reverse before touch down
 

I do not know how old this video is and apologies if it has been discussed before , but purely out of curiosity can you put reverse in flight on the MD80 . I know you could do it on the DC8 on the inboards to increase rate of descent , or even on all 4 on the CV990, but never heard it of newer types .
video here :

Certainly looks like it.

You can on the 737 too.

Hi,

in addition to the above, although I believe that on the MDs it is possibile to deploy the reverse at low radio alt, in this specific video You can see the aircraft experiencing a low bounce and then deploying the reversers.

plus Trident and TU-154 and IL62 iirc

And Concorde.

Every little helps!

Thanks, did not know, if I may ask again , was that on all engines at all altitudes @ la Coronado or just above the runway to prevent a bounce as shown here ?

There was a thread about a while back on this.

https://www.pprune.org/tech-log/5165...hlight=reverse

Don't try it in a turboprop though.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nort...nk_Flight_2268

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxair_Flight_9642

It's a very long time since I was involved with MD-80, but schematic 78-30-1 shows no RA input to reversers. I don't see anything on the schematic that would prevent reverser deployment in flight. Air/ground sensing is used to isolate the reverser accumulators from main hydraulics but does not seem to prevent deployment using the accumulators. My schematics date back to 1981 and there could have been changes since then so I'll defer to those with time on type.

Haven't flown it for more than 10 years but I believe it was possible to deploy the reverses in flight. I never tried though :E

I was flight lead on an MD-80 series commercial airline trainer a long while ago. Unless there has been a mod since then, the reverser deployment command will not go true unless a main landing gear squat switch is made. In the video, the left main gear is seen to touch down briefly and the reversers deploy shortly after that. It appears to me that the reverser levers must have been in the reverse position, and the first bounce enabled the deployment. A lower order possibility is that one of the main landing gear squat switches was failed closed.

In any case, airborne deployment of the reversers is not a normal operation for the MD-80.

It is possible for the lower reverser bucket to strike the ground if the deployment sequence occurs with the main gear on the ground at higher pitch angles where the nose gear is not on the ground - adding code to detect this was the last change made before the trainer received FAA certification.

[QUOTE=twb3;10403017the reverser deployment command will not go true unless a main landing gear squat switch is made. [/QUOTE]

There is no "reverser deployment command" in the actual aircraft. The system is a mechanical linkage between the throttle quadrant and the reverser control valves.

Could on the HS780.

I don't know about the Douglas/MacDac aircraft, but Boeing put the air/ground on the hydraulic isolation valve (HIV), not the directional control valve on the cable engine aircraft.
The 737 uses radio altimeter for the air/ground because it has a tendency to float in ground effect and the squat switch doesn't activate - the others use the squat switch.

On the MD-80 nose gear squat is used to isolate the reverser valve from main hydraulics but it leaves the reverser accumulators connected to the reverser valves. Having the main hydraulics isolated from the reverser valves by nose squat does not prevent reverser deployment. NTSB-AAR-81-16 illustrates what can happen if reversers are deployed before nose gear down. Note the procedure change that resulted from this flight test accident.

https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/...ts/AAR8116.pdf

Also done by pilots on the 747s to land on short runways.

Wasnt that long ago when there werent reverse thruster locks...one could deploy them at any altitude.

then there is also this

Smythe
That was SOP in ScotAirways in GLA in 1999. Even with a 90` turn.
Note to self: Do not use brakes to stop!
( Dornier 328 TurboProp)

seen it done on dc8 43 series. Better be at altitude or real close to the ground or it could be nasty.

And a wing mirror on a selfie stick?

Ummm... what?????

Not unless doing some shady work. Not at all recommended or required.

There was a crash when a 767 deployed reverse thrust at 24,000...cant remember the year.

Is there seriously any professional pilot who advises on deploying thrusts reversers prior to touchdown ?

Lauda air Bangkok 1991. But it was uncommanded on one engine only , the disymmetry caused the unrecoverable loss of control .

That was a standard technique that could be employed on DH Tridents - reverse in the flare - but that was 40+ years ago!

PS I do believe that the BEA/BA Trident pilots counted as professional pilots!

Is it true that the RAF TriStars could apply reverse thrust before landing? Many year ago I was told that they competed to make the shortest landing at Stanley airport using revers thrust after the Falklands War

Ditto DC-8 pilots.

Back in the early 70's I saw a Swissair DC8-62 landing on runway 13 at Hong Kong Kai Tak with the reversers deploying well before touchdown (actually as it went passed the Aero Club which was where I was seated).. This was before the runway was lengthened and the aircraft looked a bit fast over the fence.
Also wasn't there an Alitalia DC8-62 written off at Sydney after a heavy landing because the pilot had selected reverse on the inboards in flight to expedite his descent and forgot about them until he tried to apply power on short finals?

Yes, though it was at JFK rather than SYD.

No current production Boeing Commercial Aircraft allows the selection of reverse until the air/ground logic has been satisfied. In the case of the 737 the use of radio altimeter may mean you're not quite on the ground - but deploying them before actual touchdown is not approved and can be very hard on the aircraft (and perhaps your flying career). When the reversers deploy, the efflux kills the lift on that wing (as we discovered very unpleasantly on Lauda) and the aircraft drops like a rock. Plus, if one reverser fails to deploy for some reason you're also going to get a nasty roll at a bad time.

I'm with sonicbum. While it was possible (and even approved) on some older aircraft types, it's a very, very bad idea to try it on any current Boeing.

Was there not an Air Canada DC-8 that landed very hard due to early reverse thrust, was taken back up and crashed with all aboard lost? A very, very bad idea indeed for any civil transport.

reverse thrust
 

nope spoilers deployed prior to touchdown. big bounce, ripped off engine, opened wing and fuel caught fire. Game over crashed north of airport. cyyz All perished.

Applying R/T on the outboards (only those had reversers) during flare was SOP on the IL-62. It had no leading edge slats, and was necessary to avoid floating in ground effect with the very efficient wing (for those times) at a high angle of attack. Mind you, originally it had a five person fight deck...
Good video here:

Yes, I can name a few. All pilots of classic aircraft such as the 707/A300/747 combis..