Polish hero pilot lands 767 without wheels. (Warsaw)

Thank you, Skysoulmate, for your eloquent answer. Let me stress that my question had NOTHING WHATSOEVER to do with the age old "Airbus is best, Boeing is best", "Europe vs. US" discussion. I was just wondering what the changes in the use of materials would mean to emergency situations like in Wwa, tailstrikes and other situations that you describe. I simply was not aware that the new A350 will be made out of composite materials as well, or I would have mentioned that aeroplane as well.

I think your comparison to the Comet is a very good one. I remember seeing a documentary once where a Comet was submerged in a great, big watertank again and again, which brought the flaws of the aeroplane to the forefront. Didn't all this came out when one of them mysteriously disappeared over the Mediterranean off Italy? I think we can only hope that the use of these composite materials won't give rise to a new Comet-situation and that the designers have thought this through very, very carefully.

Again ... thank you, Skysoulmate, for your views on this. I appreciate it. I would also like to stress again that in no way I intended to bash Boeing. If I gave that impression, then I am very sorry indeed. The Dreamliner was just the only aeroplane I knew which is made out of composite materials.

You're welcome and I knew exactly what you meant. I threw the A350 into the equation to highlight the problems all manufacturers might be dealing with. I hope a Comet scenario will never materialize and I'm sure those in charge know what they're doing. You're correct about the Italy incident too. Metal fatigue wasn't really understood back then. For example Comet's passenger side-windows were rectangular and cracks developed in window corners due to the continuous pressurizing and depressurizing of the aircraft. Unfortunately people died before they realized what was going on.

lol, it reminds me of the last time I flew that route in one of those.

Elderly Polish lady: "Does this type of plane always make so much noise and wobble around like this?

Me: "Er... yeah."

Elderly Polish lady: "Never again!"

:D


Likewise. This has turned into an informative thread, especially as our self-styled legal/medical/aviation "expert" has left it :)

don't forget architecture- she is also and expert in architecture.

This is BS, the reason the original 350 design was cancelled was that airbus believed udgar hazy about the marketing dept power of the 787. Composites so far have failed their test in wheight reduction and cost reduction.. If airbus would have hanged toughed and made a 330 rewing/reengine they would have killed it in contrast to 787 delays. Instead even if they are using anothe composite technique to layer plastic to create an airframe and yes like the 787 there will be delays but not just as ridicuoulous as the boeing, basically the 787 was the epitome of the incompetent mcdonald douglas management taking over boeing. and airlines like lot are payiing the price

First of all, I don't call your thoughts BS. The above quote is your opinion based on some high level speculation. Airbus was bleeding financially as the A380 had just been launched and they couldn't afford to spend money on a yet another major aircraft redesign, and that's why they came up with the initial proposal. However they were forced into the new design by customer demand. Udvar Hazy represented just one of them, Lufthansa was pressuring Airbus so was Qatar and many other airlines. There's no conspiracy here, the initial Airbus refusal and the public statements by some of the customers were highly publicized. All literature I've read so far shows that composites are indeed very superior to previous materials being used. I trust the engineers over everyone else, including my own worries of the many "what it's." I'm not gonna get into an argument over why Airbus finally redesigned the A350 because I think it's irrelevant. In the long run Airbus made the right decision, a redesigned A330 could never compete with the 787, the new A350 might be able to do just that. Whether we like it or not most future aircraft will be primarily composite designs.

My mistake. I must remember to apologise when she returns :D


At least this thread has kept the "If it's not Boeing, I'm not going" crowd quiet. lol :)

Merged: A miracle in Warsaw (Polish pilot lands without wheels)

Quite impressive, very well done to the pilot. When did that happen?

It happened quite a long time ago. Everyone in Poland has nearly forgotten about it. Captain Wrona (in English: Crow) did this ... Anyway, well done captain!

Miracle? Sorry but a gear-up landing is far from a miracle, especially when the runway has been prepared. A PIA crew managed to put a 747 down with the landing gear up without even realising that the landing gear wasn't down. During the war Polish pilots from 302 and 303 squadrons were noted for their gear-up landings (not much of a bonus really, considering that the Hurricanes they were flying were designed to be landed with the landing gear down, unlike all the other planes those pilots had flown in the past, which explains why they had problems for a while with remembering to lower the undercarriage).