Comments on: France, Brazil Scour Ocean For Missing Jet

Sarkozy: Prospect Of Finding Survivors "Very Small" After Air France Jet Carrying 228 From Rio To Paris Disappears

[hoseobama]

Words can not express how we feel for these unsuspecting families.

I know there are pleanty of people that want to blame someone, indeed, anyone. It is natural to want to find the cause of these sort of problems and fix them.

But, sometimes it is just an unfortunate set of circumstances that all pile up which are cause of a very undesirable event. Considering the number of planes in the air at any one time, it is normally a very safe way to travel. We are far more likely to die in an automobile accident than an airliner disaster.

If one must die in an aircraft, I would hope that it was a catastrophic break-up of the craft. This would most likely give the victims a surrealistic sensation - one of total disbelief - before they passed out from asphyxiation and shock. Real terror would be a prolonged event, such as when the Alaska Air plane had the bad jack screw.

No, I will still fly. I just feel terrible for the families in their time of grief; and, wait to hear more information about what the investigators can piece together on this horrible event.

[jumkey]

Caution!
Flying through a thunderstorm can be deadly. No
matter what precautions are taken, a powerful
thunderstorm can overstress the airframe, causing
an in-flight break-up or loss of control

www.scribd.com/doc/4012590/AOPA-Thunderstorms-and-ATC - 114k -

[puzzler125]

Since all commercial jets have (forgot the name) locator gadgets, wouldn't it work underwater as well as over land? It seems ridiculous in this technological age that planes are not found.

[mediabrat60]

This confirms my need not to fly. Ever.
I cannot imagine what thoughts transpired in those people when the plane started to fall from the sky at 35000 feet, first losing electricity and cabin pressure!?
I cannot even begin to imagine what i would have thought and what panic that would have brought out on that plane.
People must have been going crazy in just those few moments before the lack of
air and pressure killed them.
What a horrible, terrible way to end your life.

[dakotaclark]

Hmmm...

I send my prayers to the passengers and crew and their family members.

I do not believe that we will ever know what actually happened during that flight's last moments.

Many years ago, I was a passenger in a commercial jet, and also in a military prop plane, during very turbulent weather. (Thank God for Marazene anti-motion sickness tablets.) It was hard to believe those planes could survive such violent shaking.

There have been times when a plane experienced being shaken apart.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Grant_Nutter

And other times, when passengers and crew survived the shaking.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/transportation/july-dec97/safety_12-30.html

I would bet the farm that this recent disaster was due to severe turbulence that caused the plan to come apart at somewhere between 22,000 and 33,000 feet.

I am not an engineer, but I would think that a big plane would not be able to handle severe turbulence as well as a smaller plane.

[YCantWeAllGetAlong]

The moderator should remove all off subject and criticising posts on this blog. Seriously, 1/3 of the posters have NOTHING useful to add or contribute or say.
Posted by grabbag at 9:18 AM : Jun 1, 2009
++++++++++++++++++++
There is nothing in the TOS that forbids off subject posting. Even your post here is off subject. There is nothing in your post about the plane.

I can't imagine what the families are going through. I've never flown, never had a desire to.

[skydrifter1]

The pressure on pilots to continue a flight is tremendous. When facing such a line of thunderstorms a pilot first inquires as to whether or not anyone ahead made it through, if so, what was the chosen path? Absent any "pilot reports," continuing through the thunderstorm line is highly risky, although typiclal in some parts of the world.

The backup issue is the question as to why the company would dispatch the aircraft in the first place. The width of the thunderstorm line would have been known. The potential for "too high; too wide" should have delayed the flight. The onboard weather radar should have been the final determining factor, as it would have indicated the peril ahead.

Pilots always have emergency authority to do anything to keep safe. From personal experience (USA) I can attest that such authority can be nullified - illegally - with impunity. Continuing is often the only career saving move; hoping for the best.

Facing such a line of thunderstorms in this case should have been an "Air Return." What forces compelled the continuation?

It quickly gets complex.

My prayers to the victims & family.

[bajajohn1]

Let us all hope that some folks have been able to survive this tragic event.

[TimmyTomm]

Prayers go out to their loved ones! Reality is that hopefully they made a landing. But with no signal or distress notification it's not looking to good. Aviation is safer than driving over all & more are killed each year in traffic fatalities than aviation disasters. It's just more astounding to the media coverage when its aviation related.

[skydrifter1]

A sad day for all.

The curios matter will be the question as to the possibility that the Airbus 'shed' its engines, as in the New York accident. To lose electrical power and pressurization simultaneously is testimony of a catastrophic event, related to the engines; highly likely a double-engine failure - of some kind.

If so, the suggestion goes to the original certification standards, versus whether or not the New York accident effected any corrective measures. If not, the entire series could be grounded; possibly all Airbus aircraft, pending a review of design criteria.

The FAA could have some embarrasing days ahead, as they have to verify that foreign aircraft meet U.S. certification design criteria. With the FAA history of accomodating corporate wallets, over public safety, there is a valid question on the table, worthy of criminal investigation.

The FAA still hasn't adequately explained their role in the 9-11 matters.