Flight MH066 from Kula Lumper made Emergency Landing at Hong Kong

Zaphod58
reply to post by ChaosComplex

 

You know, I never knew that a generator was so utterly vital to a plane flying that it required immediate preparations for a water landing, including putting life vests on. Yes being prepared is better, but you can be prepared, without telling people there is a good chance they're going to die (which many probably will if they have to ditch), because you had one fault, that in the grand scheme of things isn't a huge one.

Well, mind if I ask what your level of understanding is of these aircraft? Are you familiar with the systems and procedures of Malaysian Air?

Also I think it would be rather difficult to have any sort of subtle preparations for a water landing.
Imagine how hectic it would be once the passengers noticed they were drifting closer and closer to the ocean/ground...
I think the best bet in this situation was to give everyone the heads up.

reply to post by ChaosComplex


And that means that they can fly on one engine if necessary. It doesn't mean that I said, "Oh they lost a generator. No big deal, they can fly to their destination without any worries". I never even implied that it's ok to go to their destination, or that they shouldn't prepare for worse. But you don't tell the passengers to prepare to ditch, and have them put their life jackets on, unless it looks like there is a very real chance that you are going to, or that you KNOW you are going to. Losing a generator is not a ditching, or prepare to ditch scenario.

ChaosComplex
Well, mind if I ask what your level of understanding is of these aircraft? Are you familiar with the systems and procedures of Malaysian Air?

I'm familiar with the aircraft itself. And what it means to lose a generator. No airline in the world is going to have a procedure of preparing passengers to ditch if they lose a generator. It costs money to replace the life jackets, which you have to do if they open them and put them on.

Also I think it would be rather difficult to have any sort of subtle preparations for a water landing.
Imagine how hectic it would be once the passengers noticed they were drifting closer and closer to the ocean/ground...
I think the best bet in this situation was to give everyone the heads up.

By all means. Make subtle preparations. Call the crew together and brief them on what's going to happen if you do have to ditch. If it gets to the point where you are going to have to ditch. But don't panic the passengers, then have them sit there in a panic thinking they're going to die, and fly on to an airport nearby and land.

Zaphod58

ChaosComplex
Well, mind if I ask what your level of understanding is of these aircraft? Are you familiar with the systems and procedures of Malaysian Air?

I'm familiar with the aircraft itself. And what it means to lose a generator. No airline in the world is going to have a procedure of preparing passengers to ditch if they lose a generator. It costs money to replace the life jackets, which you have to do if they open them and put them on.

Also I think it would be rather difficult to have any sort of subtle preparations for a water landing.
Imagine how hectic it would be once the passengers noticed they were drifting closer and closer to the ocean/ground...
I think the best bet in this situation was to give everyone the heads up.

By all means. Make subtle preparations. Call the crew together and brief them on what's going to happen if you do have to ditch. If it gets to the point where you are going to have to ditch. But don't panic the passengers, then have them sit there in a panic thinking they're going to die, and fly on to an airport nearby and land.

Ok, this post clicked with me.
-Generator failure does not hinder the craft as much as I may be assuming.
-Generator failure should be a catalyst for crew preparations, but not something to worry the passengers with.

Now is a generator failure something that the passengers would notice? Is this something that makes a big boom or creates a little rumble that may raise concern?

I'm just trying to wrap my head around each angle...

reply to post by ChaosComplex


The lights, and entertainment system may get shut off, to conserve power from the other generator, but there would be nothing external that the passengers would notice, unless they lost the entire engine (which in this case it appears they didn't). The cockpit crew would shut down what they could to reduce the load on the other generator though. So the passengers would notice that SOMETHING was going on.

Zaphod58
reply to post by ChaosComplex

 

The lights, and entertainment system may get shut off, to conserve power from the other generator, but there would be nothing external that the passengers would notice, unless they lost the entire engine (which in this case it appears they didn't). The cockpit crew would shut down what they could to reduce the load on the other generator though. So the passengers would notice that SOMETHING was going on.

Ok, so it seems that if a generator is lost the passengers will need to be addressed. While I am starting to agree that prepping to ditch in the water may have been overkill, it seems like a daunting task to inform an almost full cabin that there has been a significant malfunction without causing some sort of panic.

