Posted on 11/07/2018 9:31:34 AM PST by BenLurkin
Airplane manufacturer Boeing said Wednesday that it has issued a bulletin to airlines worldwide warning of erroneous readings from flight-control software on its planes, after an almost-new Lion Air jetliner crashed into the sea soon after takeoff, killing the 189 people on board.
Boeing, which is assisting in an investigation into what went wrong in the Oct. 29 crash of one of its new 737 Max 8 jets, said in a statement that it issued the bulletin Tuesday as “part of its usual process.” The bulletin informed airline operators of what to do if they receive false readings from flight-control software that measures the angle of the plane and alerted flight crews of the procedure to follow.
The bulletin from Boeing was the first indication that an error with the aircraft’s systems may have caused problems for the Lion Air flight, which took off from Jakarta. Instead of a smooth takeoff, the plane’s altitude fluctuated dramatically, and the plane increased in speed before nosediving into the Java Sea 13 minutes later.
…
AOA sensor that was removed from the aircraft on Oct. 28. The small black cylinder with a fin that protrudes from the side of the aircraft near the cockpit was wrapped in a clear plastic bag.
Indonesian authorities would provide Boeing with information from the pilot who flew with the problematic sensor so that it could be shared with other airlines in case they faced similar difficulties, said Nurcahyo Utomo, an accident investigator with the National Transportation Safety Committee.
Ony Suryo Wibowo, another investigator, said that it was too early to say definitively what caused the crash.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Anyone know where this plane was built??
Big overreaction.
They make it sound like the instrument that tells the pilot the angle of a jetliner in flight is really important.
Software kills...
Pilots rely too much on instruments when they should be relying on their eyes and instincts and using the instruments to verify.
A B737’s body is built in Kansas, shipped to Boeing’s assembly plant in Renton, Wa and finished there. I’ve seen freight trains with just the body (no wings or tail assy).
Cockpits and flight controls in commercial aircraft are not ideally configured for visual flight and seat of the pants flying. Instruments are the norm, in fact most commercial aircraft are flown on instruments from takeoff to landing.
When they just let the plane fly by software not monitoring what’s going on. You can basically kick it out of auto and hand fly it when things don’t seem to be what the panel is saying.
Crashed at 0630 with clear skies is my understanding.
It is almost impossible to fly the larger aircraft..737’s and up properly and safely without relying on instruments. At night and over water totally impossible and in fact outright dangerous to do so. This is 30,000 plus accident free hours and 40 years of experience speaking.
Exactly.
Maybe Boeing should follow Cirrus lead and add a parachute to the plane. When you get tired of flying you just deploy the chute and land.
It would be a rather large chute for the 737MAX!
Was this plane flying in IFR conditions?
If not, weren’t the pilots looking out the windows?
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