Essay- Slow Speed Flight Assignment

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Liberty University *

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305

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Dec 6, 2023

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Berger 1 Essay: Slow Speed Flight Assignment Daniel Berger Liberty University AVIA305: Airplane Aerodynamics (D03) Professor Peter Spahr November 27, 2023
Berger 2 Essay: Slow Speed Flight Assignment On November 28, 2004, around 0958 mountain standard time, a Canadair, Ltd., taking off out of Montrose, Colorado collided back down to the ground during takeoff. With six souls on board only the first officer and two other passengers survived, with serious injuries. The captain, flight attendant, and one passenger were killed during the takeoff due to the airplane being destroyed by the force of the impact and post-crash fire. The weather was within instrument meteorological conditions, including snow and ice on the aircrafts surface. Like any other incident/accident in aviation, the Montrose Colorado accident is a crash that we as pilots can learn from. Operating an aircraft in icing weather conditions comes with many risks and factors that all pilots should consider. Unfortunately, the crew of this flight did not take the current weather conditions seriously, which resulted in the death of three out of six souls aboard. From the beginning of flight training, student pilots are taught weather. This includes how to read weather, the requirements for airspaces, the necessary equipment, the minimums for visual flight rules versus instrument flight rules, and of course icing conditions and the hazards of flying in those conditions. Flying in icing conditions can be extremely dangerous, the accumulation of ice on any part of the aircraft will affect not only the airfoil and wind distribution but will dramatically increase the weight of an aircraft, this can develop a stall in flight or for this instance during a normal takeoff. “Previous Safety Board investigations of takeoff accidents involving airplanes with contaminated upper wing surfaces have found that the presence of a small amount of surface roughness on the upper wing surface can reduce maximum lift by as much as 33 percent, depending upon the extent and level of roughness,” (NTSB p.14). As you can imagine the reduction of lift during takeoff can be catastrophic.
Berger 3 Furthermore, a stall condition can and was experienced due to the aerodynamics of the airplane exceeding the critical angle of attack so much that the point of center of pressure changed and the lift was decreased, this resulted in a stall on takeoff. “A stall occurs when the boundary layer separates from the wing, the critical angle of attack has been reached, and the wing is no longer producing enough lift to sustain level flight.” (Badick p.270). This NTSB report clearly states that the wings of the aircraft were covered in ice and snow. There are several witnesses listed that stated the same conclusion, however, it was not prevented. Due to the icing contamination on the wings surface, the airflow was not smooth and was disrupted due to the shape of the ice. It is mentioned in the report that the flight crew had little to no flight experience in freezing conditions. Additionally, they did not follow the proper recovery procedures for stalling during takeoff, it is hard to critic anyone who is involved in an accident, let alone one including deaths, but if the correct procedures were initiated the outcome could’ve possibly been better. Perhaps they lowered the nose, confirm full power, and waited for the positive indication to climb the stall may have been avoided. Nevertheless, if a proper preflight was performed all of this could have been easily avoidable.
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Berger 4 Reference: Badick, J. R., & Johnson, B. A. (2021). Flight Theory and Aerodynamics (4th ed.). Wiley Professional Development (P&T). https://libertyonline.vitalsource.com/books/9781119772415 National Transportation Safety Board. Crash During Takeoff in Icing Conditions Canadair, Ltd., CL-600-2A12, N873G, Montrose, Colorado, November 28, 2004. NTSB/AAB-06/03. https://reports.aviation-safety.net/2004/20041128-0_CL60_N873G.pdf