Inflight emergencies

[Eglsfootball]

Hi,

I have to do a project in my groundschool at college about emergencies. I need to pick 2 or 3 emergencies that i think are the worste, most common, or fatal. I also have to write what pilots need to do to prepair for them and what most do wrong in the emergencies. If anyone has any ideas of what emergencies are the most serious or most common or what people need to do to survive them it would help me out a lot.
Thank You

 

[KeroseneSnorter]

Hi,

I have to do a project in my groundschool at college about emergencies. I need to pick 2 or 3 emergencies that i think are the worste, most common, or fatal. I also have to write what pilots need to do to prepair for them and what most do wrong in the emergencies. If anyone has any ideas of what emergencies are the most serious or most common or what people need to do to survive them it would help me out a lot.
Thank You

Most common emergency: No cream for the coffee.

Worst emergency: Bad burritos.......often fatal if not treated.


Most common thing in the aviation industry? Smarta$$ pilots!!!




Kidding aside, I would say the worst would be a control surface malfunction and or structural damage.....no way to really train for it.

Reference: USAir 427, American 191, United in Souix city (sp?), Alaska air MD-80 stabilizer failure(don't remember the flt number)

All cases that compromised the airplanes ability to fly.

 

[trip]

Refer to the post "Diarrhea in a freighter."

http://forums.flightinfo.com/showthread.php?t=44435

 

[The_Russian]

British European Airways Flight 548. Covers CRM, and health problems of the crew. Did it for one of my term papers.

 

[JAFI]

Reference material can be found on the NTSB web site:

http://www.ntsb.gov/aviation/aviation.htm
or try this:

http://www.ultimateaviationlinks.com/airdisasters.html

or an interesting read:
http://www.acoustics.org/press/133rd/2psa1.html

more info:

http://aviation-safety.net/index.php

JAFI

 

[apcooper]

Hi,

If anyone has any ideas of what emergencies are the most serious or most common.

Besides the more well known emergencies like engine failure, engine fire, smoke in the cockpit how about a few that I'm sure are very rare but have happened

1) Blown off winscreen
2) Broken off prop blade
3) Jammed elevator (up trim is down and vice versa!!)

How about all of the above in night IMC!!

Also UAL flight 811 in HNL with blown carge door!!

Its crazy how I'll always be ready to deal with many catastrophic emergencies like they WILL happen THIS flight (not a bad thing) but rarely dwell about how I'll escape my home if the smoke alarm goes off at 3AM! Kind of wierd how that is!

 

[EatSleepFly]

Deleted by EatSleepFly

 

[KeroseneSnorter]

Its crazy how I'll always be ready to deal with many catastrophic emergencies like they WILL happen THIS flight (not a bad thing) but rarely dwell about how I'll escape my home if the smoke alarm goes off at 3AM! Kind of wierd how that is!

Why that is quite simple, it is page b-4 in the Quick Reference handbook,

Smoke Detector Activation and associated alarm:

1. Is house on fire--

YES-- 1. Run screaming into the street in your skivvies.
2. Alert Fire supression personnel

NO-- 1. Smash smoke detector casing with hammer and return to bed.
2. Monitor back of eyelids

End of list


I think it is on the same page as the "Stuck toilet flushy thingy" memory items.



Perhaps you should consider attending recurrent more often!

 

[avbug]

Besides the more well known emergencies like engine failure, engine fire, smoke in the cockpit how about a few that I'm sure are very rare but have happened

There is nothing sweeter than the smell of smoke in the cockpit.

I love that smell.

 

[minitour]

Why that is quite simple, it is page b-4 in the Quick Reference handbook,

Smoke Detector Activation and associated alarm:

1. Is house on fire--

YES-- 1. Run screaming into the street in your skivvies.
2. Alert Fire supression personnel

NO-- 1. Smash smoke detector casing with hammer and return to bed.
2. Monitor back of eyelids

End of list


I think it is on the same page as the "Stuck toilet flushy thingy" memory items.



Perhaps you should consider attending recurrent more often!

It's all about proper use of checklists.

