11/15/2023 0 Comments Captain jack mcmahan delta![]() ![]() 2 throttle, which increased the thrust of the No. ![]() The tactic worked, and he felt a little more control over the plane. But, the Captain says, "At that stage, you quit being methodical - you just do something and do it fast." For a pilot, it was an unnatural and illogical move! Reducing power would cut air speed further, and that would seem to hasten the risk of a stall. But he asserted himself, " We may lose this aircraft, but it won't be because we're not hanging in there and it won't be because of pilot error."Īt that instant, the captain decided to yank all the throttles back, reducing power. Just two weeks before, the Pan Am and the KLM planes had collided on Tenerife, and the horrific memories were still fresh in his mind. Pilot dis-orientation while executing an over-the-water (night) takeoff was a common probable cause of accidents under similar circumstances. I had a very clear mental picture of exactly what the aircraft was going to do - stall, roll to the left and descend vertically, disappearing into the clouds - at night - into the water." And no one will ever know what had happened. I'm trying to fly this thing as well as I can, and I thought I can't even fly it - it won't respond. McMahan says, "I had the horrifying realization that we were going to lose it. In that sequence, the plane was fast running into the danger of a fatal stall. By 3,000 feet altitude, all emergency procedures concerning pitch and trim had been systematically tried, and the crew couldn't find out what was wrong.Īs the plane climbed out over the Ocean, it pitched up more and more, far above the normal 15 degrees.pitch attitude exceeding 18 degrees.20 degrees.22 degrees. At 800 feet, with the plane climbing into thick clouds, the captain asked the engineer, to check the hydraulic systems through which most of the controls work. He tried "manual trim." That didn't work either. "According to our control panel," he says, "the stabilizer was set correctly (3.5 degrees)."Īt an altitude of 400 feet, however, the plane began excessively nosing up again, and he began to use "electric trim," another system for setting the stabilizer. McMahan, "the first thing I did was to check the setting for the stabilizer". McMahan shoved the control column forward in response to the too-steep climb, and the plane's nose came down slightly and, at least momentarily, the plane seemed to return to a normal climb (15 degrees). Speeding into the heavy clouds and directly over the Pacific Ocean, the nose continued to pitch even higher. The applicable performance/takeoff data indicated: V1=123, VR=126, and V2=138, but as the plane reached 126 knots, the plane unexpectedly and abruptly nosed up by itself before the pilots had to pull the control column for takeoff. During 36 years of flying, he had piloted biplanes, Grumman Wildcats (as a Marine Corps pilot during World War II) and over a dozen passenger planes, including all models of jumbo jets, and had been the First Officer on DC-8's first commercial flight back in 1959, and also the First Officer on the delivery flight of Delta's first Tristar.Ī few minutes short of midnight, at 11:53pm local time, as the jet accelerated down Runway 27, the visibility was already approaching near minimums (a heavy deck of coastal cloud moving in-shore). He was one of Delta's most experienced Captains. Jack McMahan: a burly, affable 56-year-old. On the flight, at the controls, was Capt. What was expected to be a routine flight, turned into a nightmare lasting one of the most harrowing 55 minutes in recent aviation history. This is the 2nd time I've now flown the CS L1011 - to illustrate this current topic that is a unique example of incredible airman-ship by the crew involved.ĭelta Air Lines Flight 1080 (with 41 pax and 11 crew on board) was a scheduled flight notable for the incident that occurred on Apduring the San Diego to Los Angeles leg of the flight. I'd earlier posted, here, a first-flight-report, with this CS version (L-1011 being one of my favorite airliners). The JF (Pro) version is V4 compatible, but the CS one is still V3 (V4 planned for future) - as far as I can tell (please always double-check further details). The gamble didn't help much, but in their dire situation, the crew figured every little bit would help!īTW, regarding the current state of L-1011 simulations, if one does not insist on study-level authenticity, both CS/JF would likely meet the requirements of "fun" as it did for me. What has always struck me most about it is the fact that, at one point, in the desperate effort to re-gain control of the wide-body airliner (a Lockheed Tristar), the crew takes an un-usual step: direct the stewardess to gather all the passengers forward in the cabin to help get the nose of the aircraft down. I recall this story (for use w/ my CS-L1011), and I think some of you may also recall it. ![]()
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