Posted on 05/28/2020 2:00:56 PM PDT by DUMBGRUNT
At no point did the pilots say they had a problem with their landing gear or any other type of emergency, according to the radio calls.
A deadly plane crash in Pakistan is prompting questions about how the crew could touch down without landing gear when their sophisticated jetliner was bristling with equipment to prevent pilots from doing just that
"It is unbelievable to me that an airline crew on a jet like an Airbus, with all the warning systems, would attempt to land the plane without the gear extended," said John Cox, an aviation safety consultant who formerly flew the A320 as a U.S. airline pilot.
It's not yet clear why the two jet engines quit after functioning well enough for about two minutes to lift them about 3,000 feet (915 meters) above the runway. Engines have become so reliable that losing two at the same time is almost always because of some common factor, such as damage from hitting a runway or a problem with the fuel supply.
"We are comfortable. We can make it," the pilot can be heard telling the controller, according to a recording of Karachi's air-traffic radio posted on the LiveATC.net website.
"Sir, we have lost engines," a pilot said. Then, 30 seconds later, he said, "Mayday. Mayday. Mayday."
(Excerpt) Read more at ndtv.com ...
Kinetic energy is a function of the square of the velocity. 203 mph squared is 41,209. 161 squared is 25921. This is 59% more energy than the normal landing speed if your numbers are correct. Even if he had his gear down he would have run off the end of the runway. I can not fathom nor understand the vast incompetence of this flight.
When the approach was going to Sh-t the first officer should have assumed command. He did not, and I suspect this is a cultural problem. In some societies in the Middle East and also the far east THE CAPTAIN IS GOD!
The audio warning should have been screaming about gear and altitude and speed. Going in at 325kts for landing is insane. My Airbus goes in at around 135kts.
Interesting point. I wonder if the aircraft were so sophisticated that it wouldn’t let the gear down at that speed...?
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