# The Great Ongoing Aviation Thread (general and other) (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 23, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499 "2011-10-23T02:17:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 487
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2026, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9723 "2026-05-05T11:34:15Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > I barely had time to scratch the surface. So true. When I visited two years ago, I went back the next day, and STILL missed a few planes (and kinda rushed through several others). It’s an astounding collection. ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2026, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9724 "2026-05-05T12:27:50Z")
Another article on the Newark close call: > **[A United jet narrowly avoided catastrophe when it struck a truck near Newark...](https://apnews.com/article/united-newark-plane-light-pole-bakery-truck-44b1aaa9e0209e3a5a9c62add4c37b43)** > > A United Airlines jet came dangerously close to disaster Sunday when it hit a semitrailer truck and a light pole on the New Jersey turnpike as it came into land at Newark Liberty International Airport. If you scroll down there’s a paragraph heading which says, “Planes fly low when landing.” Unassailable logic, I suppose, but thank you Captain Obvious ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2026, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9725 "2026-05-05T12:47:02Z")
AT least we now understand why they landed on 29: the winds were out of limits for the normal runways. An alternative would have been to land at JFK which has long runways aligned that same way, but if so, all the inbound large planes should have done the same thing. Which would have been a logistical nightmare for UAL which has no facilities at JFK. I wonder if any of the Flightaware mavens will put together an excerpt of all the Rwy 29 landings in, say, the 2 hours before and after the mishap. There might be a bunch of other sporty arrivals, or this one might be an extreme outlier and nobody else had their feathers ruffled even a bit. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2026, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9726 "2026-05-06T00:00:03Z")
> [@Llama\_Llogophile](#): > > If you scroll down there’s a paragraph heading which says, “Planes fly low when landing.” I’m sure we’ve all been in a car when someone yells this at the driver in an emergency: “truck”, “Truck”, " watch out for the TRUCK!!!". You don’t usually think of pilots saying this. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2026, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9727 "2026-05-06T12:59:17Z")
I’ve made [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CXVt2OpcGY) approach a few times, but always a bit higher than the plane shown. If it looked like a vehicle might intersect my approach path, I went around. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2026, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9728 "2026-05-06T13:47:12Z")
> [@pullin](#): > > I’ve made [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CXVt2OpcGY) approach a few times, The voiceover says “a collision no one saw coming,” right as we can all see the collision coming. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2026, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9729 "2026-05-07T23:17:07Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > [China tight-lipped on the China Eastern flight MU5375 crash.](https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20220421-china-reinforces-tight-control-over-plane-crash-mystery) > > Well I’m shocked. There is some recent news out about this crash: probably pilot suicide: > **[NTSB Data Points To Fuel Cutoff In Deadly China Eastern 737 Crash](https://avweb.com/aviation-news/china-eastern-737-crash-fuel-cutoff-ntsb/)** > > NTSB flight data suggests a mid-air fuel cutoff led to the fatal China Eastern 737-800 crash, raising new questions as the investigation continues. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9730 "2026-05-08T00:42:47Z")
[standard rant] Always nice to illustrate an article about a Boeing 737 with a pic of an Airbus A350. At least it’s a file photo of the correct airline. [/standard rant] ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9731 "2026-05-08T01:04:02Z")
It is a testament to airliner safety nowadays that two of the few major disasters over the last few years — one in China, the other in India — were pilot mass murder-suicides. (I could soften this with “possible” or “likely,” but no — they were both pilot mass murder/suicides, full stop). ---
