There was still one question that remained: How did the loss of one engine lead to a 30 second tragedy? Investigators turn back to the debris found on the runway. As well as the engine, there was 1 meter of wing. That would explain it right there. Connected to part of the wing was a hydraulic pipe, which was ripped in the process. The crew were able to steady the plane until the last of the hydraulic fluid leaked out. There was a back-up system, but it was also damaged. The worst part about no hydraulics is the slats. The slats, like flaps, extend out. And without the main hydraulic system, the wind pressure forced the slats to retract. But there was enough fluid in the back up system to extend them again. A warning tends to go off in the cockpit if the slats retract. But the warning was powered by the left engine, so it didn't go off. That's why, after the plane lost control, it went into a stall. The pilots brought the speed to V2, just like they were trained to in the loss of an engine. And that's what works in the loss of an engine. But it doesn't work in the loss of an engine, several alarms and even hydraulic lines. So, with the lack of slats, and speed, the plane went into a dive. But the plane should have warned them that they were going into a stall. Today, the typical airplane had two stick shakers, meaning a system which shakes and vibrates the control sticks when the plane is about to go into a stall, and a stall light. The Captain's is powered by the left engine, but the First Officer's is powered by the right. But the only reason why that is is because if this accident. Before the cause of this was determined, only the Captain had a stick shaker. So there was no warning. It went in line with the CVR (Cockpit Voice Recorder) and the FDR (Flight Data Recorder), as they're both powered by Engine 1 and both shut off right as the engine flew off.
So, with no lift, no speed, and no warnings, the fatal occurrences all led up to a tragic accident.
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Fatal Occurrences: Book One
No FicciónFatal Occurrences is a series explaining Aircraft Disasters. Book 1 reports the fatal occurrences that took place during the flight of American Airlines Flight 191 on May 25th, 1979.