-mini

 

[HPaul3]

As far as emergencies are concerned, I think one of the most difficult and complex of all would be an electrical fire. The decision tree to isolate the cause is complex, the materials burning could produce gasses so poisonous they would be fatal if you breathed only a little of it, and you end up potentially turning really important things off while flying IFR....scary stuff.

Could you write about CFIT? Probably no single cause of accidents is 1) so universally fatal, and 2) so common. Terrible thing...loss of SA leading to instantly fatal accident in a perfectly good airplane. While it's not exactly an emergency, I think aviation on the whole would be better served to concentrate more of our attention on avoidance of CFIT, given the relatively low occurance of some of the emergencies we practice regularly. Just scan the FAA database....you'll see a lot of recent CFIT accidents.

Good luck!
HP

 

[mar]

Statistically speaking...

The top three killers are:

--Fuel mismanagement (exhaustion vs. starvation)
--VFR into IMC (often results in CFIT)
--Stall/spin

Right now the FAA is all hot about runway incursions. Second to that big dog and pony show might be the problem of, let's call it, "vertical awareness on non-precision approaches".

In other words, lots of airplanes crash on the centerline of an instrument approach because they lost track of where they were and started down too early.

Good luck.

 

[apdsm]

and what most do wrong in the emergencies

The MOST important thing. KEEP FLYING THE AIRPLANE! This is high on the list of things pilots do wrong. It is very easy to get so wrapped up in the emergency that one forgets to fly the airplane and maintain situational awareness.

 

[400A]

Windscreen

Besides the more well known emergencies like engine failure, engine fire, smoke in the cockpit how about a few that I'm sure are very rare but have happened

1) Blown off winscreen
2) Broken off prop blade
3) Jammed elevator (up trim is down and vice versa!!)

How about all of the above in night IMC!!

Also UAL flight 811 in HNL with blown carge door!!

Its crazy how I'll always be ready to deal with many catastrophic emergencies like they WILL happen THIS flight (not a bad thing) but rarely dwell about how I'll escape my home if the smoke alarm goes off at 3AM! Kind of wierd how that is!

I have lost a windscreen in a Merlin in flight, feel free to PM me for details. Very interesting details about both crew and Pax reactions,

Also, Dont forget about Aloha Airlines 737, No way to train for that!!!! WOW

 

[avbug]

Also, Dont forget about Aloha Airlines 737, No way to train for that!!!! WOW

Yes, there most certainly is. Fly the airplane. No need to set up a simulator with a third of the upper fuselage gone...either the airplane is flying, or it's not. Like the old flowchart, if it's not flying, you poor bastard. If it is flying, then fly the biggest piece home. You train for that every day. Monkey skills. Fly the airplane.

 

[apcooper]

Yes, there most certainly is. Fly the airplane.

I couldn't have said it better myself. I've thought about this accident, Sioux City, UAL 811 and other famous accidents/emergencies and figured kind of in the back of mind mine to fly the plane even if there is no checklist for the emergency at hand. Seems like the simplist and most useful advice one could come up with.

 

[RVSM]

Everyone has hit the high profile items and the unrecoverable airframe failures. Every accident occurs due to a given chain of events. Disrupt one link and the accident is prevented. Most of the airframe issues were mx shortcomings and by the time the pilot is involved it is all but a done deal. (not knocking the fine mx professionals out there)
For a school project where you are looking at how to train for and therefore prevent a given accident scenario I would do inadvertent IMC by VMC pilot which often result in CFIT due to either pilot loss of attitude control or wx affecting the airframes ability to continue controlled flight. (someone else mentioned this as well). Look through the NTSB data base for the fatal ones and the FAA / NASA database for the non fatal and I told on myself reports.

 

[FN FAL]

Everyone has hit the high profile items and the unrecoverable airframe failures. Every accident occurs due to a given chain of events. Disrupt one link and the accident is prevented.

Check this day out homeslice.

First week off of IOE in the 208 and I am rotating...at 100 feet off the ground, flags appear in the HSI and RMI that says "HDG". First thought...heck, I got another set on the co-pilot's side. Second thought, I don't work at the craptacular charter place I used to work at...land this puppy and sort it out here and now!

