
AI 117 787 Dreamliner Crash raises Boeing Safety Record
The horrific crash of Air India AI 117, which was en route to London has sparked conversation about the 787 Dreamliner. The 787 Dreamliner tragically crashed in a residential neighbourhood of Ahmedabad shortly after its departure on Thursday, resulting in the deaths of 241 individuals on board, as reported by the airline. Remarkably, one passenger, a man who was flying with his brother, was ejected from the plane and survived. A physician indicated that he had assessed the survivor, identified as Vishwashkumar Ramesh. “He was confused and had numerous injuries across his body, However, he appears to be out of danger.” Ramesh recounted that right after the plane took off, it began to descend and abruptly broke apart, ejecting him before a loud explosion.
Crash Footage – What Could Have Happened
Footage of the crash circulated on social media within hours of the dreadful crash. Security camera footage, shows the 787 accelerating down the runway, climbing but then at a certain point the climb turns into what looks like a stall. Many have noted that the landing gear remained down for the duration of the take-off – including the section of flight where the loss of climb occurred. A normal 787 take-off would see the gear retracted about about 12-14 seconds after positive climb is related to the captain, the captain will request Gear Up. Could the flaps have been retracted instead of the landing gear and now the landing gear just acted as big sources of drag? On this take-off the landing gear was down for an extra 17 seconds after take off than they normall would have been down for. That’s a lot of drag which they could ill afford.
Discussion of the Boeing Safety Record
There are a lot of headlines at the moment discussing the Boeing Safety Record. However, re really have to wait until the black boxes, CVR and FDR have been fully analysed before we will know what caused the crash. I personally don’t believe that it is anything to do with the 787 which has an impeccable safety record since it was certified for flight in 2011.
If an aircraft is not controlled correctly, it has nothing to do with the aircraft and more to do with the training. So I think that all bets are off until the black boxes have been reviewed .
Should the 787 be grounded?
In my view, definitely not. There is a lot we don’t know about this crash but there is a lot that we do know, and that is the 787 is one of the most sophisticated aircraft in flight with over 1,200 in fleets around the world. I actually flew on a 777 yesterday, knowing that this crash had happened, and I was in no way worried. There are worldwide, an average of 101,695 commercial flights which occur each day. The statistical data proves that flying is very safe. Approximately 3,700 people die in car crashes worldwide each day – that’s a huge number in comparison.
When I travel by plane, I never consider that the plan will crash, but I always listen to the flight crew and always remember where my nearest exits are. If you are travelling in the coming days, perhaps even on the Dreamliner, don’t worry, the industry and this aircraft are resilent and very safe, now sit back and relax and Enjoy your flight! My next flight is in 2 days time, again, a 777 with American Airlines, but I have no worries at all.
Please feel free to let me know your throughts in the comments below.
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