US Airways Flight 1549 discussion

Munden · 01-16-2009, 02:45 AM

This is a discussion thread for the following file:

US Airways Flight 1549

Early indications are that US Airways Flight 1549 took a bird strike in each engine and the pilot safely "landed" the plane on the Hudson River.

150 passengers, 5 crew - no fatalities or even serious injuries.

Munden · 01-16-2009, 02:46 AM

FBOWeb.com has a KML of the flight, based on GPS telemetry from their tracking system.

http://fboweb.com/kml/AWE1549.kml

Jrod · 01-16-2009, 04:54 AM

They say a bird strike caused the problem. Crazy a small bird take down an entire plan but it happens. Luckily everybody survived.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/01/15/new...ash/index.html

Captain Hornblower · 01-16-2009, 05:05 AM

A single small bird usually doesn't take down an airliner. The engines must pass a "bird-strike-evaluation"; a frozen chicken (possibly something equal) is "shot" into a running engine. If the engine breaks down, it won't get the neccessary approval.
This morning (in Germany) they talked about a "flock of geese" which is a "little more" than a single small bird

Munden · 01-16-2009, 05:13 AM

'birdstrike' is just a term. It can describe any number of birds. If it's the cause, it'll come out that the aircraft hit a flock of birds in order to knock out both engines.

They run tests with dead chickens on engines to make sure the turbine blades meet requirements and can ingest a decent sized bird without serious damage. Given the location, it could've been a flock of good sized sea birds or geese that they hit. Perhaps a large number of much smaller birds would have the same effect too.

Here are some videos of bird tests. Not hugely gory, but a little gross for some folks I suppose:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUBv-ph4820

A bird strike on an aircraft in Manchester, where only one engine was lost:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KhZwsYtNDE

F-16 bird strike and flameout:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gc-XiO4ojzk

01-16-2009, 02:45 AM	#1
Munden Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Maryland, USA Posts: 684	US Airways Flight 1549 discussion This is a discussion thread for the following file: US Airways Flight 1549 Early indications are that US Airways Flight 1549 took a bird strike in each engine and the pilot safely "landed" the plane on the Hudson River. 150 passengers, 5 crew - no fatalities or even serious injuries.

01-16-2009, 05:05 AM	#4
Captain Hornblower Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Koblenz, Germany Posts: 1,903	A single small bird usually doesn't take down an airliner. The engines must pass a "bird-strike-evaluation"; a frozen chicken (possibly something equal) is "shot" into a running engine. If the engine breaks down, it won't get the neccessary approval. This morning (in Germany) they talked about a "flock of geese" which is a "little more" than a single small bird __________________ Software is like entropy. It is difficult to grasp, weighs nothing, and obeys the second law of thermodynamics; i.e., it always increases. Norman R. Augustine

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01-16-2009, 02:46 AM	#2
Munden Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Maryland, USA Posts: 684	FBOWeb.com has a KML of the flight, based on GPS telemetry from their tracking system. http://fboweb.com/kml/AWE1549.kml

01-16-2009, 04:54 AM	#3
Jrod Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: USA Posts: 174	They say a bird strike caused the problem. Crazy a small bird take down an entire plan but it happens. Luckily everybody survived. http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/01/15/new...ash/index.html

01-16-2009, 05:13 AM	#5
Munden Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Maryland, USA Posts: 684	'birdstrike' is just a term. It can describe any number of birds. If it's the cause, it'll come out that the aircraft hit a flock of birds in order to knock out both engines. They run tests with dead chickens on engines to make sure the turbine blades meet requirements and can ingest a decent sized bird without serious damage. Given the location, it could've been a flock of good sized sea birds or geese that they hit. Perhaps a large number of much smaller birds would have the same effect too. Here are some videos of bird tests. Not hugely gory, but a little gross for some folks I suppose: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUBv-ph4820 A bird strike on an aircraft in Manchester, where only one engine was lost: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KhZwsYtNDE F-16 bird strike and flameout: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gc-XiO4ojzk