Posted on 03/10/2019 1:35:43 PM PDT by springwater13
The Boeing 737 MAX 8, a brand new plane only registered in November, disappeared from the radar six minutes into the flight. Immediate comparisons have been drawn with Lion Air flight 610, which crashed just over four months ago, killing 189 people. Flight data showed erratic climbs and descents before the plane, also a MAX 8, came down 12 minutes after takeoff from Jakarta.
More than 300 Boeing 737-MAX planes are in operation and more than 5,000 have been ordered worldwide since 2017. It is the latest iteration of the 737, the worlds bestselling plane, ever more capable of flying autonomously.
Autonomy, however, can bring problems. It is notable that insurers considering driverless cars worry most about the period when highly autonomous vehicles will coexist with human drivers, the uncertain interface between human and artificial intelligence.
Pilots worldwide were angered after the Lion Air crash that subtle software modifications to the MAX 8s autopilot had not been fully communicated. Nor were they made the subject of mandatory pilot retraining.
The new plane automatically compensates if it believes its angle puts it at a risk of stalling, a safety feature that worked in a slightly different way to that which 737 pilots were used to. Lion Airs black box suggested the pilots of flight 610 had been wrestling with this issue.
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
I hate flying. I can’t imagine what these people experienced in the last moments of their lives.
Prayers for all. How sad.
#92,284 not to fly.
Who were the pilots in each case?
I thought that Boeing issued instructions how to disable this feature with a flick of a switch after the first crash?
I reserve judgement until the facts are known. It may have nothing to do with the plane itself.
That being said, I will most certainly try to avoid that model for now.
Guess they didn’t tell them which switch and where it was.
[Flight data showed erratic climbs and descents ]
When I see reports of similar, it always makes me think “flight control surfaces”. One that comes to mind suffered a detachment of an elevator, IIRC. (one critical attachment of an elevator).
Guess we’ll find out.
I wasn’t in to their music but I watched that video a couple of days ago for laughs. I like the donuts and the car - they were nice touches.
[I hate flying. I cant imagine what these people experienced in the last moments of their lives.]
It’s a terrible way to die.
I rode a Southwest MAX 8 yesterday BOS-DEN, very nice and it didnt crash.
Mine had huge life rafts in the ceiling. Must be getting close to ETOPS certification for HNL.
Who keeps putting “braking” in the keywords?
Someone from DU?
It must be somebody trying to make FR look bad.
I’ve seen it a dozen times.
Funny pic though.
Software glitch. Planes have been incredibly safe for decades. If it aint broke...
Mine had huge life rafts in the ceiling. Must be getting close to ETOPS certification for HNL.
The FAA has already awarded ETOPS certification to Southwest. The flights have been added to Southwest's reservation system.
[If it aint broke...]
I generally agree.
There have been a few where there were surprises. A couple of guys forgot to turn off the autothrottle system which had idled the engines. They could not get the power they needed.
In another one, OTOH, the starboard thrust reverser deployed just after takeoff and the aircraft rolled right.
In that case, the software reacted properly, idling the starboard engine. The co-pilot, shocked by the idling, kept pushing the starboard thrust to max. The software fought back, idling the starboard engine again. On the 3rd attempt, it broke the cable used by the software. The aircraft rolled right, unrecoverable, and into the ground.
Of course he had no idea the starboard thrust reverser had deployed in error.
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