ETOPS, How Safe Is It?

A forum to discuss all aviation items (not for latest aviation news and military aviation news)

Moderator: Latest news team

User avatar
A318
Posts: 1721
Joined: 13 Aug 2003, 00:00
Location: Between here and there
Contact:

Post by A318 »

ETOPS is safe, that's why they introduced it. On the other hand I must say I always feel "safer" on a 3 or 4 engine aircraft but, how more engines how more can fail, that's the other side off it :)

Greetz,

Erwin
A Whole Different Animal

User avatar
sn26567
Posts: 40859
Joined: 13 Feb 2003, 00:00
Location: Rosières/Rozieren, Belgium
Contact:

Post by sn26567 »

Lame wrote:Okay, however I still think it is a problem here on Luchtzak.

However like what happened to new member sidestick_rules yesterday, when he asked about something on the A320, you get people who do not answer the question or contribute to the discussion, but pick fault with the topic or the English in it. :cry:

I find this astonishing, especially on a site where the majority of people (through no fault of their own) are not that conversant in English. :cry:
Lame,

You put your finger on one of the problems of this forum, indeed. Very often, when a serious question is asked, many members do jnot answer the question, and do not help the discussion in any way, but nevertheless feel compelled to participate, even when they have nothing to contribute.

Maybe it is their young age, or their entusiasm about everything that relates to aviation, ot their poor command of English? Who knows. But I can excuse them, indeed, because of their enthusiasm.

And I will kindly ask them to refrain from posting if their intervention does not help the discussion.
André
ex Sabena #26567

Lame
Posts: 209
Joined: 28 Dec 2003, 00:00
Location: Brisbane, Australia.
Contact:

Post by Lame »

Of course an engine running out of noise is not the only worry with ETOPS flights.

The B767 we had in Vietnam, used to go Hanoi to Moscow direct, some 11-12 hours non stop and not many "suitable" airports along the way.

One time it had a pneumatic fault on one engine with no pneumatics available from that engine. It had flown all around Asia for several days while we waited for parts, however come time to do the Moscow flight, it could not go.

The reason I hear you ask?

IF the other engine had lost pneumatics too, or had to be shut down, in the worst case scenario which was around Afghanistan, the minimum safe altitude was (from memory) something like 14,000 feet.

So if we had of lost pressurisation, we could not descend to an altitude where people could breathe, and there was not enough oxygen on board to supply everyone until we could land. :cry:

We did not have many delays on the route, however we had a delay of just an hour or two in Moscow one day, waiting to go back direct to Hanoi (12 hours) and it was NOTHING to do with the engines at all.

Guess what the problem was, that meant we could NOT depart? :wink:

User avatar
A318
Posts: 1721
Joined: 13 Aug 2003, 00:00
Location: Between here and there
Contact:

Post by A318 »

Lame, without pressurisation you can fly on FL160 without problems.

Greetz,

Erwin
A Whole Different Animal

Lame
Posts: 209
Joined: 28 Dec 2003, 00:00
Location: Brisbane, Australia.
Contact:

Post by Lame »

You may be able to, and maybe your regulations are not so strict in Europe. :roll:

But that is the figure for an Australian registered Aircraft. :wink:

User avatar
A318
Posts: 1721
Joined: 13 Aug 2003, 00:00
Location: Between here and there
Contact:

Post by A318 »

Okay, didn't knew that, thanks for the update :)

Greetz,

Erwin
A Whole Different Animal

Post Reply