Tony Blair en route to US, Plane hit by lightning

Ananova ^

[concerned about politics]

The lightning struck the left-hand wing but did not cause it to change course or descend.

Kewl! An omen.
The "left wing" couldn't stop him. He was still a success!

[libertylover]

Can anyone verify if planes are often struck by lightning?

When I was in the Air Force it was fairly common. I worked in the instrument shop and the pilots would write-up all kinds of electronic type malfunctions after a lightning strike. Usually, they'd be OK though by the time we checked them out.

[Mihalis]

...All good explanations. Let me clarify one point. The electricty flows on the outside of the aircraft skin. Not throught the skin. Just a small tidbit to add...

It's called the skin effect. Electricity always flows at the outer skin of a conductor.

[bluefish]

Plane / Lighting Ping - thought you might like to see this..

[Fixit]

You really are making a bit too much of the "skin effect".

It is false to claim that "Electricity always flows at the outer skin of a conductor."

In direct current the flow of current is even throughout the body of a conductor. Only in AC flow, where reactance becomes important, does the increased impedance at the center of the conductor lead to more current being carried on the "skin" of the conductor.

For a fairly detailed analysis of this see:
Modeling Skin Effect

[MHT]

I would love to know what transpired at that meeting.

It will really tick me off if Bush allows the likes of Germany and France to be part of the Iraq reconstruction. They have made no commitments of men, money, or even lousy airspace and have worked seven ways from Sunday to try to assure our defeat. The time we lost pussy-footing around with the UN was critical, weatherwise. Now they want to partake of the spoils, even if they veto another UN resolution that we have no right to rebuild Iraq. Their greed, ingratitude, arrogance, and brazen hatred are beyond compare.

And we're supposed to let them back on the team?

[Lx]

Was William Shatner looking out the window and freaking out?

[Mihalis]

You're absolutely right. There is no skin effect in direct current. But the current transient caused by lightning is a high frequency current.

[sonsofliberty2000]

[Jonah Hex]

Ouch!! Been there, done that, brown trousers time....

:-)

Thanks for the ping!

[George W. Bush]

"And may we be struck by lightning if the United Nations isn't the best solution to rebuilding Iraq...". - Tony Blair, overheard by air steward just prior to incident