So I key the mike and tell the tower, "I just lost my heading gyros!"

Tower says, "State Intentions?"

I'm thinking as I'm climbing towards the 800 ovc bases, that this is when you do the freaking captain thing...make a decision!

Out of the left side of my eye, I spy runway 7R that I just crossed on takeoff and key the mike and say, "I'd like to circle for 7R!"

He clears it and I over fly the parking garage and make the left turns, land and make the first taxiway for a direct shot back to cargo. I did note that in the initial turn off the runway heading, the gyro's stayed on the runway heading, so the flags weren't my imagination.

I get on the ground and after troubleshooting for a while, the flags retract. I do some taxi tests and some 360's...the gyro's are good. I can't even replicate the malfunction. Since I have a dual set of instruments I decide to get going.

The rest of the trip is great and I'm able to fly comfortably on top at 8,000 feet, well above icing conditions. The only problem is, now I'm about 40 miles out from the airport and the AWOS says its 100vv and a 1/4. That wasn't in the forecast and I'm low mins...better be preparing to hold.

I'm talking to the controller about getting holding instructions, when all the sudden the red annunciator light marked "FUEL RESERVIOR LOW" comes on. According to the book, I got about 2.5 minutes left at cruise power setting before I hear glider sounds.

I checked both fuel valves...ON! Boost...ON! Igniters...ON! Then I looked at fuel quantity guages...good to go. Fuel flow...340 Lbs/per hour...good. Set the bezel on my watch and kept heading for the holding fix, with the intent of declaring the emergency and gliding down on to some portion of the the ILS approach as best as I could.

2.5 minutes goes by...nothing happens. 5 minutes goes by...nothing happens. I enter the hold and hold for about 15 minutes...the vis goes up and by the time I descend and get on the final approach course, the field is almost VFR.

The mechanics came out later with a new RMI and HSI and replaced those just to be on the safe side...the "FUEL RESERVIOR LOW" annunciator had a failed relay and was replaced.

I don't know what to tell you...sometimes the only thing you can do is fly the plane, do what you were trainied to do and try your best not to panic.

 

[Metro752]

Check this day out homeslice.

First week off of IOE in the 208 and I am rotating...at 100 feet off the ground, flags appear in the HSI and RMI that says "HDG". First thought...heck, I got another set on the co-pilot's side. Second thought, I don't work at the craptacular charter place I used to work at...land this puppy and sort it out here and now!

So I key the mike and tell the tower, "I just lost my heading gyros!"

Tower says, "State Intentions?"

I'm thinking as I'm climbing towards the 800 ovc bases, that this is when you do the freaking captain thing...make a decision!

Out of the left side of my eye, I spy runway 7R that I just crossed on takeoff and key the mike and say, "I'd like to circle for 7R!"

He clears it and I over fly the parking garage and make the left turns, land and make the first taxiway for a direct shot back to cargo. I did note that in the initial turn off the runway heading, the gyro's stayed on the runway heading, so the flags weren't my imagination.

I get on the ground and after troubleshooting for a while, the flags retract. I do some taxi tests and some 360's...the gyro's are good. I can't even replicate the malfunction. Since I have a dual set of instruments I decide to get going.

The rest of the trip is great and I'm able to fly comfortably on top at 8,000 feet, well above icing conditions. The only problem is, now I'm about 40 miles out from the airport and the AWOS says its 100vv and a 1/4. That wasn't in the forecast and I'm low mins...better be preparing to hold.

I'm talking to the controller about getting holding instructions, when all the sudden the red annunciator light marked "FUEL RESERVIOR LOW" comes on. According to the book, I got about 2.5 minutes left at cruise power setting before I hear glider sounds.

I checked both fuel valves...ON! Boost...ON! Igniters...ON! Then I looked at fuel quantity guages...good to go. Fuel flow...340 Lbs/per hour...good. Set the bezel on my watch and kept heading for the holding fix, with the intent of declaring the emergency and gliding down on to some portion of the the ILS approach as best as I could.

