4 ms·

How are those pertinent questions? Even with the answers, you (and I) would have no idea what we were talking about. The only pertinent question is: Do qualifie

How are those pertinent questions? Even with the answers, you (and I) would have no idea what we were talking about. The only pertinent question is: Do qualified mechanics certify that the plane is safe?

dghlsakjg 3y ago
I’m a pilot, not an A&P, but I’ve seen what happens when a loose screw goes where it shouldn’t on an airframe. You should be very concerned about pieces of metal falling off of planes and going where they shouldn't. Its enough of a worry that just about every airport has procedures and a significant budget for managing FOD. Keeping screws (and other FOD) off the runway and taxiways is a multibillion dollar industry for a reason. A non-required screw that backs itself off and falls off in flight is a maintenance procedures failure (torque or locking compound was ignored). Screws don’t just fall off. Ignoring it because it is non-required is dangerous because it could possibly indicate that screws are being installed incorrectly, including required ones. Qualified mechanics certify every single non-experimental plane as safe. Yet somehow, planes still crash for mechanical reasons.
- wolverine876 3y ago
  > You should be very concerned about pieces of metal falling off of planes and going where they shouldn't. What kind of risk are we talking about? When did that last happen on a commercial airliner? How many people have been injured that I should be 'very concerned'?
  - dghlsakjg 3y ago
    As I mentioned before the Concorde crash is the most famous example of a piece of FOD from a plane causing a crash. It’s a big enough issue that every airport is required to have a debris management program, and runways and taxiways are regularly swept by specialized equipment. FOD is estimated to be a multibillion dollar problem by more than one study.
    - wolverine876 3y ago
      Right, but I don't need to be 'very concerned'; the airline industry is very effective at preventing it. If I was going to be 'very concerned' about potential risks without considering mitigation, there's fuel tanks exploding, running out of fuel, drunk pilots, hitting mountains, runway collisions, etc. etc. Pieces of FOD don't seem to rate ... My point is about risk, of course. FOD is not an effective risk to me.

dghlsakjg 3y ago

I’m a pilot, not an A&P, but I’ve seen what happens when a loose screw goes where it shouldn’t on an airframe. You should be very concerned about pieces of metal falling off of planes and going where they shouldn't. Its enough of a worry that just about every airport has procedures and a significant budget for managing FOD. Keeping screws (and other FOD) off the runway and taxiways is a multibillion dollar industry for a reason. A non-required screw that backs itself off and falls off in flight is a maintenance procedures failure (torque or locking compound was ignored). Screws don’t just fall off. Ignoring it because it is non-required is dangerous because it could possibly indicate that screws are being installed incorrectly, including required ones. Qualified mechanics certify every single non-experimental plane as safe. Yet somehow, planes still crash for mechanical reasons.

wolverine876 3y ago
> You should be very concerned about pieces of metal falling off of planes and going where they shouldn't. What kind of risk are we talking about? When did that last happen on a commercial airliner? How many people have been injured that I should be 'very concerned'?
- dghlsakjg 3y ago
  As I mentioned before the Concorde crash is the most famous example of a piece of FOD from a plane causing a crash. It’s a big enough issue that every airport is required to have a debris management program, and runways and taxiways are regularly swept by specialized equipment. FOD is estimated to be a multibillion dollar problem by more than one study.
  - wolverine876 3y ago
    Right, but I don't need to be 'very concerned'; the airline industry is very effective at preventing it. If I was going to be 'very concerned' about potential risks without considering mitigation, there's fuel tanks exploding, running out of fuel, drunk pilots, hitting mountains, runway collisions, etc. etc. Pieces of FOD don't seem to rate ... My point is about risk, of course. FOD is not an effective risk to me.