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1500 questions
23
votes
5 answers
Why are special aircraft used for the carriers in the United States Navy?
Why are aircraft such as the legacy F-14 and now the F/A-18 used by the US Navy carriers?
It seems to me that developing a new aircraft from the ground up is very expensive. Is it not possible to have converted F-16 or F-15's for carrier operations?…
AlphaCentauri
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23
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Does the ditching switch allow an A320 to float indefinitely?
I watched a documentary yesterday about the Hudson River ditching of US Airways Flight 1549. In the documentary, one of the investigators explained that the reason the water was entering so quickly was because the FO did not have time to hit the…
Cloud
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23
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Could anyone (non-military) in the present day "exceed mach 1 over a regulated area"?
There is a question What would happen if I exceeded mach 1 over a regulated area?
I wonder, could anyone in civil aviation (not military) actually carry out this violation? I know there are privately owned "warbirds", but it looks like the majority…
h22
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23
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3 answers
Why do modern fighter jets use 20mm guns?
Why do modern fighter jets use 20mm guns? Is the armor of a modern jet that thick? Does, for example, .50 (12.7mm) ammunition lack velocity to be effective?
I'm just curious on why is that 20mm is so widely used in air-to-air guns.
user36017
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23
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1 answer
Is it possible to drive into Gibraltar Airport's runway?
The runway of Gibraltar Airport crosses an active 4 lane highway
Example Video.
My question is are there any security measures which prevent normal traffic from entering the airport through the runway when the runway is not in use?
How much…
anshabhi
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23
votes
2 answers
Why aren't there any widebody propliners for the high-density short-haul markets?
Jetliners come in both narrowbody (one aisle) and widebody (two or more aisles) versions, but all propliners, to the best of my knowledge, are narrowbody aircraft.
Now, granted, one of the big reasons for having widebody airliners is to have an…
Vikki
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23
votes
3 answers
What is your responsibility when a distraught pilot is on frequency?
I found the recent SeaTac incident with a suicidal pilot frightening. I myself remember being in very bad places mentally, and it got me to wonder what I should do if someone is on frequency, making dangerous maneuvers, and clearly has lost all hope…
Devin Rowan
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Can this aircraft wreckage be identified?
I live in Salinas (central coast California) and there’s an old plane wreck (located within the boundaries of Toro Park County Park in a remote section). On a hike yesterday, we located and took some pictures and I was seeking some help to identify…
Rob Boyce
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23
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3 answers
Why does the ICAO alphabet use "Charlie" for C?
Why does the ICAO alphabet use "Charlie" for C? Specifically, why choose "Charlie", which has a "Ch" sound, rather than a word with the hard "C" such as "Carl"?
A cursory Googling turns up nothing.
Deja Wu
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23
votes
10 answers
Why are all engines identical in typical commercial airplanes?
I come from the IT world where redundancy is in place to cover several cases, among other:
a statistical failure of a device (so we use more of them expecting that the event is independent)
a rogue usage of a device (hacking into it though a…
WoJ
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votes
2 answers
Is there a way to avoid exhaust fumes when landing?
I've taken a few hours towards my private pilot's license and each time we land I've smelled this plume of engine exhaust that we seem to fly/roll through just as we're touching down. I must be sensitive to the fumes because I usually end up with a…
TimeTrap
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Why is the flight going north just to go south?
I am tracking my kid's flight from LAX to EWR. It seems like a pretty straight West to East kind of flight but the flight path has the plane moving somewhat north through Ohio and then angling back to the south
Why wouldn't the flight just keep…
user2512
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23
votes
7 answers
Which aircraft have fought against its own type in active combat?
The criteria for this question are
The aircraft has to be the same type (but not necessarily the same mark)
The two opposing sides are actively hostile; but not restricted to nation states (so civil war a possibility)
The aircraft treat each other…
Party Ark
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What type of aircraft is depicted in the Taylor Swift music video "Look What You Made Me Do"?
It looks like some sort of business jet or small regional airliner, but I can't tell anything more specific than that. About the only thing I'm certain about is that it's a T-tailed twinjet with rear-mounted engines.
View of the starboard side of…
Vikki
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23
votes
4 answers
What is it called when an airplane has to circle because it can't land?
Sometimes, a plane is required to circle around an airport repeatedly because for whatever reason, it is not able or permitted to land just yet.
This state in which a plane is stuck in the air in this way has a name, what is it?
TheEnvironmentalist
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