Image: Wikipedia Earth rotating from West to East Does Earth’s rotation affect a plane in flight? The Earth is around 4.54 billion years old. It was formed when a cloud of gas collapsed due to gravity. As the cloud collapsed, it started to spin and continued to do so because there are no forces acting …
Photo: 123RF Lightning strikes on a plane What happens when lightning strikes a plane? Asmiati Utari from Quora asks, “Can thunder strike a plane?” I think the question should be rephrased by replacing the word ‘thunder’ with ‘lightning’. This is because, without lightning, there would be no thunder. Lightning is a discharge of electricity …
‘Depression 29’ with strong winds and rain over the Klang Valley in Malaysia. Is flying in the rain and wind safe? Emily G from Quora asks the above interesting question. Five days ago, ‘Depression 29’ brought heavy rain into the Klang Valley in Malaysia. It lasted for over 24 hours and recorded 363 millimeters of …
Photo: Travel 3Sixty Parachutes for air passengers? Why don’t airplanes have parachutes for passengers? Benjamin David from Quora asks the above question. Well, some people think that jumping off a plane with a parachute is a simple and easy task. In reality, this is impractical and fraught with difficulties. For a start, it is …
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Can this wasp cause a plane to crash? Can an insect cause a plane to crash? When Israel Saka from Quora asked me whether an inset can cause a plane to crash, it reminds me of Birgenair Flight 301. Yes, insects could indeed cause havoc if actions and precautions were not taken early enough. On …
Photo: TRAVOLTA.com John Travolta in an airline captain’s uniform Is John Travolta one of the best pilots to ever live? John Travolta became very famous after his box office movie success in Saturday Night Fever in 1977. He owns four aircraft and has an estate in Ocala, Florida where he built its own runway and …
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Image: India Meteorological Department Turbulence around Bay of Bengal Should I be worried about flying in bad weather? To some air travelers, bumpiness in the skies or turbulence is a major concern to them. A journalist friend recently asked me about these on her forthcoming journey. I had demonstrated a simulated turbulent flight aboard a …
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Photo: 123RF Approaching to land on an Instrument Landing System How do pilots land when they can’t see the runway? Bhavin from Quora asks the above question. The simple answer is that you do not land because it is too dangerous to guess where the runway is! As such, you will abort the landing …
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A female co-pilot in the cockpit Can a co-pilot land an airplane? Blake Winfield from Quora asks the above question. This was responded by me before but it’s worth sharing again. Although the captain is responsible for everything that happens onboard the plane, it is a common misconception that the co-pilot is only an assistant …
Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200ER How to carry out an Emergency Descent? Praveen from Quora asks if a quick descent is needed, how pilots do it? On a single-engine plane flying below 10,000 feet, the pilot retards the throttle and pushes his flight control forward. That’s how it is done. Unlike a car that can turn …
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The Boeing 787 is installed with an Air Purification System Is it safe to fly during the Covid-19 pandemic? Reacting to a scary message from a retired pilot that has gone viral in chat groups, friends have been asking me whether it is safe to fly in view of the current pandemic and the introduction …
Photo: 123RF An Airbus A380 Cockpit Can anyone actually be talked through landing a plane in an emergency? Bob Geary from Quora asks. I would like to discuss this hypothetical question of landing an A380 in 4 scenarios: Some movies have given the impression that an ordinary passenger with no flying experience can land …
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Photo: 123RF Is flying a plane different than driving? Is flying a plane different from driving a car? Blake Winfield from Quora asks this question. I will answer this by elaborating more about flying than by car. When I started learning how to fly in UK, I found that it wasn’t as easy as I …
Photo: Airbus An Airbus A350-1000 conducting the autonomous (‘pilotless’) fight test Will pilotless planes be a reality in the future? Well, there will be planes flying around without pilots in the future but the question is, whether the airlines could put fare-paying passengers in the back of the aircraft. In one survey, it was found …
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Aircraft’s windows are rounded Can you breathe on a plane if a window breaks at 35000 feet? Asnita Novi from Quora ask this interesting question. A commercial airliner’s window will not break in flight because they have been redesigned after 2 commercial jets with square windows crashed about 70 years ago Investigators into these …
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Photo: 123RF Normal air travel during the pre-Covid-19 pandemic When will air travel return to “normal”? A friend recently informed me that she flew in from Vancouver with rather poor passenger load. I can only assume that it was probably due to fear of Covid-19 infections that had kept many travelers away. Two studies …
Photo: 123RF From the Back Seats And the safest seat on an aircraft is… In studies by TIME of 17 plane crashes between 1985 and 2000, the safest place in the plane cabin is the back seats, followed by the mid-section and then the front compartment. These statistics might not be so compelling because of …
Photo: 123RF A Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200ER What is your life worth? Dr John Campbell, a famous YouTube coronavirus star has just announced, it is inevitable that all of us will be infected by the Delta variant sooner or later. In Malaysia, many are depressed because of isolation and further fear of infection. When I …
Use of Automation (Auto Landing) on an Instrument Landing System Most pilots make use of automation if they feel they are incapable of landing the planes manually in bad weather. Charles Raisor from Quora posed this very common and interesting question. Horrible Weather Conditions So, what were my horrible weather conditions? Well, amongst others, poor …
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Photo: Adam Lee Life Raft Training – Flight crew safely on board What happens if a plane loses all its power? Even though I have hung up my pilot’s uniform, it’s refreshing to reminisce over Vipul Lal’s question during this Covid-19 lockdown. Via Quora, he further added, “I know that a commercial liner can …