OT: What Really Brought Down the Boeing 737 Max?

Mike Oxbern · 2019-09-24T01:14:13+00:00

Malfunctions caused two deadly crashes. But an industry that puts unprepared pilots in the cockpit is just as guilty.

Sep 24, 2019 46 Replies

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trader_4 6 years ago

Well that's just flat out wrong. He's blaming both.

That's partly true. It's also the case that the computers are often better and flying the planes than the pilots and the computers can do things a pilot can't, eg Cat III landings.

I would expect all ATP pilots flying for commercial airlines certified in that aircraft could land it. And a very high percentage that are not rated too. They don't use the computers all the time, they hand fly a lot of time, particularly takeoffs and landings.

The accidents typically happen with a plane that has some serious malfunction, not one that is flying normally.

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Ed Pawlowski 6 years ago

I know that some of our best fighter planes that have the best pilots cannot fly without a computer.

I've always wanted to see how I would do in the cockpit of a big plane. My experience is limited to small planes and I know the basics, but is it enough to handle the big stuff? One of these days I may try this:

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30 minutes $75.

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Scott Lurndal 6 years ago

There are craft that are inherently unstable, the F117 being the classic example. FBW systems are required in such craft.

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rbowman 6 years ago

That was the trade off twenty or thirty years ago. To get the desired performance the planes are unstable. Fly by wire is the only thing that keeps them in the air. Even fuel management comes into it. Suddenly drop that 500 pound anvil under your left wing and you need a little tuneup to keep the CG in the envelope.

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