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ATC operator and ‘plane captain both very calm there.. ..but then it’s important for their role that they are.
That was in fact TWO birds, herons. See this report.
Jet engines are designed to handle small bird strikes without problems – they just spit them out plucked and roasted.
Every been puzzled by a smell of roast chicken on a flight with no meal service? Sparrows, probably.
Oh, and quite amusing the way ATC keeps trying to send them off to Liverpool: “Go ruin their day, not ours!”
Well at least the PLANE gets something good to eat!
There’s nothing like hitting a few birds just after takeoff (30 ft. AGL) in a single engine plane — the resulting red goo all over the windscreen is enough to make you hurl. At least the prop chewed ’em up enough so the birds didn’t come right through the windscreen at 100 knots.
There was no attempt to divert the 737 to Liverpool, ATC was just giving the pilot all options available. Once a ‘mayday’ is declared, the pilot pretty much gets priority over all other traffic and can land where he chooses. I sure honked off SWA at Love Field one day with an engine out on an IFR departure in a twin Cessna 310. ATC: “Southwest 262, execute immediate missed approach, await further instructions. All other traffic inbound, prepare to hold at the outer marker.” It was my life on the line, not theirs.
In years of flying choppers I never had a single bird strike. Fixed wing drivers used to say that choppers are so ugly they scare the birds away.
There was no attempt to divert the 737 to Liverpool, ATC was just giving the pilot all options available.
Yes, I know all about that, it just struck me as funnny that they reminded him several times, as though they really didn’t want him messing up their nice airport.
#6, Peter Rodwell,
as though they really didn’t want him messing up their nice airport.
Yeah, ATC is kinda funny that way sometimes. Traffic, maybe?
A bird strike in a chopper is liable to come right thru the windscreen, especially at cruise. But I’ve not heard of a fatal one in a long time. Just out of curiosity, what kind of equip. did you fly?
Just out of curiosity, what kind of equip. did you fly?
Bell 205s mostly, as a glorified taxi driver for ppl with much money and little time. I also got a few hours in on Bell 206s (JetRanger).
[off topic]
#8, Peter Rodwell, nice iron. And the Jet Ranger’s a beauty. At 110+ knots, those birds are coming right through the windscreen.
Goodness, the payload in the 205 with fuel is what, 2000 lbs? Sims were fun, but I could never afford the annual or the maint. on a chopper. So how many times did you have to autorotate, or was your craft professionally maintained on a daily basis? And IFR in rotorcraft single pilot has to be a real pain.
The pilots were cool, but guarantee a few puckered seats in the passenger compartment when that engine started popping.
Apparently they clean jet engines using walnut shells. They’re designed to be able to handle pretty major hits. Still, this is a pretty amazing video, and I’m glad to see everything was handled well, and the plane made it back just fine.
Something looks fake about the backfire in the engine. Even when the plane turns at the end the spitfire shots down and not at the camera…hmmmm
When I was working for a carrier, I lost count of the number of birdstrikes I heard about – they’re extremely common.
I agree with #12 – that backfire in the video looks fake, especially the very first one when the wheels are just leaving the runway.
#12, #14, The fire is a result of fuel injected directly into the engine without normal compression due to turbine failure. It’s real and a big pain to extinguish, an explosion is possible. Thus, fire suppression switches and fuel cutoffs on the overhead cockpit panel, and the ‘mayday’ call by the pilot in command.
#9: So how many times did you have to autorotate, or was your craft professionally maintained on a daily basis?
I only ever autorotated during training, never had to do it for real. Company legend had it that our 205s were ex-Vietnam war birds that the boss got cheap (almost certainly not true). They were rather old but very well maintained.
And IFR in rotorcraft single pilot has to be a real pain.
At that time (30+ years ago) in the UK single-engined choppers were forbidden to go IFR. If the weather got bad you flew slower and lower and if things got really ugly you just landed and waited for it to clear.
[off topic]
#16, Peter Rodwell, If the weather got bad you flew slower and lower and if things got really ugly you just landed and waited for it to clear.
Well, that’s just cheating, any pasture in a storm? Tough to do that in a C310 or Queen Air. I knew I should have that rotorcraft rating.
I knew I should have that rotorcraft rating.
Yep! Comes in handy at times.