PF Pilots and those in the know.

[TheNewbie]

Airplanes, flight, and the related operations have always fascinated me. Recently I downloaded a flight tracker app and have been enjoying it like crazy. All this has made me curious about a few things.

How in the world are there not more Mid Air collisions? The amount of planes in the appears to be insane!

How do planes and pilots compensate for turbulence? Especially heavy turbulence.

At V1, is it absolute that you continue to the take off or is it possible to abort after passing V1?

I know @GJM is a pilot, but I hope we have even more on the forum who are in the know.

[GJM]

Airplanes, flight, and the related operations have always fascinated me. Recently I downloaded a flight tracker app and have been enjoying it like crazy. All this has made me curious about a few things.

How in the world are there not more Mid Air collisions? The amount of planes in the appears to be insane!

How do planes and pilots compensate for turbulence? Especially heavy turbulence.

At V1, is it absolute that you continue to the take off or is it possible to abort after passing V1?

I know @GJM is a pilot, but I hope we have even more on the forum who are in the know.

As to mid air collisions, the sky is pretty big until it is not. Beyond the big sky, there are technology solutions, airspace regulations and restrictions, and the primary defense, which is see and avoid.

Turbulence varies from uncomfortable and annoying, to so bad, it can part out the aircraft. Experience is the best defense for keep the flying surfaces attached to the aircraft.

Typically, only larger multi engine aircraft have V1/VR/V2. You can abort later but you may or may not have sufficient runway available to stop the aircraft in the remaining aircraft.

[TC215]

Rule #1-- See and avoid. You constantly scan for other aircraft. There are also right of way rules, and aircraft fly at specific altitudes depending on which direction they're heading, and if they're VFR or IFR. We also have a pretty good ATC system.

If turbulence is bad enough, you can climb or descend to find smoother air. Or you just ride it out.

You can abort a takeoff pretty much at any point as long as you have enough runway ahead of you. It's also going to depend on the airplane, single-engine vs. multi, etc.

Sorry, posted at the same time as @GJM.

[Bobcat]

I have about 35 hours of flight lessons from the 1970's. I flew a T-37 jet trainer while in AFTOTC.
500 mph, 5 G's. Fun.
I know enough about flying that when I'm taking a commercial flight, I always look the pilot in the eye just to make sure he's ok.
A show I watch a lot is "Air Disasters" on the Smithsonian Channel.
Shows a lot of crashes, and goes into the "why" questions.
Basically, it's one (or more) of three things, weather, human error, and mechanical failure.

[GJM]

I have about 35 hours of flight lessons from the 1970's. I flew a T-37 jet trainer while in AFTOTC.
500 mph, 5 G's. Fun.
I know enough about flying that when I'm taking a commercial flight, I always look the pilot in the eye just to make sure he's ok.
A show I watch a lot is "Air Disasters" on the Smithsonian Channel.
Shows a lot of crashes, and goes into the "why" questions.
Basically, it's one (or more) of three things, weather, human error, and mechanical failure.

Long running stats indicate that aircraft crashes are +/- 85 percent caused by human errors.

[TheNewbie]

Rule #1-- See and avoid. You constantly scan for other aircraft. There are also right of way rules, and aircraft fly at specific altitudes depending on which direction they're heading, and if they're VFR or IFR. We also have a pretty good ATC system.

If turbulence is bad enough, you can climb or descend to find smoother air. Or you just ride it out.

You can abort a takeoff pretty much at any point as long as you have enough runway ahead of you. It's also going to depend on the airplane, single-engine vs. multi, etc.

Sorry, posted at the same time as @GJM.

Didn't know you flew. That's awesome!

The altitude thing makes sense to me. That helps me understand a bit better how air traffic is organized.

Are there still dead zones communication wise in parts of the world? Where you can't get out on radio while flying?

[TC215]

Didn't know you flew. That's awesome!

The altitude thing makes sense to me. That helps me understand a bit better how air traffic is organized.

Are there still dead zones communication wise in parts of the world? Where you can't get out on radio while flying?

Yep, I'm the 3rd generation pilot in my family. My granddad flew in WW2, and kept flying for fun after the war. It's in my blood. I spend most of my off time at the airport, flying for fun, and instruct some on the side. Mostly tailwheel instruction and flight reviews.

The biggest "dead zone" is over the ocean. But there are still oceanic air traffic controllers that work to maintain separation. It's just done a bit differently.

[TheNewbie]

Yep, I'm the 3rd generation pilot in my family. My granddad flew in WW2, and kept flying for fun after the war. It's in my blood. I spend most of my off time at the airport, flying for fun, and instruct some on the side. Mostly tailwheel instruction and flight reviews.

The biggest "dead zone" is over the ocean. But there are still oceanic air traffic controllers that work to maintain separation. It's just done a bit differently.

What do you fly?

What are the advantages of a yolk vs a side stick? I.e. 737 vs A320.


Thanks to all who are responding, I seriously love this stuff. Wish I had the mindset to be a pilot, but I know my limitations.

[TC215]

What do you fly?

What are the advantages of a yolk vs a side stick? I.e. 737 vs A320.


Thanks to all who are responding, I seriously love this stuff. Wish I had the mindset to be a pilot, but I know my limitations.

I am lucky and get to routinely fly a wide variety of planes, but fly these the most:





As far as yoke vs stick, the advantages and disadvantages are going to largely be personal preference.

[MistWolf]

The difference between a Boeing 737 and an Airbus A320 has nothing to do with yokes or sticks. It has to do with who or what has ultimate control of the aircraft.

On 737, the flight crew has the ultimate control of the aircraft and the computer assists the flight crew control inputs. That means the flight crew can override the flight computer and is ultimately responsible for control of the aircraft.

On the A320, the flight control computer has ultimate control of the aircraft. The computer is designed to interpret flight crew inputs, then tells the aircraft what to do. The flight computer can override flight crew input and is ultimately responsible for control of the aircraft.