But a smooth landing and lowering
the nose may have been to delicate to trigger the automatic
deployment of the systems.


My goodness. How sensitive are those gear load sensing switches?

Marc


"Jim Macklin" wrote in message
news:lSYmf.22834$QW2.3354@dukeread08...
Jet Crew: Reverse Thrusters Failed in Chicago

Associated Press
Sunday, December 11, 2005; A12



CHICAGO, Dec. 10 -- The reverse thrusters that should have
slowed a Southwest Airlines jetliner before it slid off a
runway at Midway International Airport and into the street
did not immediately kick in when the pilots tried to deploy
them, federal investigators said Saturday after interviewing
the crew.

How much of a role that braking equipment played in
Thursday's deadly accident was not immediately clear,
though, and the investigation is continuing.

The plane's flight attendants told investigators that the
Boeing 737 did not appear to slow after it touched down at
Midway in a snowstorm Thursday, said Robert Benzon, the
National Transportation Safety Board's investigator in
charge.

"They all said it was a smooth landing, but they could sense
a lack of deceleration," Benzon said.

He said the pilots told investigators they began applying
the brakes manually as soon as they noticed that the plane
was not slowing properly. The plane, with 98 passengers
aboard, slid through a fence and into street traffic, where
it killed a 6-year-old boy in a car.

Because of the blowing snow, none of the air traffic
controllers actually saw the plane land, but more than 10
cameras could provide additional information.

© 2005 The Washington Post Company


Automatic deployment of spoilers and thrust reversers
depends on compression of the main gear struts and probably
also the nose wheel strut. The description of a "smooth
landing" indicates pilot error in the technique usewd for
the landing. If the aircraft was flown on the ILS to just
above the surface, a slight flare and a very firm landing to
compress the mains, followed by quickly lowering the nose
they might have been OK. But a smooth landing and lowering
the nose may have been to delicate to trigger the automatic
deployment of the systems.



"Marc CYBW" wrote
in message news:cCWmf.145990$S4.8066@edtnps84...
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