unlikely to be fast enough to trigger the inertia reels.
Airbubba - I don't know if it was basic or an option - but as I recall the 767s I did flight tests on over the last 15 years all had electric seat adjusts - and most were new build freighters.
Airbubba - I don't know if it was basic or an option - but as I recall the 767s I did flight tests on over the last 15 years all had electric seat adjusts - and most were new build freighters.
Saludos,
SEQU
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Predictive Windshear alerts from the weather radar should still function. Airbubba is right, reactive windshear alerts from the EGPWS are inhibited above 1500 feet AGL. So if they were responding to a WS alert at that altitude, it was from the WXR.
Galveston was running about 2000 overcast, Hobby was 3500ish BKN and IAH was just reporting cirrus behind the weather.
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Might want to check your manual on that one.
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Don't know if it's true, but I saw an article yesterday saying that Grieg Feith (former NTSB "Mud Stud") mentioned that "the autopilot was still engaged when the aircraft was on its rapid descent, meaning that the pilots were fighting the automation". As an old timer, I can't imagine sitting there below 10,000, watching the throttles go to 100% and the nose dropping to 49 degrees nose low without disconnecting the automation, throttles to idle, deploying the spoilers, and pulling for all I'm worth.
Last edited by Murexway; 14th Mar 2019 at 21:46.
Don't know if it's true, but I saw an article yesterday saying that Grieg Feith (former NTSB "Mud Stud") mentioned that "the autopilot was still engaged when the aircraft was on its rapid descent, meaning that the pilots were fighting the automation". As an old timer, I can't imagine sitting there below 10,000, watching the throttles go to 100% and the nose dropping to 49 degrees nose low without disconnecting the automation, deploying the spoilers, and pulling for all I'm worth.
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Don't know if it's true, but I saw an article yesterday saying that Grieg Feith (former NTSB "Mud Stud") mentioned that "the autopilot was still engaged when the aircraft was on its rapid descent, meaning that the pilots were fighting the automation". As an old timer, I can't imagine sitting there below 10,000, watching the throttles go to 100% and the nose dropping to 49 degrees nose low without disconnecting the automation, deploying the spoilers, and pulling for all I'm worth.