Miloch
July 8th 20, 10:02 PM
http://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/holy-moly-look-how-a-bird-flattened-this-planes-nose-cone/ar-BB16ujc2?li=BBnbfcL#image=1
An airliner in New York made an emergency landing after having its nose cone
flattened.
The nose cone houses radar and is much more fragile than the rest of the plane.
People involved suggest this damage was from an even less lucky bird caught in
the hailstorm.
Dramatic photos have taken the internet by hailstorm, showing the dented nose
cone of a LaGuardia Airport-bound Delta airliner that was forced to land at John
F. Kennedy International Airport on Monday evening because of the damage.
Airplanes aren’t fragile, but they do walk a fine line between lightness and
flexibility on the one hand and safety and durability on the other. What does
this dramatic damage tell us about planes?
Producer and casting director Brooke Goldman was one of the 43 passengers aboard
Delta Air Lines flight 1076 from Palm Beach International. First, Goldman tells
Popular Mechanics, the pilot—who knew he was flying into some weather—offered to
divert to Bradley International Airport in Connecticut. The pilot then told
passengers the plane, an Airbus A319, would definitely manage to get to its
planned destination of LaGuardia. After that, the pilot went quiet—but the
weather didn't.
“We went through the storm and there was severe turbulence like I’ve never felt
before,” says Goldman. “Definitely a bit scary, but overall, not incredibly
concerning. We landed at JFK and I honestly didn’t know we were there at first
until the pilot let us know that we were at JFK due to an emergency landing.”
The pilot told passengers he’d had to make an emergency landing after dealing
with damage to the plane, but he couldn’t tell them in realtime partly due to
the nature of the damage, which had knocked out autopilot and navigation. That
makes sense, since the nose cone of the plane is vulnerable in this way because
of what’s inside.
The look of the jetliner with a flattened nose cone might remind some readers of
an iconic series of commercials from Rubbermaid where a garbage can is dented by
a car or bike. The dent “bounces” out with a satisfying sound ‘90s kids can
never forget.
While comparing the two scenarios might feel crass, it’s also technically not
far off. The nose cone is a radome, which is any dome that protects and encloses
radar equipment. And on many airliners, these are plastic! They must have as
much exposure and radar “transparency” as possible in order to get the best
readings, so plastic is a better choice.
In this hailstorm, the pilot witnessed the necessary tradeoffs. Even if hail
isn’t blowing around especially hard, pilots can’t really see it before they
start to hit it. On the ground, hail doesn’t have to be very large before it
starts to pockmark car paint and body panels. In the air, it’s colliding with
airplanes going up to 600 miles per hour.
But, Goldman says, that’s not even the most interesting part. She’s been told
the damage was caused by a bird strike rather than a hail accident. Yes, hail
can do this kind of damage, but bird strikes are much more common—remember the
Miracle on the Hudson?—and have more of the qualities that could crush a nose
cone.
In 2017, Oklahoma City Thunder players were on a plane flying into Chicago when
it was struck by something that flattened the nose cone. Since there wasn’t
inclement weather otherwise, it seemed like a bird strike.
A damaged nose cone can impair the flight’s radar, and especially in a severe
storm environment, the pilot has to do their best with difficult circumstances.
In this case, it sounds like the pilot acted with prudence and focused on making
a safe landing. Goldman says the extent of the damage was a surprise after the
crew had stayed so calm.
“We got off and I didn’t realize the severity of the damage until I saw all of
the passengers taking photos out the window of the plane,” Goldman says. “I was
happy that we were all safe and I felt like the pilot and flight crew handled
the situation really well without ensuing panic.”
*
An airliner in New York made an emergency landing after having its nose cone
flattened.
The nose cone houses radar and is much more fragile than the rest of the plane.
People involved suggest this damage was from an even less lucky bird caught in
the hailstorm.
Dramatic photos have taken the internet by hailstorm, showing the dented nose
cone of a LaGuardia Airport-bound Delta airliner that was forced to land at John
F. Kennedy International Airport on Monday evening because of the damage.
Airplanes aren’t fragile, but they do walk a fine line between lightness and
flexibility on the one hand and safety and durability on the other. What does
this dramatic damage tell us about planes?
Producer and casting director Brooke Goldman was one of the 43 passengers aboard
Delta Air Lines flight 1076 from Palm Beach International. First, Goldman tells
Popular Mechanics, the pilot—who knew he was flying into some weather—offered to
divert to Bradley International Airport in Connecticut. The pilot then told
passengers the plane, an Airbus A319, would definitely manage to get to its
planned destination of LaGuardia. After that, the pilot went quiet—but the
weather didn't.
“We went through the storm and there was severe turbulence like I’ve never felt
before,” says Goldman. “Definitely a bit scary, but overall, not incredibly
concerning. We landed at JFK and I honestly didn’t know we were there at first
until the pilot let us know that we were at JFK due to an emergency landing.”
The pilot told passengers he’d had to make an emergency landing after dealing
with damage to the plane, but he couldn’t tell them in realtime partly due to
the nature of the damage, which had knocked out autopilot and navigation. That
makes sense, since the nose cone of the plane is vulnerable in this way because
of what’s inside.
The look of the jetliner with a flattened nose cone might remind some readers of
an iconic series of commercials from Rubbermaid where a garbage can is dented by
a car or bike. The dent “bounces” out with a satisfying sound ‘90s kids can
never forget.
While comparing the two scenarios might feel crass, it’s also technically not
far off. The nose cone is a radome, which is any dome that protects and encloses
radar equipment. And on many airliners, these are plastic! They must have as
much exposure and radar “transparency” as possible in order to get the best
readings, so plastic is a better choice.
In this hailstorm, the pilot witnessed the necessary tradeoffs. Even if hail
isn’t blowing around especially hard, pilots can’t really see it before they
start to hit it. On the ground, hail doesn’t have to be very large before it
starts to pockmark car paint and body panels. In the air, it’s colliding with
airplanes going up to 600 miles per hour.
But, Goldman says, that’s not even the most interesting part. She’s been told
the damage was caused by a bird strike rather than a hail accident. Yes, hail
can do this kind of damage, but bird strikes are much more common—remember the
Miracle on the Hudson?—and have more of the qualities that could crush a nose
cone.
In 2017, Oklahoma City Thunder players were on a plane flying into Chicago when
it was struck by something that flattened the nose cone. Since there wasn’t
inclement weather otherwise, it seemed like a bird strike.
A damaged nose cone can impair the flight’s radar, and especially in a severe
storm environment, the pilot has to do their best with difficult circumstances.
In this case, it sounds like the pilot acted with prudence and focused on making
a safe landing. Goldman says the extent of the damage was a surprise after the
crew had stayed so calm.
“We got off and I didn’t realize the severity of the damage until I saw all of
the passengers taking photos out the window of the plane,” Goldman says. “I was
happy that we were all safe and I felt like the pilot and flight crew handled
the situation really well without ensuing panic.”
*