Object strike at FL 262
would that sort of impact penetrated the windscreen do you think?
For another poster
composite structures on aircraft don't break into small pieces on impact. They do give way and break along fracture lines and then may be finished off by the airstream or centrifugal forces in the case of engine nose spinners.
Whatever hit this one dented it but I don't see the typical crease and fracture at the bottom of a significant hit.
I'll allow that parts of a bird like bones may have left scuff marks directly in line with the flight path of the aircraft and not scattered.
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by First.officer
Mystery solved?
I've seen the traces of several bird strikes (including a large seagull that hit the side window of a 73' on takeoff, managed to squeeze it open about 2-3 milimetres, and then proceeded to enter the cockpit through that gap, flesh, beak, bones, feathers & all...). A bird strike leaves quite a bit of a mess... Also 8000 metres is very high, have heard of vultures getting up that high, but a bird of that size hitting at 500mph would do more than a dent. Based on info from more knowledgable posters on this thread, I'd vouch for a balloon till proven otherwise.
Last edited by andrasz; 6th Jun 2013 at 17:08.
Well, I would not discount a birdstrike. I posted on another forum recently that I hit a fair sized bird over Northern Germany at night between cloud layers on the descent into CGN at 19,000 ft.
I am also sure that I have read of geese being up at 30,000 ft (without filing a flight plan).
I am also sure that I have read of geese being up at 30,000 ft (without filing a flight plan).
Indeed. UPS hit a goose on the windscreen at FL310 over Colorado Springs a few years back. It was in the dark of night - must have scared the stuffing out of that crew.
Last edited by J.O.; 6th Jun 2013 at 18:26.
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Scotland
Age: 80
Posts: 451
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I removed feathers jammed in a lap joint aft of the radome on an Iranair 727 that had a bird strike at 23000 feet over the Gulf at night - seemed to belong to some kind of raptor.
Pegase Driver
Join Date: May 1997
Location: Europe
Age: 74
Posts: 3,693
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The birds going up above 20.000 ft are not that many (i.e. Condors, Vultures, Canadian Geese ) all fairly big an heavy ( Vultures around 4-5 Kg , Geese 5-9 Kgs and condors up to 15 Kg ) .
These kind of weights at 900 Km/h hitting the ( plastic) radome would end up on the knees of the crew I think.
I would also normally leaves some blood traces.
These kind of weights at 900 Km/h hitting the ( plastic) radome would end up on the knees of the crew I think.
I would also normally leaves some blood traces.
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 266
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Amongst all the gore is this one:
Sutherland Shire Squadron - Photo Gallery - Bird Strike
Which bears some similarity, lacks gizzards and appears to be a confirmed bird strike.
Sutherland Shire Squadron - Photo Gallery - Bird Strike
Which bears some similarity, lacks gizzards and appears to be a confirmed bird strike.
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: engineer at large
Posts: 1,409
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
China has plenty of UAV's, the Guizhou Soar Eagle ceiling is 59,000 feet.
The service ceiling on a Global Hawk is 60,000 feet, and routinely fly at 45,000.
The service ceiling on a Global Hawk is 60,000 feet, and routinely fly at 45,000.
Last edited by FlightPathOBN; 7th Jun 2013 at 17:06.
B Fraser,
I don't know about the weather balloons which you are used to, but the one I had an encounter with over southern China a few years back was MANY times the size of the one pictured!
I don't know about the weather balloons which you are used to, but the one I had an encounter with over southern China a few years back was MANY times the size of the one pictured!
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: engineer at large
Posts: 1,409
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The typical National Weather Service radiosonde instrument looks like it would cause the damage...seems reasonable China would use something very similar..
Last edited by FlightPathOBN; 8th Jun 2013 at 16:08.
Tabs please !
It was the type where the hydrogen obeys the laws P1V1/T1 = P2V2/T2. The balloons did leak a bit and hydrogen does behave slightly oddly but the equation is a good enough analogy to show what happens when P reduces by a lot and T reduces by a little (in terms of Kelvin).
If you added a bit too much gas then the balloon would burst at a lower altitude so you could bunk off home sooner. Not that I ever did such a thing
If you added a bit too much gas then the balloon would burst at a lower altitude so you could bunk off home sooner. Not that I ever did such a thing
