New Airbus A380 evacuation... 33 hurt.....

[Neilk]

Originally posted by Joeaksa
[B]

I will never fly a A380 unless I can be seated near an exit. Just too many people to get out at one time if something happens.

Don't the regulations state that an airplane must have X amount of exits per seat? If so, getting to an exit will be no more dangerous than on narrow bodied 757.

[fastpat]

Originally posted by masraum
Sounds like a great success

Only 33, and no dead? Sounds like good odds to me!

ROFLMAO

The classic definition of a good landing is one where you're able to walk away from it and your clothes aren't on fire.

[Joeaksa]

Originally posted by Neilk
Don't the regulations state that an airplane must have X amount of exits per seat? If so, getting to an exit will be no more dangerous than on narrow bodied 757.

Neil,

Correct but as shown in the A380 evac they disabled a few and then a slide deflated, causing the injuries. When an airplane crashes the chances of one or more emergency exits not opening is very high, so when you start stuffing 800 people in an aluminum mailing tube you are also increasing your chances of not making it out if things go wrong.

Airbus has shown that they can get a group of young, people in good health out of the plane in 90 seconds. That meets the regulations so now they can go fly.

What is going to happen when a different group of people panic, freeze and try to take their carry-on luggage with them out of the exits? We just do not know but I sure would rather have 100 people to get out of a plane than 800 and my being at the end of the line when only a few exits are working.

Just because something is within the regulations does not mean that its safe. I do this for a living and will risk my life on a plane that I feel I have a chance of getting home safe on.

[Joeaksa]

Originally posted by fastpat
The classic definition of a good landing is one where you're able to walk away from it and your clothes aren't on fire.

The only time you have too much fuel on the plane is when you are on fire.

[StevoRocket]

Seems carbon fibre is getting really popular....

From a BBC news article...

Visually the 787 Dreamliner doesn't look radically different to the 757/767 family it replaces. It's a wide bodied twin engine type capable of long distance flights or carrying large passenger numbers depending on its configuration.

However it's the construction method which seems set to revolutionise the airline industry. The bulk of the 787 is constructed from carbon fibre based materials rather than the now conventional aluminium.

Boeing claim this is the first time this technology has been used so extensively in civil aviation rather than military use. The 787's main rival the Airbus A340/350 series also uses some carbon fibre, but not for the fuselage or wings. The result is a lighter faster aircraft which is easier to repair.

The major advantage though is the window design. Because of stress fractures, high altitude pressurised aluminium aircraft have had very small windows prevalent in Boeing's range right from the early days of the 707. Now the 787 offers windows that you can look out of even if you aren't in the window seat.

Critics might point to the use of essentially plastic technology in aircraft construction, but Boeing have been using the material on test 737s in everyday service since the type's inception in the 1960s with no incidence of deterioration or failure.

[widebody911]

Originally posted by Joeaksa
I will never fly a A380 unless I can be seated near an exit.

What, no ejection seats anymore?

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Originally posted by Joeaksa
I will never fly a A380 unless I can be seated near an exit.

Won't you then be required to "assist your fellow passengers through the emergency egress"? (not that *I* would)

All this CF worries me...are they imbedding copper strands in it for conductivity? I've seen more than my share of lightning strikes.

[Joeaksa]

Originally posted by widebody911 What, no ejection seats anymore?

Never had them for passengers and usually only on military fighter or bomber aircraft.

Even then if a military bird is sold to a civilian the ejection seat has to be disabled, forcing the pilot to ride the bird down.

[widebody911]

Originally posted by BlueSkyJaunte
All this CF worries me...are they imbedding copper strands in it for conductivity? I've seen more than my share of lightning strikes.

I'm not an aerospace engineer and I don't play one on TV.

A while back, I was reading in one of the composite trade mags about the problem they were having with delamination in the CF components, and how they were trying to invent new ways to inspect them. With traditional Al constructions, you can usually visually identify cracks; with the CF stuff, you can't.

I don't know if conductivity is an issue or not.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

You may not be an aerospace engineer but I'll bet you've got more composites experience than 99% of of the rest of us here...

Looks like conductive layers in composite (certified) aircraft construction is standard: http://www.lightningtech.com/d~ta/faq1.html

[Drago]

Originally posted by StevoRocket
...which is easier to repair.

Not from my experience. Also, much easier to damage by say, an inexperienced baggage truck driver bashing into the aircraft and "forgetting" to tell anyone.

Can you say rapid decompression? I knew you could.

Happened here recently on an Alaskan flight out of SeaTac.

[dhoward]

Originally posted by Joeaksa
The only time you have too much fuel on the plane is when you are on fire.

Actually heard a TWA pilot say those exact words on the PA while waiting for a fuel spill cleanup on the ramp at DFW.
Of course, that was before being funny on an aeroplane was popular...

[Joeaksa]

Interesting video about the assy of the A380 here:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3046542226114078023

A friend at the FAA sent it to me. Said he hopes he never has to worry about one of these!

[Tervuren]

Originally posted by Joeaksa
Interesting video about the assy of the A380 here:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3046542226114078023

A friend at the FAA sent it to me. Said he hopes he never has to worry about one of these!

Cool video, makes me wish I had the time to 3d animate a space ship being assembled. I've got car modeling projects right now, plus work. But maybee someday I take the time to do it.

[madmmac]

Screw the exits, run out the large gaping hole in the fuselage

[air-cool-me]

haha no kidding... using the other 799 bodys for traction..


must take a long time to unload and clean up the 1000 mixed nuts that were spilled.. then load it for the next flight!

[Joeaksa]

I rest my case for composite airplanes. Note the lack of a rudder on this Airbus. Differental power is your friend in this case!

They are lucky they got the bird on the ground in one piece: