Airbus A400M crash in Spain :(

Status
Not open for further replies.
A400M crash in Spain

An Airbus A400M transport plane has crashed during a test flight in Spain killing two and seriously injuring two other Airbus employees.
The A400M is meant to sit above the smaller C130 Hercules and below the larger C17.
There was one on display at the Avalon air show earlier this year.
Article: Military plane crashes outside Seville, Spain
 
This has been a very troubled programme, that has come close to cancellation a number of times. Options are very limited now though, as the C17 line has closed.

The flightradar24 trace is very interesting, showing, basically, a bell curve. The climb converted straight into a descent, at about 500 fpm. Unlike the recent ATR accident in Taiwan, the speed control is good. There was a report that it had hit either power lines, or a pylon, so perhaps it was an emergency return, and, sadly, ran into an obstruction.
 
I am amazed that no one else cared about this. JB, yeah I think you are right - some sort of glitch then misfortune with power lines.

I have always been in awe of this plane. It is amazing. Those turboprops are unbelievable. But I guess that interest only applies if you love Flight itself, not just the best SC runs.

And my heart goes out to the staff who were flying it, no doubt proud of the awesome plane they were helping build.
 
Struggling to Redeem Your Frequent Flyer Points?
The Frequent Flyer Concierge team takes the hard work out of finding reward seat availability. Using their expert knowledge and specialised tools, they'll help you book a great trip that maximises the value for your points.

AFF Supporters can remove this and all advertisements

The lack of interest surprised me too. The exact flight control system exists in any number of airliners...so there is a link to the aircraft people fly on every day.

My expectation is that this would have been a very competent flight crew, so to have this outcome is surprising. Hopefully it won't disappear into the same informational black hole that has absorbed the Air Asia 320.
 
Re: A400M crash in Spain

Its very tragic for all involved.

I still don't know why the C17 production line was closed given that countries are still buying them (like AUS)?

Can anyone explain to me why a country would select the A400M over the C17 (ie. props vs jet engines)?
 
I have been talking to a British colleague who is very familiar with the A400 program (ex RAF) and they had heard it was a fuel issue with loss of power on three engines. Very sad.
 
Re: A400M crash in Spain

Flying Fox said:
Its very tragic for all involved.

I still don't know why the C17 production line was closed given that countries are still buying them (like AUS)?

Can anyone explain to me why a country would select the A400M over the C17 (ie. props vs jet engines)?
Click to expand...
Easy.

Different size aircraft with quite different roles.
 
Re: A400M crash in Spain

It fits about half way between the C17 and the C130.
 
Re: A400M crash in Spain

It's a bit like the Caribou vs Herc argument.
The Caribou will land in some crazy places, seemingly sometimes doing an STOL in an area that a C17 would have trouble parking.
Much lower payload, and much slower than the Hercs. But the pilots swear by them, saying they can do the same thing, just takes longer (cant park a Unimog in them though).
And the drone of those radial engines going in and out of synch can drive you mad. Then again, riding a Harley would make me go mad after the novelty wears off (like about 5 minutes).

That A400M looks to have contra-rotating engines on each wing. Interesting concept. If you're still reading JB, do you have some input on that?
 
Re: A400M crash in Spain

AVC said:
That A400M looks to have contra-rotating engines on each wing. Interesting concept. If you're still reading JB, do you have some input on that?
Click to expand...

They rotate in different directions on each wing (i.e. 1 and 2 are different, as are 3 and 4). The engines are the same, but there is a gearbox to reverse the direction...which sounds like something to go wrong. There is apparently a benefit in lift and control with an engine out, but I'd wonder if the complexity would outweigh the benefit. It's discussed in Wikipedia.
 
Re: A400M crash in Spain

At least the engines are the same then. Otherwise there would have to be two different engine spares. And you know what happens then...
 
Re: A400M crash in Spain

Tangential to topic, sorry, but this is a bit of a :rolleyes: wrt the laws pertaining to aviation investigations (I guess) in some countries.

As Ars reported on May 19, Airbus had issued a warning to its military customers about a potential software problem in the engine control software for the A400M. The release of the exact cause of the crash, however, had been delayed because a Spanish magistrate placed the flight data recorders from the aircraft under seal. Airbus has since been able to obtain the flight data ....
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Enhance your AFF viewing experience!!

From just $6 we'll remove all advertisements so that you can enjoy a cleaner and uninterupted viewing experience.

And you'll be supporting us so that we can continue to provide this valuable resource :)


Sample AFF with no advertisements? More..

Recent Posts

Currently Active Users

Total: 936 (members: 13, guests: 923)
Back
Top