2.5 minutes goes by...nothing happens. 5 minutes goes by...nothing happens. I enter the hold and hold for about 15 minutes...the vis goes up and by the time I descend and get on the final approach course, the field is almost VFR.

The mechanics came out later with a new RMI and HSI and replaced those just to be on the safe side...the "FUEL RESERVIOR LOW" annunciator had a failed relay and was replaced.

I don't know what to tell you...sometimes the only thing you can do is fly the plane, do what you were trainied to do and try your best not to panic.

Good story, might save some lives someday for sharing how you delt with it.

 

[BD King]

There is nothing sweeter than the smell of smoke in the cockpit.

I love that smell.

I go with Avbug. Have had the engine failures and the windscreen thing (about 50 miles off shore), but the fire is the most upsetting. Which, by the way, is why I always carry a pair of gloves.

 

[mcjohn]

I checked both fuel valves...ON! Boost...ON! Igniters...ON! Then I looked at fuel quantity guages...good to go. Fuel flow...340 Lbs/per hour...good. Set the bezel on my watch and kept heading for the holding fix, with the intent of declaring the emergency and gliding down on to some portion of the the ILS approach as best as I could.

Is this just a situation where there's nothing else you can do and hope you don't die or is there a procedure for "gliding down on to some portion" of the ILS?

I'm curious how best glide speed and it's resulting angle of decent would compare to the glide slope.

 

[Gulfstream 200]

I cant think of too many scenarios that would keep me up at night....except.....

A fire. A fire at 30W.

the chances? sure...nil....but still...

 

[JonJohn82]

I go with Avbug. Have had the engine failures and the windscreen thing (about 50 miles off shore), but the fire is the most upsetting. Which, by the way, is why I always carry a pair of gloves.

What kind of gloves?

 

[JediNein]

Hi,

I have to do a project in my groundschool at college about emergencies. I need to pick 2 or 3 emergencies that i think are the worste, most common, or fatal. I also have to write what pilots need to do to prepair for them and what most do wrong in the emergencies. If anyone has any ideas of what emergencies are the most serious or most common or what people need to do to survive them it would help me out a lot.
Thank You

Citing a NASA study, not sure if it was Kramer or Crandel that did it:
Most serious, common, and usually fatal GA accidents:
1. Pilot doing something stupid, i.e. continued flight into weather for which the pilot was not qualified. 40% fatal GA accidents.
2. Stall/spin, usually in the traffic pattern, caused by the pilot not flying in trim. 40% fatal GA accidents
3. Fuel exhaustion/starvation. 8 gallons an hour times 5 hours equals 40 gallons. Land at 4 hours. 10% fatal GA accidents
4. Last 10% include such things as 'while looping the bridge' or 'while buzzing the girlfriend's house', or, my favorite, 'the plane had not had an annual inspection since [insert date 5+ years ago or more]'.

Right now there is a search for a 210 that went down last night in an area I drove through. On the freeway, at night, in the mountains, I was getting the bejeebers knocked out of me in heavy rain, some (unforecast) sleet, lightning, and winds just short of incredible. A few semis got blown over. Some of my lane changes were not my decision, I have a low profile vehicle and it was being blown across lanes. Around this time next year the NTSB will most likely list the probable cause of the 210 accident as one of three things, the most popular 135 accidents: an inflight breakup for unknown reasons, unable to maintain altitude in moderate-severe icing, or CFIT.

While I hope the pilot survived the impact, got out before it burned, and was equipped to spend the night on the mountainside, it's probably too much to hope for. A friend will spend tonight wondering if their friend is still alive.

Fly SAFE!
Jedi Nein

 

[apcooper]

is there a procedure for "gliding down on to some portion" of the ILS?

I'm curious how best glide speed and it's resulting angle of decent would compare to the glide slope.