Also, through researching the recent jet occurances, I've stumbled across a seemingly awesome resource:

AeroInside

Incidents with 330-300

reply to post by ChaosComplex


Yeah, you definitely make an announcement, but it's something along the lines of "We have a technical problem, and will be diverting to the nearest airport to make repairs".

There are some great resources out there to find info on air travel around the world.

Zaphod58
reply to post by ChaosComplex

 

Yeah, you definitely make an announcement, but it's something along the lines of "We have a technical problem, and will be diverting to the nearest airport to make repairs".

There are some great resources out there to find info on air travel around the world.

The missing 777 was the first time I've done much digging on the subject, and it is certainly becoming quite the learning experience.

Are there any "Go To" sites/resources for air travel that you would recommend for future use?

reply to post by ChaosComplex


As far as flight tracking, Flightradar24.com and Flightaware.com. As far as incidents go, the one you linked to is a good one. www.ntsb.gov... is a fun one. They list commercial and private aviation incidents and accidents. Airdisaster.com, planecrashinfo.com, and aviation-safety.net are interesting ones.

As you may have noticed, the investigative phase of accidents fascinates me. It's interesting as hell to try to figure out what happened before the report comes out, or to study previous accidents.

reply to post by Zaphod58


Awesome, quite a few gems there. Many thanks to you!

In school we had classes centered around critical thinking and problem solving, and I also participated in Florida Future Problem Solving throughout middle and high school.

My mind is trained to question even the most sound explaination because more often than not, a small detail will become a breakthrough when viewed from the correct angle. ATS allows us to look at everything from almost limitless angles with all the opinions, experience, and unique thought processes present on the site.

Always a pleasure to debate a sharp mind.

Zaphod58
reply to post by ChaosComplex

 

Yes being prepared is better, but you can be prepared, without telling people there is a good chance they're going to die (which many probably will if they have to ditch), because you had one fault, that in the grand scheme of things isn't a huge one.

Did the pilot warn the passengers they might die??? Darn pilot!

Who would blame the pilot considering they are probably now on high alert...maybe there's something they know internally and are not telling the public. Could the airline be a hacking target? Who in their right mind would fly with them if they had announced that?

"Over-preparedness" was probably best in their situation. It could well be a difference of life and death if there was a real plot to take down another MAS flight. We'll never know.

the one thing i notice here is mh370 nobody sent a text or a call while on this flight somebody did and if mh370 flew on for hours it is even stranger with the speed that some pepole can text at

double post, sorry.

Zaphod58

It costs money to replace the life jackets, which you have to do if they open them and put them on.

I don't know about you, but I would be furious if any airline pilot tries to save a few bucks on jackets and possibly risk my life over it. C'mon, you have a missing plane and all you care is to save some dollars on jacket? Really? I seriously hope none of your kind will fly the plane I will ever be taking.

reply to post by Kurius


They lost a generator. That means that one engine stopped producing electrical power. The Auxiliary Power Unit took up the slack, and kept providing power.

Please, explain to me ANY possible way that a plane would have to ditch into the ocean because they lost a generator. Not electrical power, just a generator. This was a MASSIVE over reaction to a minor problem.

reply to post by Kurius


I don't know how to say this any clearer. They were never at risk of crashing. Ever. At any point. They didn't lose an engine. They didn't even lose any systems. They lost a fraction of electrical generation. That's ALL.

Let me say this another way. PLANES DON'T CRASH BECAUSE OF ONE LOST GENERATOR. There was NEVER any danger of having to ditch.

reply to post by Zaphod58


Solar connection perhaps?
A radioblackout or a geomagnetic storm.
Was there one that happened on or around the date the aircraft went missing.

reply to post by jazz10


Generators fail. If it was geomagnetic, more than one system would have probably failed. We went through a period where we lost a bunch of generators, for no apparent reason. They just decided they were done and failed. It's not an uncommon problem.

It's a kind of issue that wouldn't have made the news if it wasn't a Malaysian air craft

reply to post by scoobyrob


IF the airplane a few weeks ago crashed.

The airplane that had a pilot who inexplicably deleted his home flight simulator info and then programmes alt route into a plane he allegedly flew until it ran out of gas in the middle of nowhere. He flew for a long time and put a lot of work into crashing into nowhere. Maybe it was just convenient that he worked so hard to crash some place where the plane and passengers willnever be found.. maybe he was trying to throw is friends in the insurance biz a bone.

Seriously though. This wasnt just an accident or a crash.