Topic: Aviation
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π Gimli Glider
Air Canada FlightΒ 143 was a Canadian scheduled domestic passenger flight between Montreal and Edmonton that ran out of fuel on JulyΒ 23, 1983, at an altitude of 41,000 feet (12,000Β m), midway through the flight. The crew was able to glide the Boeing 767 aircraft safely to an emergency landing at a former Royal Canadian Air Force base in Gimli, Manitoba, that had been turned into a motor racing track. This unusual aviation incident earned the aircraft the nickname "Gimli Glider".
The subsequent investigation revealed that a combination of company failures, human errors and confusion over unit measures had led to the aircraft being refuelled with insufficient fuel for the planned flight.
Discussed on
- "Gimli Glider" | 2016-12-18 | 385 Upvotes 198 Comments
- "Gimli Glider" | 2014-05-01 | 176 Upvotes 80 Comments
- "Gimli Glider: When systems go wrong." | 2009-10-23 | 26 Upvotes 9 Comments
π Pugachev's Cobra
In aerobatics the Cobra maneuver, also known as just the Cobra, is a dramatic and demanding maneuver in which an airplane flying at a moderate speed suddenly raises the nose momentarily to the vertical position and slightly beyond, before dropping it back to normal, effectively making the plane a full body air brake.
The maneuver relies on the ability of the plane to be able to quickly change alpha which momentarily stalls the plane without overloading the airframe and powerful engine thrust to maintain approximately constant altitude through the entire move. It is an impressive maneuver to demonstrate an aircraft's pitch control authority, high alpha stability and engine-versus-inlet compatibility, as well as the pilot's skill.
Although the maneuver is mainly performed at air shows it has use in close range air combat as a last ditch maneuver to make a pursuing plane overshoot. There is currently no widely spread or readily available evidence of the Cobra being used in real combat, although, there are records of it being used during mockup-dogfights and during border protection.
Discussed on
- "Cobra Maneuver" | 2022-10-02 | 218 Upvotes 157 Comments
- "Pugachev's Cobra" | 2015-09-21 | 36 Upvotes 15 Comments
π Goodyear Inflatoplane
The Goodyear Inflatoplane was an inflatable experimental aircraft made by the Goodyear Aircraft Company, a subsidiary of Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, well known for the Goodyear blimp. Although it seemed an improbable project, the finished aircraft proved to be capable of meeting its design objectives, although orders were never forthcoming from the military. A total of 12 prototypes were built between 1956 and 1959, and testing continued until 1972, when the project was finally cancelled.
Discussed on
- "Goodyear Inflatoplane" | 2024-05-02 | 148 Upvotes 71 Comments
- "Goodyear Inflatoplane" | 2019-10-14 | 108 Upvotes 27 Comments
π Jesus Nut
Jesus nut is a slang term for the main rotor retaining nut or mast nut, which holds the main rotor to the mast of some helicopters. The related slang term Jesus pin refers to the lock pin used to secure the retaining nut. More generally, Jesus nut (or Jesus pin) has been used to refer to any component that is a single point of failure which results in catastrophic consequences.
Discussed on
- "Jesus Nut" | 2023-10-13 | 209 Upvotes 93 Comments
- "Jesus Nut" | 2022-03-02 | 29 Upvotes 1 Comments
π Happy Petrov day
Stanislav Yevgrafovich Petrov (Russian: Π‘ΡΠ°Π½ΠΈΡΠ»Π°ΜΠ² ΠΠ²Π³ΡΠ°ΜΡΠΎΠ²ΠΈΡ ΠΠ΅ΡΡΠΎΜΠ²; 7 September 1939 β 19 May 2017) was a lieutenant colonel of the Soviet Air Defence Forces who played a key role in the 1983 Soviet nuclear false alarm incident. On 26 September 1983, three weeks after the Soviet military had shot down Korean Air Lines Flight 007, Petrov was the duty officer at the command center for the Oko nuclear early-warning system when the system reported that a missile had been launched from the United States, followed by up to five more. Petrov judged the reports to be a false alarm, and his decision to disobey orders, against Soviet military protocol, is credited with having prevented an erroneous retaliatory nuclear attack on the United States and its NATO allies that could have resulted in large-scale nuclear war. Investigation later confirmed that the Soviet satellite warning system had indeed malfunctioned.
Discussed on
- "It's Stanislav Petrov day β40yrs ago he saved world by suppressing a tech glitch" | 2023-09-26 | 129 Upvotes 7 Comments
- "Happy Petrov day" | 2013-09-26 | 138 Upvotes 30 Comments
π Vacuum airship
A vacuum airship, also known as a vacuum balloon, is a hypothetical airship that is evacuated rather than filled with a lighter-than-air gas such as hydrogen or helium. First proposed by Italian Jesuit priest Francesco Lana de Terzi in 1670, the vacuum balloon would be the ultimate expression of lifting power per volume displaced.
Discussed on
- "Vacuum Airship" | 2023-07-20 | 101 Upvotes 73 Comments
- "Vacuum airship" | 2014-08-12 | 56 Upvotes 59 Comments
π British Airways Flight 5390
British Airways Flight 5390 was a flight from Birmingham Airport in England for MΓ‘laga Airport in Spain that suffered explosive decompression, with no loss of life, shortly after takeoff on 10 June 1990. An improperly installed windscreen panel separated from its frame, causing the plane's captain to be blown partially out of the aircraft. With the captain pinned against the window frame for twenty minutes, the first officer landed at Southampton Airport.
Discussed on
- "British Airways Flight 5390" | 2020-11-14 | 169 Upvotes 101 Comments
π Cessna 188 Pacific Rescue
On 22 December 1978, a small Cessna 188 aircraft, piloted by Jay Prochnow, became lost over the Pacific Ocean. The only other aircraft in the area that was able to assist was a commercial Air New Zealand flight. After several hours of searching, the crew of the Air New Zealand flight located the lost Cessna and led it to Norfolk Island, where the plane landed safely.
Discussed on
- "Cessna 188 Pacific Rescue" | 2019-02-20 | 205 Upvotes 60 Comments
π Story of a Stolen Boeing
On 25 May 2003, a Boeing 727, registered N844AA, was stolen at Quatro de Fevereiro Airport, Luanda, Angola. Its disappearance prompted a worldwide search by the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). No trace of the aircraft has since been found.
Discussed on
- "Story of a Stolen Boeing" | 2019-03-01 | 65 Upvotes 25 Comments
- "2003 Boeing 727-223 disappearance" | 2014-03-10 | 109 Upvotes 46 Comments
π Janet Airlines
Janet, sometimes called Janet Airlines, is the unofficial name given to a highly classified fleet of passenger aircraft operated for the United States Department of the Air Force as an employee shuttle to transport military and contractor employees. The purpose is to pick up the employees at their home airport, and take them to their place of work. Then, in the afternoon, they take the employees back to their home airports. The airline mainly serves the Nevada National Security Site (most notably Area 51 and the Tonopah Test Range), from a private terminal at Las Vegas's McCarran International Airport.
The airline's aircraft are generally unmarked, but do have a red paint strip along the windows of the aircraft, which gives some sort of hint at Janet being the operator.
Discussed on
- "Janet Airlines" | 2019-04-21 | 180 Upvotes 56 Comments