This, coupled with the idea that big planes simply aren't flying enough to keep the pilots certified has me concerned about commercial aviation. The scale-down and scale-up is incredibly costly and will result in huge write-offs of equipment that cannot be cost-effectively kept up. You can't just park these airframes and expect them to be ready when you need them.
FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
41–50 of 170 posts
Re: FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think it would be rather hard to land a plane off the airport without substantial damage, especially when talking about larger ones.
For small 4-6 seater general aviation aircraft it's hard (relative to a normal landing), but not at all unheard of. A modern 4 lane highway is more than wide enough, and very probably has a long enough straight section within range, to make for a relatively uneventful landing if you can get traffic to cooperate. You're absolutely correct though when it comes to larger aircraft. I rather doubt there are any examples o…
> I rather doubt there are any examples of an off airport landing of a 737 without significant damage to the aircraft.
Re: FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
#43One of the inspection checklist items: Measure the clearance between the flapper bushings at both locations on each engine bleed air 5th stage check valve. If the clearance between the flapper bushings is a minimum of 0.004 inch (0.102 mm) at both locations, the engine bleed air 5th stage check valve at that location has passed this inspection. I knew that aviation engineering dealt with tight tolerances, but boy, it…
They've had calipers for literally thousands of years. I used to be involved in some intermediate gunsmithing work, and we had these tools called 'dial calipers' which have a little gauge you read and you can measure extremely precise things. We used it for getting cylinder diameters or clearances that needed that degree of precision. I can only imagine that in aviation, there are even more advanced tools, especially…
They're measuring it to ensure corrosion hasn't thrown it out of spec, right? Not that it wasn't manufactured to spec?
Re: FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
#44Earlier quoted context omitted.
If it's a gap between two parts that they're measuring, that's as simple as a feeler gauge: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feeler_gauge . The set pictured there looks like it goes down to 0.05mm.
The only person here that knows what they're talking about. Everyone's talking about calipers :/
Yep. To check tolerances, you'd need a go/no-go pair -- one that should fit, and a slightly bigger one which shouldn't.
Re: FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
They've had calipers for literally thousands of years. I used to be involved in some intermediate gunsmithing work, and we had these tools called 'dial calipers' which have a little gauge you read and you can measure extremely precise things. We used it for getting cylinder diameters or clearances that needed that degree of precision. I can only imagine that in aviation, there are even more advanced tools, especially…
I really struggle to understand how you could have used the term "well-respected" here. It ain't muscle memory, this was done deliberately. Could you explain how you can refer to Boeing being well-respected after the 737 MAX fiasco? Maybe I am missing something. [edit] remove a word
They've had some big screw-ups that were well covered on HN. But from 2014 to 2018 they were consistently the biggest and most profitable aerospace company in the world[1]. You don't get there by being disrespected and all-around shitty.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerospace_manufacturer#Largest...
Re: FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
#46Earlier quoted context omitted.
This is true of all airplanes, not just the 737. They're so expensive that they all need to be in use continuously.
Yeah I'm sure most commercial airliners are the same. Apart from maybe the Super-Heavies; I hear that there are dozens (hundreds?) of 747s and A380s sitting around doing nothing currently because they're too expensive to fly.
Those 747s and A380s are only sitting around not flying because of the pandemic. And it seems likely that many of them will never return to flight again at this point, except maybe after being modified for cargo hauling.
Prior to the pandemic, if you had a flight-worthy plane of any size, you were using it continuously. Once a plane was no longer being used continuously it was likely about to be permanently retired.
Re: FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
#47This may be a dumb question, but why use materials that can corrode on such an important part? Just use stainless steel (or AL or TI), problem solved?
Re: FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
#48Earlier quoted context omitted.
They've had calipers for literally thousands of years. I used to be involved in some intermediate gunsmithing work, and we had these tools called 'dial calipers' which have a little gauge you read and you can measure extremely precise things. We used it for getting cylinder diameters or clearances that needed that degree of precision. I can only imagine that in aviation, there are even more advanced tools, especially…
They're measuring it to ensure corrosion hasn't thrown it out of spec, right? Not that it wasn't manufactured to spec?
Excellent point, shows you how much of an engineer I'm NOT. That's probably a big point too.
Surely there's some sort of chart they've made for all these parts and how fast they're allowed to decay, given some number of flight-hours?
Re: FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
#49Earlier quoted context omitted.
They've had calipers for literally thousands of years. I used to be involved in some intermediate gunsmithing work, and we had these tools called 'dial calipers' which have a little gauge you read and you can measure extremely precise things. We used it for getting cylinder diameters or clearances that needed that degree of precision. I can only imagine that in aviation, there are even more advanced tools, especially…
I really struggle to understand how you could have used the term "well-respected" here. It ain't muscle memory, this was done deliberately. Could you explain how you can refer to Boeing being well-respected after the 737 MAX fiasco? Maybe I am missing something. [edit] remove a word
Your post seems to imply that a bad product negates the respect earned by leading an industry, nay, multiple industries, for several decades.
Do you really truly think that just because the MAX is a POS, that everything that comes out of Boeing can be evaluated under that same lens? Surely you aren't so blind to the reality that engineers do occasionally produce quality work.
To your credit, I wouldn't fly myself or my family in a MAX, but I'm not uneasy about getting into a Boeing aircraft across the board, at the same time. That'd just be irrational.
Perhaps you could clarify your stance, as you may know more than your post reveals.
Re: FAA issues emergency directive on 2,000 Boeing 737 NG, Classic planes
#50The title here should have "737 NG, Classic" not "737 NG Classic". As in "Boeing 737 NG and Classic aircraft", not "Boeing 737 NG Classic aircraft".