See the live enactment of a textbook definition of “tailstrike” performed by this Airbus A380:
Tailstrike is an aviation term that describes an event wherein the rear end of the aircraft “strikes” the runway.
George’s Point of View
Dear Airbus,
You’ve had all sorts of design problems with other designs.I believe you have a design problem on this one, too.
Signed,
GH
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Mario J Craig
What: Taca A320 en route from San Salvador (El Salvador) to Tegucigalpa (Honduras)
Where: Tegucigalpa
When: May 30th 2008
Who: 124 passengers and 11 crew
Why: On landing at Tegucigalpa, the A320 overran the runway of Tegucigalpa Toncontin Airport’s runway 2. The crash occurred in bad weather. Overrunning the runway, the plane continued to crash into a store and cars.
British Airways flight BA-2578 made an emergency landing at Charles de Gaulle Airport, France, on December 26th.
The Airbus A320-200 plane heading from Gatwick Airport, England, to Turin, Italy, was diverted after a burning odor was noticed in the cockpit.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
What: Iberia Airbus A340-300 en route from Sao Paulo Brazil to Madrid
Where: Sao Paulo
When: Nov 12th 2010
Why: While en route, the flight developed problems with their radar and returned to Sao Paulo where they made a safe landing.
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact photographer Remi Dallot
What: Spanair Airbus A321-200 en route from Madrid to Las Palmas
Where: Seville
When: Dec 23rd 2009
Who: 185 passengers
Why: While en route, the Airbus developed a problem with one of its engines. Passengers heard an explosion and smelled burning oil. The crew decided to shut down the malfunctioning engine, and shut it down.
The flight landed safely.
A replacement jet was flown in but not all passengers opted to board the replacement flight seven hours after they arrived.
Frontier Airlines flight F9-1839 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on May 20th.
The Airbus A320-200 plane heading from Tulsa, Oklahoma, to San Diego, California, was diverted after an unidentified odor was noticed in the aft cabin.
The plane landed safely. All one hundred and twenty-nine passengers and six crew members remained unharmed.
Contact Carlos A. Morillo Doria
An Embraer EMB-721C Sertanejo (PA-32R-300) en route from Prado to Porto Seguro had a little trouble on landing when the nose gear folded.
The friction from the belly landing was controlled by foam applied by the firefighters who were on standby when the flight landed. Actually, you can see they were there ahead of time, and how they used the time while the pilots were burning off fuel.
Pilots were aware of the inability of the gear to lock, so they burned off fuel before making the landing.
The plane is normally used as an air taxi. The video below shows the plane landing on foam.
No injuries. Good job, Captain!
