Quote:
Originally Posted by MarkRobinson
I hope this has prompted some Boeing planning/maintenance meetings...there are some pretty damn simple measures that could be taken to help "find" planes if nothing else.
Agreed with an earlier statement: fare more brain-power on this forum than in all news channels combined: Pilots, engineers, military. ALLLL Porsche enthusiasts too!
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Engineering on aircraft is always a compromise...there are several systems as described in this thread designed to help locate a downed aircraft. I seriously doubt Boeing is looking at anything to make them easier to find, they meet all requirements as is and further efforts are not necessarily economically viable.
How often does a modern aircraft get "lost"? Millions of flight hours a year for decades, and this one event should revamp aircraft location systems? This is a highly unusual situation, and may in fact be a situation wherein someone was trying to make this aircraft dissapear. If it was a willful act then what can be done, pilots must retain the ability to control all aircraft systems to ensure safety. If we make it impossible for a pilot to deactivate transponders etc on board in flight, the next accident we will be discussing may be how a shorting transponder burned an aircraft in air due to the pilot being unable to de-power the system.
Always compromises.