Posted on 07/19/2017 3:38:14 PM PDT by KeyLargo
I think I understand a little better now. The pilot/flight crew probably verifies the total load and CG, but they have to leave it up to the expertise of the loadmaster to have things secured in place correctly. I can imagine there are flight crews who take it upon themselves (and for all I know, it is common practice for them to do this) to not only to verify those calculations, but to do a walk through and check the status, that the tie downs are taught and secure, etc.
It sounded like a combination of both of those things, the tie downs were out of spec, and there weren’t enough tie down/pad eyes available.
So, you may be right. Perhaps if the tie downs had been within specs even though they were not tied down TO specification (60 tie downs per vehicle and were only tied down to some number less than that) they might have still handled the load, even if unauthorized.
But all it takes is one to break, and all the rest of them can go, if not tied down to spec.
The USS Monterrey (Gerald Ford served on her in WWII) had a massive fire break out on her during Typhoon Cobra in 1944 that very nearly sank her (and another vessel that passed her in the typhoon as she was blazing from stem to stern was heard to remark over TBS “Well, there goes the Monterrey”) and it was caused by a plane in the hangar bay breaking loose from its tie down, crashing into another plane, which broke loose, and set up a chain reaction where there were flaming planes, engines broken loose, just flying from side to side inside the hangar bay. Amazing she didn’t sink.
Me too. Even though I had never seen it before, it just had that look.
There was an A330 that crashed during an early test flight due to a sequence of unexpected events made unrecoverable by an extreme-aft CG.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbus_Industrie_Flight_129
Somehow we have come to a point where knowledge is resented. What a shame that if you actually know something and try to explain it you are branded a know it all.
Interesting that the plane had already flown part of the way from Bastion to Bagram and this was the second takeoff with the load. Bagram required military takeoffs but didnt Bastion?
When the restraint broke the AC was doomed of course. Everyday freighters dodge a bullet all it takes is for one thing to go wrong.
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Not by the CG, by the crew’s action (or inaction). One aggravating factor was the aft CG.
BTTT
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