Recently, Peter Duniho posted:

"Neil Gould" wrote in message
m...
A gear-up landing is not an accident, or not an *uncontrolled*
accident? Besides, it's more like scraping a guard rail on the
freeway, no? It's what happens next that counts.

Using the NTSB definition of "accident", it is not an accident.

Isn't that determined by how much the repairs cost, and isn't that a
factor of "what happens next"?

[...]
Doesn't it depend which car and which airplane, or would you let me
pick them and you be the crash test dummy? ;-)

I would prefer to not do the comparison in your 1959 Sprite.

I don't know how familiar you might be with the design of that car, or of
similar cars of that era. I can personally attest to the fact that its
monocoque chassis did exactly what Austin Healy said it would do, and as a
result I'm here to talk about it. I don't think it was as much blind luck
as you seem to believe.

[...]
I don't doubt that an airplane can be designed to be more crashworthy
than, say, a C172 and yet still be a viable airplane. But there are
limits, and the bulk of the advancements in automobiles require more
structure. Much of the clever engineering (as opposed to just
beefing things up) still requires more structure (adding beams to
transfer crash forces around the cabin, rather than through it, for
example).

I vaguely recall seeing a program regarding the transfer of technology
from NASA, its subject matter was on using the crash test assembly
developed for space vehicles to test airframe design. The outcome was that
crash safety was able to be significantly improved by redesigning crush
characteristics and firewall installation. This kind of thing can be done
without adding significant weight or additional beams.

[...]
I just don't see how an airplane will ever be on par with respect to
crashworthiness with automobiles. Useful load is too important, and
in too short supply, and weight is too highly correlated with
crashworthy structures, even when adding material (weight) isn't the
primary way the structure has been made crashworthy.

I'm not disagreeing with you about how crashworthy design is typically
approached. However, I'll once again rely on the example of the F1 & Indy
race cars which show that crashworthiness can be improved without
increasing the weight of the vehicle. I'm sure that this hasn't escaped
the notice of aircraft manufacturers. And, I certainly agree that it situ
testing is not something I'll personally pursue, so I'll rely on becoming
a "better human", instead. ;-)

Regards,

Neil