http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30701012
Very sad. :(
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http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30701012
Very sad. :(
His comment "We're down" is interesting. Do we know if at that point the plane was down or not? That would be a clearer indication of how they died, either from the impact or the impending fire. Very sad event and one that could have been easily prevented.
They lsot 50 knots in 25 seconds. Going from flaps 5-10 and dropping your gear shouldn't do that. The plane's attitude was a little high to anyone else too just before the stall? Plane was having a tough time maintaining 2300ft and didn't have enough speed to correct.
The crew, unfortunately, mishandled the stall, but I'm trying to figure out what caused the stall to begin with. Wrong throttle setting? Windshear? Icing?
yes.Quote:
Originally Posted by Phil D.
Icing and poor instrument crosscheck (especially with autopilot engaged) were the main culprits of the stall. It's interesting even after the crew noticed and discussed the amount of icing they were picking up prior to commencing the approach and configuring, that they never talked about what their final configuration would be, and whether or not they would carry extra airspeed on final. Also, notice when the pilot calls for flaps 15, the co-pilot replies with "uhhh", as if she realized they were not in a normal position (i.e. rapidly decreasing airspeed, power at idle) to roll flaps further.Quote:
Originally Posted by Phil D.
The stick shaker activates at the first sign of an approach to stall (not an actual stall). The crash could have most certainly been prevented after the stick shaker became active had the pilot flying applied the appropriate stall recovery actions, and the PNF not raised flaps to 0 before a climb and safe airspeed had been established. Also appears that the pilot didn't firewall the throttles.
Unfortunately seems like too many "mishandlings" of a not too complex situation led to not being able to save the aircraft. Better CRM, systems knowledge and maybe focus at the task at hand could have prevented any of this from happening in the first place.
Of course it's always easy playing Monday morning QB. The human factor is one we can't do much about. Flying at night, in the wx, in ice, in unfamiliar conditions, while fatigued/sick plays a huge part in all of this - not a great position to be in. Regional airlines hiring practices, their pay scale, the way they schedule and treat their employees also plays a huge part in all of this.
While no one can change the outcome of the event, what is taken from it (everything from training procedures to airline oversight to lessons all aviators can take from it to possibly prevent a future accident) is what is hopefully focused on (more so than just how the situation was so badly handled and the career history and bios of the capt and FO).