Whīłł retweeted
Im in Aerospace, just my perspective.. about todays plane crash in Florida.
Icing and moderate turbulence lead to a phenomenon called Mach tuck. It is common in Learjet 60’s and older Learjet’s. Essentially, you exceed the maximum airspeed at altitude and it is unrecoverable to the point that you continue to speed up while not being able to produce lift with your wings.
Further description: your coefficient of lift eventually moves too far behind the wing making it impossible to produce lift, this causes the aircraft to lose altitude like a falling dart, in turn gaining airspeed and crashing.
All Pilots are aware of this, some just push too close to the maximum speed threshold, and when you experience clear air turbulence or other factors like icing that would push you too far past the maximum speed threshold without the capability to control the wing normally, this happens.
Long story short...icing changes the shape of the wing critically and adds weight to plane (double whammy, but mainly airflow issue over the wing), Learjets are vulnerable to over speed situations because of the type of wing is small, sleek, and unforgiving in the name of efficiency and performance, mix all of that together with moderate turbulence which can fluctuate your airspeed, this causes the aircraft to enter Mach tuck over speed condition. The result is a lawn dart scenario that you see here. Very sad.
Whīłł retweeted
“Planes just don’t fall out of the sky.”
Fox anchor and former flight attendant Cheryl Casone demands to know what sent a 22-year-old Learjet into a literal nosedive at 10,000 feet per minute.
Former Army Black Hawk commander Lt. Col. Darin Gaub says ice can turn a jet into “a brick.”
Here’s his preliminary analysis on what happened:
• Supercooled air, clouds and turbulence up high let ice build up on the plane.
•Once the ice outpaced the plane’s anti-ice system, the pilots were trying to “fly a brick.”
• By the time pilots notice, “it’s often too late,” which would explain the spiral.
• Small jets don’t get the de-icing and storm rerouting that airline crafts do.
• On the question of ice over Florida, Gaub says at 35,000 feet it’s freezing everywhere. He called it “a literal perfect storm of conditions.”
• Gaub adds that air traffic control may not have moved the jet to the altitude the pilots asked for to get away from the weather.
Whīłł retweeted
Mike Penders' reaction time 🤯
🔵 @ChelseaFC
