3 ms·

> But the recovery was a little scary. When he pulled back, the elevator was ineffective; it didn’t do anything, so he said, “Well, I’ll use the stabilizer,” an

> But the recovery was a little scary. When he pulled back, the elevator was ineffective; it didn’t do anything, so he said, “Well, I’ll use the stabilizer,” and the stabilizer wouldn’t run. It stalled, because of the load. What he did, because he was smart, is something that no other pilot would do: He pushed over into the dive more, which relieved the load on the stabilizer. So. Nuts. Note that they also took off with broken slots, which prevented them from extending the flaps, unknowing why these were broken. BUT STILL WENT. For whatever reason I believe this wouldn't fly (ahah) today, too much risk.

t0mas88 5y ago
Definitly would not fly today, there is a list called the MEL which specifies exactly when you can and cannot fly. Something like this where an engine failure would be unrecoverable would be an absolute "no fly" item.
- sokoloff 5y ago
  The MEL (minimum equipment list) applies only to normal operations. Test flight programs are generally done in the experimental category, where the MEL would not apply. Side note: production airplanes are also regularly ferried in violation of the MEL or other airworthiness requirement under a ferry permit (Special Flight Permit is the official name) - https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/field_offices/fsdo/phl/local_more/media/ferry_permit.pdf https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/field_offices/fsdo/phl/...
WalterBright 5y ago
> something that no other pilot would do I doubt that. A military fighter pilot would do that. Military fighter pilots are not afraid of diving. My dad (KW fighter pilot) told me his favorite method of attacking ack-ack guns was to dive straight down on them. Anti-aircraft gunners do not want to fire straight up, for obvious reasons. He said he'd keep one eye on the altimeter, one eye on the airspeed, and his third eye (!) on the target. The trick was to keep the airspeed below the maximum and leave yourself altitude to recover. He also got yelled at once for flying a B-17 like a fighter. The other two methods of attack are diving out of the sun (just put your airplane's shadow on the gun emplacement) so they can't see or hear you, and hedge-hopping off to the side. This makes it a very difficult deflection shot to hit you, and if you're close enough the gun cannot swivel fast enough to get a bead on you, then turn hard at the last second, line up, and blast it.
- GuB-42 5y ago
  In fact, I think most pilots would have done that. Pilots are trained to recover from stalls over and over, until it becomes second nature. And the way to do it is to follow into the dive until you regain control authority and then pull back slowly. This is not a regular stall but the idea is the same: pulling doesn't work? try pushing. Of course I wasn't in the cockpit, and I would probably be panicking if I was, but from my armchair, it looks like the kind of reaction a properly trained pilot would naturally have.

t0mas88 5y ago

Definitly would not fly today, there is a list called the MEL which specifies exactly when you can and cannot fly. Something like this where an engine failure would be unrecoverable would be an absolute "no fly" item.

sokoloff 5y ago
The MEL (minimum equipment list) applies only to normal operations. Test flight programs are generally done in the experimental category, where the MEL would not apply. Side note: production airplanes are also regularly ferried in violation of the MEL or other airworthiness requirement under a ferry permit (Special Flight Permit is the official name) - https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/field_offices/fsdo/phl/local_more/media/ferry_permit.pdf https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/field_offices/fsdo/phl/...

WalterBright 5y ago

> something that no other pilot would do I doubt that. A military fighter pilot would do that. Military fighter pilots are not afraid of diving. My dad (KW fighter pilot) told me his favorite method of attacking ack-ack guns was to dive straight down on them. Anti-aircraft gunners do not want to fire straight up, for obvious reasons. He said he'd keep one eye on the altimeter, one eye on the airspeed, and his third eye (!) on the target. The trick was to keep the airspeed below the maximum and leave yourself altitude to recover. He also got yelled at once for flying a B-17 like a fighter. The other two methods of attack are diving out of the sun (just put your airplane's shadow on the gun emplacement) so they can't see or hear you, and hedge-hopping off to the side. This makes it a very difficult deflection shot to hit you, and if you're close enough the gun cannot swivel fast enough to get a bead on you, then turn hard at the last second, line up, and blast it.

GuB-42 5y ago
In fact, I think most pilots would have done that. Pilots are trained to recover from stalls over and over, until it becomes second nature. And the way to do it is to follow into the dive until you regain control authority and then pull back slowly. This is not a regular stall but the idea is the same: pulling doesn't work? try pushing. Of course I wasn't in the cockpit, and I would probably be panicking if I was, but from my armchair, it looks like the kind of reaction a properly trained pilot would naturally have.