Well the glide ratio in most retractable singles is usually from 10-12 to 1. The glide slope is set up at about 19 to 1 so you will need to be well above GS to do a dead stick ILS. If the FAF is 1800 ft above the field elev then it will be 5.6nm from FAF to touchdown. Assuming a 10 to 1 glide ratio you will need to cross the FAF at 3400ft above the field elev. Be careful of 2 things. First be weary about a false GS signal this high! IGNORE IT if the GS is anything except fully deflected down! Second chances are there will be a headwind flying on final and the stronger the component the higher above the 3400 ft you will need to cross the FAF. If the hdwind compontent is 10% of the best glide speed you will need 10% more altitude then in a calm wind. Pretty simple. If you are in IMC at say 10,000ft and right over the arpt when the engine quits than flt to the FAF and hold as published to lose alt and then when well above the hypothetical 3400 ft turn inbound on final. I'd add 1,000 ft to than number since you can always shorten the glide but can never stretch a glide!! There is a sim training school than teaches pilots this very emergency in a C-210 sim. Might want to check it out.

 

[FN FAL]

Is this just a situation where there's nothing else you can do and hope you don't die or is there a procedure for "gliding down on to some portion" of the ILS?

I'm curious how best glide speed and it's resulting angle of decent would compare to the glide slope.

Every time I get an engine out and do the feather thing in the level D caravan sim, I always get hosed with carrying too much altitude to the final. Something to keep in mind when faced with an engine out in a single engine turbine. The landing approach and handling will not be the same as when you can compensate with idle.

It's an emergency, so any calculations would have to be based on anticipated senarios...you milage could vary.

I guess the best case scenario would be to get on the localizer any way you can just south of the marker, evaluate your altitude and height above glide slope and conserve as much altitude as you can without hosing yourself with being too high. If you get low, you'll never get a chance to grow back any altitude and if you are way to high, you'll never stop a feathered prop carvan before you overshoot the runway and wind up in the woods somewhere.

Glide relationship to glide slope? I'm sure you could easily calculate that based on no wind, 5 knots headwind, 10 knots headwind, 15 knots headwind and 5 and 10 knots tailwind, but any shear would throw the math off. These calculations will not be done in the cockpit, but they could be helpfull to do on the ground for a college paper or a discusion on the practical use.

I'd say if you reach the outer marker at 8,000...orient yourself in a four minute holding pattern like you normally would...reference your descent rate in the glide and ground speed changes on the GPS and determine when you would want to turn in and join the loc for the final approach course guidence to the runway. Staying above slope till you get close enough to land would be the main concern...being on slope would be grand, untill the wind sheared and hosed ya.

If you are engine out, you don't have to make the touchdown markers, you do have to keep the loc centered and not come in with too much speed or find yourself short of the runway.

In any case, you could wind up with the other scenario where you just barely make the marker and have to hang a "louie". Then all decisions are made for you...keep best glide, stay on the loc. If you get low at the last second ease in flaps and balooon...it might not give you any longer glide distance, but it might make you agile enough to not stall out while you dodge the landing lights and make an off airport landing next to them. What I am saying is, you break out short of the runway with no flaps, below slope and heading for the lights just short of the runway. So put the flaps in, slow down to "best crash speed" and sidestep the lights on the side that has the softest, cheapest objects to arrive into. In the rock, paper, scissors game...fuel truck to the left, go to the right and take out that farmers sheep...they'll get over it.

Who knows, In any case where the regional vis is 1/4 to 1/2 and vv is 100...making the airport is going to be like pulling a rabbit out of your hat, no matter whoose slide rule you used to do the math.

I'd say my priorities would be, making the outer marker with altitude to spare, having the presence of mind to not squander that altitude with furtive attempts to do impossible things and to not turn in so early that I overshot the airport, try to plan a roll out on the loc anywhere where I can stay slightly above glide slope and then just try to keep the loc centered and bust the landing gear off the caravan on centerline and on the runway SOMEWHERE, without dying in a fire or breaking my back.

 

[Eglsfootball]

thanks a lot for all the help. i'm sure i won't have trouble finding a topic now.

 

[Eglsfootball]

quick question what does CFIT stand for?

 

[apcooper]

quick question what does CFIT stand for?

Controlled flight into terrain

 

[VNugget]

Controlled Flight Into Terrain