**Author:** ![schnebs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/35a633/32.png) [@schnebs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/schnebs)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9732 "2026-05-08T02:56:59Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Right next door, but unfortunately no longer offering tours, the Boneyard. Forgive my ignorance, but why are tours of AMARG no longer offered? ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9733 "2026-05-08T11:48:04Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > It is a testament to airliner safety nowadays that two of the few major disasters over the last few years — one in China, the other in India — were pilot mass murder-suicides. In other words, these days, to crash an airliner, you really have to _work_ at it! By the way, the Air India final report is set to be released in about a month…but it’s dismaying how the Indian press, and — worse — the Indian investigation board have been so eager to “disprove” the murder-suicide reality. I just don’t get how nationalistic pride is such a motivator for something like this, and in this way. It’s pathetic. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9734 "2026-05-08T11:57:37Z")
We saw this with the Ethiopian 737 MAX crash too. When the government owns the airline, it embarrasses the government, and most importantly, the strong man in charge of that government. In the Ethiopian case, their military owns the FAA-equivalent civilian regulator, and the NTSB-equivalent investigative agency, and the airline. A trifecta of cover-up ensued. India is a bit better than that. We’ll see if they cover themselves in glory or BS & rotten tomatoes here. Separate from the above, but reinforcing it, some societies have much stronger suicide taboos than others. The West is slowly coming around to the POV that suicide is,in and of itself, not a big deal. Now for sure, everybody agrees that murdering the other couple hundred people is a beastly crime. But having a suicide as the instigating event of that crime sits very badly in some cultures. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9735 "2026-05-08T12:04:50Z")
All true, and well said - thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9736 "2026-05-08T12:34:18Z")
> [@schnebs](#): > > Forgive my ignorance, but why are tours of AMARG no longer offered? Aparently they stopped during COVID, and have never started up again. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9737 "2026-05-08T13:38:12Z")
> **[Red Bluff pilot lands without gear, leaves plane on runway, flies off in...](https://krcrtv.com/news/local/red-bluff-pilot-lands-without-gear-leaves-plane-on-runway-flies-off-in-another-aircraft)** > > A pilot landed a plane without its landing gear at the Red Bluff airport Thursday, then left the damaged aircraft on the runway and flew away in another plane. Pilot bellies in, takes off in his other plane, makes several stops around northern California, picks up a passenger, drops the passenger off, and takes off again. Officials have not been able to contact the pilot. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2026, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9738 "2026-05-08T14:07:02Z")
Somebody gonna have some 'splainin to do to both police & FAA. Once they catch up to him. ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2026, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9739 "2026-05-09T07:35:03Z")
> **[Frontier Airlines jet reports striking an individual walking on runway at...](https://abcnews.com/US/frontier-airlines-jet-reports-striking-individual-walking-runway/story?id=132805804)** > > A Frontier Airlines flight taking off for Los Angeles from Denver International Airport on Friday night appeared to strike an individual walking on runway 17L. Can’t wait to hear the details on this one. ---
**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:** [May 9, 2026, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9740 "2026-05-09T09:05:34Z")
That sounds unpleasant. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2026, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9741 "2026-05-09T11:40:00Z")
A Delta Airlines worker is dead after a vehicle crashed into a jet bridge on the tarmac at Orlando International Airport. The worker died when a “tug” aircraft-towing vehicle hit a passenger boarding bridge connected to Delta Flight 2593 around 10:55 p.m. Thursday, the Federal Aviation Administration said ---
**Author:** ![KCB615](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ea666f/32.png) [@KCB615](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KCB615)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2026, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499/9742 "2026-05-09T12:19:10Z")
In the 17 years of my sentence in ARFF, the number of tug-related accidents was astonishing. Dozens and dozens. Obviously most were fairly minor but there were a substantial number that were surprisingly high on the “uh oh” scale. Certainly the worst one was a tug coming out of one of the bag rooms where the driver hit a bollard at speed (well, the speed a baggage tug can achieve). Ejected over the front, head first into a wall. Depressed skull fracture and a host of other injuries. I’ve seen people thrown from 80 mph rollovers on an interstate highway with fewer injuries. I couldn’t tell you what his long-term quality of life was (I know he survived to discharge), but man he was in a world of trouble when we arrived. The tug had zero damage. Same with the bollard. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499.md?page=486) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-ongoing-aviation-thread-general-and-other-part-1/600499.md?page=488)