Parachutes on planes.

[James R]

Most air accidents happen on takeoff or landing, anyway. The chances of being high enough for parachutes of any kind to be useful are slim.

 

[TabbyStar]

Yes. My understanding is takeoff is the highest chance of mechanical incident leading to catastrophic outcomes. During an ascent...the fuselage is inclined upward, toward the clouds so to speak. A loss of power is the highest risk. If it should occur to a significant loss...usually the plane is not able to, aerodynamically, pitch itself nose down...instead, possibly/usually, falling tail (rearward) down to the ground. No decent chance of gliding (with no thrust) to safety. Tragic and something I, personally, fear everytime I fly

 

[billvon]

Yes. My understanding is takeoff is the highest chance of mechanical incident leading to catastrophic outcomes. During an ascent...the fuselage is inclined upward, toward the clouds so to speak. A loss of power is the highest risk. If it should occur to a significant loss...usually the plane is not able to, aerodynamically, pitch itself nose down...instead, possibly/usually, falling tail (rearward) down to the ground. No decent chance of gliding (with no thrust) to safety. Tragic and something I, personally, fear everytime I fly

What the heck are you talking about? No, that's not a risk. The risk is the pilot not reacting to the loss of power correctly.

 

[Seattle]

The risk is that the plane in that configuration would stall, the nose would pitch down but not have enough altitude to recover.

The plane is not going go down tail first. This whole thread is a train wreck.

 

[paddoboy]

Hi there.

I was told about an idea to fit planes with parachutes in case of emergencies. How possible is this? I think it's a good idea.

I'm reasonably confident that parachutes on smaller planes has already been tested and trialed. Larger passenger jet aircraft though, may present a burden.

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20131223-should-planes-have-parachutes

 

[billvon]

The risk is that the plane in that configuration would stall, the nose would pitch down but not have enough altitude to recover.

Further, that's not a risk if the pilot is competent. He/she maintains airspeed, goes to single engine best rate of climb, and continues climbing. If all engines lose power, then the pilot chooses an emergency landing/ditching site and lands there.

 

[Seattle]

Crashing is a "risk" but it's a manageable one. For instance, on a single engine plane, if the engine dies just as you are taking off and at 200 feet, (for example) all you can do is push the nose down to keep airspeed and if there's a fast food restaurant in your way...you crash.

It's possible and therefore it's a risk but this rarely happens. Takeoffs are statistically more dangerous for the reasons described but flying is not particularly dangerous in the first place so it's a low priority thing to obsess over.