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I've been reading Admiral Cloudberg's write-ups for a few years since discovering them over on Reddit's r/CatastrophicFailure,[0] they're all truly excellent. I

I've been reading Admiral Cloudberg's write-ups for a few years since discovering them over on Reddit's r/CatastrophicFailure,[0] they're all truly excellent. I really enjoy his clear, no nonsense writing style. What us failure analysis nerds need, what we deserve, is a 90s era Discovery Channel show written by Cloudberg. Either that or a a United States Chemical Safety Board[1] style series. [0] https://www.reddit.com/r/CatastrophicFailure https://www.reddit.com/r/CatastrophicFailure [1] https://www.youtube.com/@USCSB https://www.youtube.com/@USCSB

LadyCailin 4y ago
Not sure if you’ve heard about the podcast Cautionary Tales. It’s wonderful, especially if you like these kinds of things.
- voxadam 4y ago
  This is my first time hearing about it. Thanks for the tip, I'll give it a listen.
- kyleee 4y ago
  Who is the host? There are apparently a few podcasts with this title and I am confused
  - FabHK 4y ago
    Not GP, but pretty sure they’re referring to Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford (the “Undercover Economist”), which is gripping, informative, and entertaining. https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/cautionary-tales https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/cautionary-tales
    - kyleee 4y ago
      Thank you!
ttcbj 4y ago
I just discovered cloudberg a few months ago, on HN. I agree the writeups are amazing. What I enjoy most is that frequently, the crash appears to have a clear “culprit” early on, then cloud berg points out 5-7 other factors, any one of which might have prevented the accident. If the series had a theme, I think it would be that airplane crashes are less about human failings than systemic ones.
- bombcar 4y ago
  That kind of thinking is useful when examining other system failures; AND it can be important to consider "let's assume this other factor had prevented the disaster, how could we have still identified the underlying 'cause'". Because if your ass is being repeatedly saved by the equivalent of a $0.50 zip tie, you probably want to know that.
quickthrower2 4y ago
Thanks you made me read 2 more. And kept me up late! There is one where some safety feature highly recommended for all planes back in the 90s (I think), to identify and alert which engine failed, wont be added to 737s because you guessed it: type certification. It is fascinating and a bit scary.

LadyCailin 4y ago

Not sure if you’ve heard about the podcast Cautionary Tales. It’s wonderful, especially if you like these kinds of things.

voxadam 4y ago
This is my first time hearing about it. Thanks for the tip, I'll give it a listen.
kyleee 4y ago
Who is the host? There are apparently a few podcasts with this title and I am confused
- FabHK 4y ago
  Not GP, but pretty sure they’re referring to Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford (the “Undercover Economist”), which is gripping, informative, and entertaining. https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/cautionary-tales https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/cautionary-tales
  - kyleee 4y ago
    Thank you!

ttcbj 4y ago

I just discovered cloudberg a few months ago, on HN. I agree the writeups are amazing. What I enjoy most is that frequently, the crash appears to have a clear “culprit” early on, then cloud berg points out 5-7 other factors, any one of which might have prevented the accident. If the series had a theme, I think it would be that airplane crashes are less about human failings than systemic ones.

bombcar 4y ago
That kind of thinking is useful when examining other system failures; AND it can be important to consider "let's assume this other factor had prevented the disaster, how could we have still identified the underlying 'cause'". Because if your ass is being repeatedly saved by the equivalent of a $0.50 zip tie, you probably want to know that.

quickthrower2 4y ago

Thanks you made me read 2 more. And kept me up late! There is one where some safety feature highly recommended for all planes back in the 90s (I think), to identify and alert which engine failed, wont be added to 737s because you guessed it: type certification. It is fascinating and a bit scary.