Painful as wrecked aeroplanes are to behold, there's an artform in the lines and curves that beset our fallen angels.
Below is slideshow of 2010 accidents that I found artful in some way. Information was supplied by the US National Transportation Safety Board. Hope you enjoy.
Happy Holidays,
John Croft
Alan Klapmeier is one step closer to being in the business of making aeroplanes. His recycled aircraft, the JP-10 Kestrel, is now at home at a recycled airport - Naval Air Station Brunswick in Maine.
The general aviation visionary, best known for bringing the Cirrus Aircraft company to life with his brother, Dale, is now the head of Kestrel Aircraft. The plan is to redesign the six-seat composite turboshaft-powered Kestrel, formerly known as the Farnborough Aircraft Kestrel, at the former Brunswick Naval Air Station in Brunswick, Maine, by 2013 or so. Brunswick is soon to open as a civilan airport.
A required first step was getting the proof-of-concept JP-10 to Maine, which Klapmeier accomplished on 16 December, as evidenced by the pictures the company provided today. Klapmeier has said he'll have the new and improved prototype ready by fall 2011.
The company noted that while the airfield is not yet open to the public, the Navy granted "special permission" for the Kestrel to arrive.
When you pair up two guys named Leroy and JB, you're probably asking for an interesting afternoon of just "plain" fun. Inject a lavatory service truck and a WestJet Boeing 737 in the gate at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood airport on 29 October however, and you got.... ramp rash.
Credit: NTSB
An ongoing investigation by the US National Transportation Safety Board sets the scene for what happened, with the excerpt below written by the mens' supervisor.
"[Leroy] positioned the [lav service truck] and waited for a guideman to finalize positioning. [JB] was his guideman. JB guided Leroy into position and gave him the stop signal. Leroy stopped the lav truck properly. Immediately, JB heard the engine rev up and and the vehicle move backward into the aircraft...."
The "thud and large jolt" that baggage handlers inside the aircraft felt next was the machine tearing a 9in x 21in gash in the rear-end of the Boeing.
Here's Leroy's account of the action from the NTSB report -
Credit:NTSB
Some clarity was provided by the supervisor in his report:
"Leroy claims that his foot slipped off brake pedal and onto gas pedal. He claims that rubber pad on brake pedal came off causing him to lose grip on his foot. Rubber pad was observed on floor of lav truck. It is not known when the pad came off the pedal during this activity. Leroy did not have proper shoes with rubber soles which may have been a contributing factor to the slippage...."
After a review of the truck, the maintenance team determined that "no faults were found on the vehicle except the brake pad being off the brake pedal", says the supervisor adding, "Both Leroy and JB were sent to drug testing as a result of the accident."
Walking the ramp here at the Dubai International airport on the eve of the Middle East Business Aviation (MEBA) show, I happened on a good example to show the difference between blended winglets and elliptical winglets.
Blended winglets are the intellectual property via patent law of Seattle-based Aviation Partners..
Elliptical Winglets are the intellectual property via patent law of Wichita-based Winglet Technology, the founder of which used to work for the former.
Needless to say, they don't like it when you get the two technologies mixed up, despite the fact that both increase maximum load and increase cruise range.
So here's the deal:
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I was somewhat surprised when the latest holiday catalogue by clever gadget supplier, Hammacher Schlemmer, came in from the mailbox with this on the cover...
such Inside the mag, right there on page 14, next to the $199.95 voice activiated R2-D2, is the Transition, a "roadable" aircraft being built by Woburn, Massachusetts-based Terrafugia
For $350,000, you get a legal 65mph cruise automobile that converts to a 115mph light sport aircraft in 30 seconds, says the ad.
While it's true that with such a sleigh, Santa, or you or me, could fly into the nearest airport and drive the streets with the big bag rather than damage all those expensive roofs with that awkward sleigh and hoofed horsepower, not to mention the "emissions" issue from such large herbivores, there are a few important but unmentioned CAVEAT EMPTORs...
Scrooged?
A call to company spokesman Richard Gersh reveled that Transition in the catalog is more costly because it's a "Premier Edition", which mostly means the company will take it from the first batch of aircraft built. It's a supply and demand problem: Gersh says "a number of individuals have expressed a strong interest" in obtaining those early serial number vehicles. Large demand and small supply = $$$$
If you're ok to wait awhile longer for your Transition, you can put down a $10,000 deposit, which is fully refundable, Gersh says.
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