Patali: Pilot of AA flight dumped fuel prior to crash, in (likely) response to mechanical failures

Gov. Pataki | 11/12/01 | WABC Radio

[Steven W.]

Gov. Pataki is reporting that the pilot of the ill-fated American Airlines flight dumped most of the airplane's fuel over Jamaica Bay, anticipating a crash landing and most likely indicating a trained response to onboard mechanical failures.

[Trust but Verify]

One thing is for sure. WE DON'T KNOW! Maybe each of us is more likely to support the position we HOPE to be true. I HOPE it was an accident. Maybe there are those who HOPE it wasn't. That's a scary thought!

[cantfindagoodscreenname]

It's right up there with the moose and cheese posts, ain't it?

Somehow I've missed the moose posts. I'll have to keep a sharp eye out for them.

I do like the shopping posts, though.

Candi

[concerned about politics]

"anti-terrorist training"?

Yes!

[Rum Tum Tugger]

I just heard a fellow on a talk show in Tampa Florida who claimed that he was an American Airlines pilot who flies the Airbus say that the Airbus is not capable of dumping fuel. In other words, he said the pilot of an Airbus couldn't dump fuel if he wanted to. He sounded credible.

[nicmarlo]

Everytime I see this, I have to laugh. I showed this picture to my daughter early this a.m. She thought it was hysterical.

[sam_paine]

In this speculation, he didn't get around to the radio call before the engine blew.

Further speculation/question: If you're dumping fuel (therefore being atomized) and there is already a fire (engine or bombed fuselage), what happens if that cloud of fuel is ignited? Could he have had an unknown fire (perhaps from a bomb on board), pilot starts dumping fuel as standard procedure to return home unaware of the fire (engines still working fine) and then the fire ignites the mixture and blows a control surface off? I did just see video of them fishing the vertical stabilizer out of the water...which I haven't heard comment on about yet....

Just stirring the pot for a non tinfoil, but pretty damn unlucky, explanation....

[Verginius Rufus]

The fuel wasn't dumped by the AA plane, it's from the Exxon Valdez disaster, which was the evil Republicans' fault for building the Alaska pipeline, and just goes to show we should not drill for oil in ANWR.

[nvagvup]

I suspect most people with brains in their heads will error on the side of caution with me and stay off of planes as well. If they have a choice of course. Which is exactly what the terrorists want. "Let's all go hide under the bed until the big bad boogeyman goes away." We can choose to let them intimidate us, or we can get in their faces with out and out defiance. We get to choose. Do we wear panties or don't we? That's our choice.

[Lessismore]

I heard it too. Since Airbus 300-600 is rated to fly fully fueled on one engine there is no fuel dumping capability in the Airbus 300-600. If there is fuel in the bay, it probably came from a rupured tank.

[LTCJ]

Has it occurred to any of you experts that maybe Pataki has a little more info than YOU do?

No. The laws of physics remain unimpressed with his "info".

[NixNatAVanG InDaBurgh]

If this is true, why have they continued to insist there were no indications of any problems communicated from the cockpit? Seems to me this would indicate a hell of a problem. It is still my contention this was expected to be an air-fuel bomb. The fuel in the water could likely have been caused by detonation of the plane at too high an altitude. Wreckage is everywhere. The debri field still hasn't been measured.
...or else one of the pilots had the chutzpah to dump fuel, perhaps a bit of sleight of hand, in spite of any threat to himself. Thing is, why, if the actual pilot of the flight was in control, would he turn landward with NO COMMUNICATION to the tower that he was in trouble? Don't seem prudent.
If a pilot DID manage to dump fuel, we might have another Flight 93 hero aboard that plane.

[Travis McGee]

Do you think that a 50 cal round fired directly into a spinning jet turbine on take off would magically bounce off, or pass through making a dozen neat hole in one line and do no serious damage?

[TheRealLobo]

a terrorist would have to kill me and take over the controls himself to get it over a populated area

Which could explain why the plane took an abrupt turn.

If I remember correctly, ALL cockpit doors have been retro-fitted to keep intruders out of the cockpit. Also, the tower received no reports of problems (I think I heard this today). Keep in mind that this happened within (4?) minutes of takeoff. They were still climbing, and it seems a VERY short amount of time for a hijacker to announce himself, gain access to the cockpit, kill the pilot, and gain the controls.

No tinfoil hat here, but, IF it was a terrorist act, it would have to have been a bomb on-board, or a missile/projectile (of some sort). Intellectually, I'm leaning towards mechanical failure, but my heart tells me it COULD have been a bomb.

[copycat]

WHAT ARE THE ODDS THAT THE PILOT DUMPED HIS FUEL AND SAID NOTHING TO THE TOWER ABOUT IT?

[concerned about politics]

we might have another Flight 93 hero aboard that plane.

YEP!

[NixNatAVanG InDaBurgh]

> there is no fuel dumping capability in the Airbus 300-600. If there is fuel in the bay, it probably came from a rupured tank.

Thank you for the info. Didn't sound right to me either.

[copycat]

WHAT ARE THE ODDS THAT THE PILOT DUMPED HIS FUEL AND SAID NOTHING TO THE TOWER ABOUT IT?

[AMDG&BVMH]

Instead of posting National Guardsmen inside of terminals, they should be on the perimeters and approaches.

Very sensible suggestion -- regardless of the actual cause of events this morning. The possibility exists, and security forces did find an RPG near the Prague airport a couple weeks ago.

[Travis McGee]

It's more likely that a jet engine sniper would fire at the approaching jet before it passed over him, just on liftoff.

A fifty caliber rifle which can hit a 3' circle at 2,000 yards would be able to hit the 12' diameter jet intake at a mile with no problem.

A likely sniper's lair would be a soundproofed van or truck parked along the flight path.