# BAE 146 Whisper Jet, what an antiquated piece of crap! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 13, 2011, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bae-146-whisper-jet-what-an-antiquated-piece-of-crap/578231 "2011-04-13T14:40:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2011, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bae-146-whisper-jet-what-an-antiquated-piece-of-crap/578231/41 "2011-04-17T17:44:50Z")
> [@Mr.Excellent](#): > > Why, in God’s name, would the plane have been built with the capacity to do this? It was made by somebody who doesn’t like pilots? ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2011, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bae-146-whisper-jet-what-an-antiquated-piece-of-crap/578231/42 "2011-04-17T18:39:18Z")
> [@Mr.Excellent](#): > > Why, in God’s name, would the plane have been built with the capacity to do this? way back, gas turbines had a very specific starting procedure that had to be followed precisely. simplified (maybe to the point of inaccuracy) the operator had to run the starter to spin up the engine, then turn on the igniter, then at a certain speed turn on the fuel flow and wait for it to ignite. all the while the starter had to stay engaged until the engine could reach self-sustaining speed. so yeah, if you messed up the procedure the engine could just spray raw fuel out the back. nowadays, electronic controls take care of most of that. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2011, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bae-146-whisper-jet-what-an-antiquated-piece-of-crap/578231/43 "2011-04-18T13:08:44Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > My dad used to work for an airline that bought a bunch of 146s (or RJs, if you like). It was part of his job to go to England, accept the aircraft on behalf of the company, and fly it back. When you’re buying something worth millions of dollars, the level of hospitality is pretty sweet. > > To bring it back to the states, they had to overnight in Reykjavic. If the winds turned against them too much, there was a place they could refuel in Greenland but the landing fee after dark was pretty steep. > > I wonder if my dad flew one of the same planes that the OP is in now. Well they’re all second hand, so someone else has flown them first. The RJ is a different model really. When I finish the 146 training I won’t be qualified to fly the RJ, though it is only a differences course. The RJ seems much more normal up the front in terms of the technology it has and how it works. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2011, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bae-146-whisper-jet-what-an-antiquated-piece-of-crap/578231/44 "2011-04-18T16:13:17Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > So… Lucas electrics, then? Lordy, don’t fly at night! I used to ride these a couple of times a week between San Jose and John Wayne on PSA. Noisiest passenger cabin I can recall - with overhead wings, the flaps make lots of noise. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bae-146-whisper-jet-what-an-antiquated-piece-of-crap/578231.md?page=2)