Ethiopian Airlines: 'No survivors' on crashed Boeing 737 - Sensationalist Headlines

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-47513508#

Worryingly this is now the 2nd 737-max to crash. This variant of the 737 only entered service in 2016

boeing van't catch a break lately. I wonder if this will be attributed to another cockpit change from the older 737's that maybe didn't get flowed down in training to these lesser resourced airlines.

Holy shit this is scary, I have relatives on routes like that

Some of my colleagues at flight school suspect it's some sort of inherent defect of the 737 MAX. Personally, when it comes to these things, I think it's better to reserve judgement until an actual thorough investigation takes place, because coincidences do happen. Also, reportedly, the pilot asked ATC to turn back due to to trouble trying to maneuver the plane, and was cleared to do so.

Following the Lion Air crash last October, investigators said the pilots had appeared to struggle with an automated system designed to keep the plane from stalling - a new feature of the Boeing 737 Max. The anti-stalling system repeatedly forced the plane's nose down, despite efforts by pilots to correct this, findings suggest. yikes

I have to agree that this is a really dumb system. Having no option to override it whatsoever carries the implication that the sensors the aircraft uses to measure speed and/or angle of attack could never fail; something anyone who knows how these systems usually work will be able to tell you is absolutely bullshit. Pitot tubes can get blocked or damaged and electrics can, and sometimes do, just straight up fail. Southwest has implemented a system of their own to combat this particular weakness of the 737 max https://theaircurrent.com/aviation-safety/southwest-airlines-is-adding-new-angle-of-attack-indicators-to-its-737-max-fleet/ When you have to start doing shit like this just due to the fear of the aircraft deciding to kill itself because of sensor failure, then maybe it's time to take a step back and realize that maybe not giving qualified pilots with thousands of hours of experience and training a way to override simplistic safety features if they go wrong isn't that much of a good idea.

I mean, I already have a fear of flying and have made it my vow to never set foot on an airplane again for as long as I live, but this sure just kinda cements that a bit further.

they really need to stop designing pilots out of the aircraft.

Hasn't this airline had a lot of crashes recently?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethiopian_Airlines_accidents_and_incidents 64 incidents totaling 459 fatalities since 1965 something tells me this one isn't boeing's fault

In the article you posted, it states: Indonesian air safety investigators believe erroneous AOA data fed to the 737 Max’s flight computer caused the new jet’s Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) feature to activate, repeatedly trimming the jet’s horizontal stabilizer to push the nose down believing the aircraft was at risk of a stall. The automated system activated 26 times as the crew lost control, according to flight data recovered by investigators. Investigators are working to determine why the crew responded the way it did, when on earlier flights where a similar problem occurred and the crew deactivated the electrical trim system. Seems like it can indeed be disabled by the crew. Likely poor training caused them to be unaware of how to do this.

I still can't help but question though - why? If the plane's about to stall, shouldn't a pilot with thousands of hours in the air know exactly what to do? Why implement this shit in the first place?

If you actually look at the table, there have been 4 total crashes since 2000 with 2 killing passengers (there was one hijacking during this time also, only the hijackers died). Most of those incidents were in a 30 year period. The airline itself is MUCH safer now.

I know it can be scary to fly airplanes but the chance of you dying in one is incredibly small. Look at me for an example, I have flown at least over 20 times in my life. If you're going to be paranoid about flights then I hope you're never on the road.

Oh, I'm perfectly aware that my risk of dying in a car crash on the way to the actual airport is higher than me dying in a plane crash. I know the risk of me being struck by lightning is higher, or even winning the lottery. It's a 1 in 11 million risk of being in an accident and surviving, and even lower risk of dying. I'm at a higher risk of dying from falling out of my own bed in my sleep than from being in a plane crash. I know the ins and outs of how airplanes work, I know that no plane has ever been brought down by turbulence and that it's a safe, normal part of air travel. I know every bit of statistic you can throw at me. I know every sound you can hear, hell - I've done takeoff and landing on 737's, 747's and A320's in simulations flawlessly. In the end it all comes down to one constant recurring thought in my head: "The same applied to those who DID die in plane crashes - so why would I be an exception?". Y'know, "what if I become that 1 in 11 million?". It's a phobia. It's inherently illogical. But I try to look at it this way: I'm in no rush to fix it. I don't feel like I need to. I'm limiting my ways of travel, but it's not like I can't still travel. Flights are not the only way to get around. If I wanted to go to Japan I can take the Transsiberian Railway to Vladivostok and get on a ferry to Sakaiminato. It takes longer, but fuck it man. At least I get to see some cool shit on the way instead of sitting in a cramped metal tube for 36+ hours.

The idea is that a plane is able to get into a stall without the pilots noticing. It's happened before. And in some airplanes, once they truly enter a stall they will probably not be able to recover (deep stall, mostly in planes with a T type tail) and so you have to prevent them from stalling at all costs. In those cases, a system like this makes sense, but it has to be easy to shut off so that it's something a pilot will remember to do in an emergency.

Sit in a cramped metal tube for 7+ days instead, lol

Given that my freedom of motion is not nearly as inhibited and I can get off said metal tube at any point, yes. Also, have you seen the inside of the trans-siberian railway's coaches? They're roomy as hell and really cozy-looking.

But it's a brand new aircraft.

One lucky passenger didn't get on the flight because he was 2 minutes late. https://www.sbs.com.au/news/greek-man-saved-from-ethiopia-crash-by-running-two-minutes-late-to-the-flight He was supposed to board the plane but he reached the departure gate just two minutes after it was closed. "They led me to the police station of the airport. The officer told me not to protest but to pray to God because I was the only passenger that didn't board the ET 302 flight that was lost," Mr Mavropoulos said in the post.

Isn't this the plot of one of the Final Destination movies?

[Quote] WE ARE PLEASED TO INVITE YOU TO OUR BUSINESS LOUNGE [/Quote] I am sure he is pleased to not take it.