Aviation Commentator on Air India disaster

Aviation commentator Peter Clark joins Matt Heath and Tyler Adams to discuss the Air India near the airport in Ahmedabad.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:09):
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Speaker 2 (00:16):
India is set to lead an investigation into a plane
crash in a marbad which has killed at least two
hundred and ninety The Air India Boeing seven eight seven
Dreamliner crashed into a doctor's hostel right after takeoff heading
for London's Gatwek Airport. To discuss this further, we're joined
by aviation expert and commentator Peter Clark. Peter, thank you
very much for your time.

Speaker 3 (00:37):
Yeah, good afternoon.

Speaker 4 (00:39):
Now Peter Summer suggesting a duel engine failure, how plausible
is it that both engines could fail simultaneously on takeoff?

Speaker 3 (00:47):
Well, it's it's very unusual. We did see it with
the crash in the rivers of New York once that
did happen there, you know. Yeah, that double engine failure,
it's extremely rare. And to have it happen, there's got
to be either a bird strike or something else that
has failed.

Speaker 4 (01:08):
Yeah, but yeah, I'm Hereabad does have a high incidence
of bird strikes, though, doesn't it.

Speaker 3 (01:14):
I'm not sure about that. I haven't been able to
ascertain that. But the only reason that we know it's
possibly a double strike is that during the May day
call it is heard that he said no thrust, losing power,
unable to lift off, But none of that has been
really confirmed at this stage.

Speaker 4 (01:34):
Yeah, I mean it will be but speculative at this stage,
wouldn't it. But you know, when I've watched the footage
grim footage from a number of angles and it I mean,
I don't know if you would from a long way back,
but you can't see a lot of birds in the air.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
Now.

Speaker 4 (01:47):
There's been a bit of talk Peter about the position
of the wing flaps. Is there anything in that. I
understand it's nearly forty degrees at takeoff. Does that high
temperature impact the position of the wing flaps in a
seven eight seven.

Speaker 3 (02:01):
Look, it was forty degrees temperature at that airfield, but
it seemed to have taken off normally and had risen,
so if it had an engine problem, they possibly couldn't
retract the undercarriage. We don't know this and the flaps,
that has been very speculative. Some people have said you
can see flaps, but they don't necessarily use forty degrees

(02:22):
forty degrees is used more of the higher flat numbers
for landing and lower numbers for takeoff. But this will
all have to come out of the flight data recorder,
which I am led to believe at the stage has
been retrieved.

Speaker 2 (02:37):
The seven eight seven Dreamliner. Tell us about this aircraft,
it is being known to be one of the safest
well look.

Speaker 3 (02:44):
It was launched in April two thousand and four. It
had its first flight in December two thousand and nine,
and after experiencing quite a few delays with fasteners and
other problems, it received certification in August twenty eleven and
it was first delivered A seven eight seven eight same

(03:05):
as this aircraft we're talking about, to A and A
on the eighth the Centptember two thousand and eleven. I
was part of all of those processes, being in Seattle
to see all of them, and I have the greatest
faith in this aircraft, so much if it has gone
into it. It's a new generation club and fiber aircraft
of the same family as we're now see being developed

(03:29):
by Airbus with the A three fifty, but that came
well after the development of the Boeing seven eight seven.
Initially it did have some problems with batteries, but they
were not part of the Boeing seven eight seven problems.
And we have seen engine problems recently and those engine

(03:51):
problems nothing to do with the seven eight seven as
an aircraft.

Speaker 4 (03:55):
We was speaking to aviation expert Peter Klark speaking of
a safety records. What's the safety record like for Air India.

Speaker 3 (04:03):
Air India's had a bit of a checkered past, but
I think in the last eight to ten years they've
moved forward. They've gone through quite a few management changes
within the airline. They used to operate fairly old aircraft
and then they went into the series of seven eight sevens,
so they've got twenty seven of these aircraft and they

(04:30):
have been operating very successfully. There is some reports this
aircraft in the day before suffered some technical issues and
that has been noted, but all of this is just
speculation and will have to come out of the data
data information. As of February twenty two, there was, sorry

(04:51):
twenty twenty five, there was one one hundred and eighty
nine of these aircraft flying of this type in this family,
So they are out there and they've had a very
successful operational period.

Speaker 4 (05:06):
Now This is tragic story because I believe his brother
was on the plane with him. But a sole passenger
looks like this survive. What are the chances of that happening?
And if we have any idea how he managed to
survive this crash.

Speaker 3 (05:20):
I think that that at the moment, we have no idea.
He walked away, I'm led to believe from the accident,
so he was next to the ball, not the bulkhead,
the cabin, fuselage, something there probably saved him. But the
plane disintegrated when it finally hit the grand ground. But
there has been single, single pilot, I'm sorry, single passenger

(05:45):
survivals in the past, and they have happened. But eleven A,
I think everyone will be rushing for that seat on
the seven eight seven, But there is no way we
know why he survived in that position.

Speaker 4 (05:59):
Yeah, yeah, And you know you've been talking about the
great record of this particular seven eight seven. But Boeing
seems to have had been in the new use a
bit of late. Are Boeing aircraft something to worry about?
Are there's systems something to look into?

Speaker 3 (06:15):
Look? I think Boeing is like any other manufacturer. We
only hear of the incidents that are severe or tragic.
All aircraft have incidents and operational problems, but I think
with the way we look at aviation today, there is
so much management that goes into safety and things do happen.

(06:37):
We are humans and they are mechanical, so we've got
to move forward. Boeing has had some problems, but I
would still fly on Boeing aircraft. I have no hesitation
at all to go on there. And there's a classic saying,
if it ain't Boeing, I ain't.

Speaker 2 (06:52):
Going Yeah, well, very good. Yeah. Peter Clark, aviation commentator
and expert, thank you very much for your time.

Speaker 1 (07:00):
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