Pilot Temporarily loses control after lighting strike. . .

[Phil Perry]

This report is pasted directly from a newsfeed, so don't expect miracles in the detail. . . . Phil.

 

HEADLINE. . .

 

“Pilot pulls out of dive with seven seconds to spare. . .”

 

On a flight from Aberdeen to Sumburgh Airport in the Shetland Isles, Scotland,. . . a scheduled Loganair flight was struck by lightning and temporarily lost control.

 

The aircraft dived to just 1,100 ft above the ocean as the pilot managed to wrestle back full control just moments before it crashed into the icy sea.

 

As the airliner fell at 9,500ft a minute, the autopilot had ignored the pilot's commands to climb and instead sent itself into a nosedive. (?)

 

The near disaster occurred as the Loganair flight from Aberdeen approached its destination at Sumburgh airport, Shetland, at night.

 

The weather was so bad - thunderstorms with rain, snow, hail and 70mph wind - the 42-year-old pilot decided to break off his approach when they were still seven miles away.

 

And the 30 passengers aboard the island-hopping plane sat in terror as a ball of lightning appeared in the cockpit and a bolt struck its nose, travelling the full length of the plane before leaving at the tail.

 

But a misunderstanding meant that the pilot and co-pilot then struggled to regain control of the aircraft as it descended at high speed.

 

As the co-pilot declared a mayday, the pilot tried to gain height - but every move was countered by the autopilot. ( What ? )

 

When it reached 4,000ft the plane suddenly pitched nose down and started falling at 9,500ft a minute - giving crew members barley 20 seconds to act.

 

At 1100ft, as ‘Pull up!’ alarms sounded in the cabin, the captain applied full power and the aircraft finally started to climb.

 

The plane landed back at Aberdeen, with no reported injuries or damage to the aircraft.

 

An investigation by the Air Accident Investigation Branch (AIIB) found that the crew may have thought the lightning strike had disabled the autopilot because it had knocked out some of the other controls.

 

However, it was still operating and trying to adjust and fly at the level it had been instructed.

 

The pilot saved the plane with just seconds to spare ( ? )

 

Only when the computers become overloaded with faulty data, did it disengage itself and give the pilot seconds to save the flight from potential disaster. ( ? )

 

Shona Manson, a passenger on the flight during the incident on December 14, said: "It was really, really bumpy.

 

"If it was someone who's a bad flier, it would be their worst nightmare."

 

No technical problems were found with the aircraft, which is now back in service and pilot training now includes simulations of the incident.

 

 

This is,. . .according to the news report, the actual aircraft involved in the above story.

 

 

[kasper]

Well AAIB tells an admittedly not fun story of autopilot pitch trim countering nose up pilot input with a max nose down attitude of 19deg - not exactly a nose dive but still lowest level 1100ft and VNE exceeded by 80KIAS is not my idea of a fun flight

 

"The flight crew decided to discontinue their approach to Runway 27 at Sumburgh Airport because of weather ahead. As it established on a southerly heading the aircraft was struck by lightning. The commander made nose-up pitch inputs but perceived that the aircraft did not respond as expected. After reaching 4,000 ft amsl, the aircraft pitched nose-down to a minimum of 19° and the applicable maximum operating speed (VMO) was exceeded by 80 KIAS with a peak descent rate of 9,500 ft/min. The aircraft started to climb after reaching a minimum height of 1,100 ft amsl. Recorded data showed that the autopilot had remained engaged, and the pilots’ nose-up pitch inputs were countered by the autopilot pitch trim function, which made a prolonged nose-down pitch trim input in an attempt to maintain its altitude-tracking function."

 

https://www.gov.uk/aaib-reports/aaib-investigation-special-bulletin-s1-2015-saab-ab-saab-2000-g-lgno

 

 

[Phil Perry]

Thanks for that Kasper,. . .read that after posting the newsfeed stuff, then got distracted by the Missus yelling up to the office about some lovely roast beef. . .etc. . . .

 

Phil