Originally Posted By: ms21043
Originally Posted By: Astro14
The flying public demanded cheaper, so, as you say, the RJs, and turbo props, are the cheaper, outsourced substitution.
They don't have the EGPWS (enhanced ground proximity warning system), the PWS (predictive windshear radar, the Honeywell -4B), dual FMCs (in many cases), low visibility capability, including autoland, deicing on leading edges of the wing...
And the most important piece of safety equipment, the highly trained and experienced pilot. You want Sully? You want a former Navy fighter pilot with 30 years of flying, 10,000+ hours, combat experience and a degree in astrophysics? You'll find him at United, or Delta, or American.
On the RJs, you're often getting a kid who lives with their mom, has a few hundred hours of experience, and works a second job at Starbucks to make ends meet...
Don't believe me? Read up on the crash of Continental 3407 in Buffalo...a Q400 that was flown into icing in error (it's not certified for icing), by an inexperienced and fatigued crew, that reacted the wrong way to the conditions and responded incorrectly to warnings, causing the crash...safer than our highways? Sure, but safe as the majors? Not even close....
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/flyingcheap/etc/croncolgan.html
Regional aircraft are required to be equipped with EGPWS/ T2CAS. The Q400 the original poster flew on is equipped with a
cutting edge FMS 3 years ago that the majors didn't have yet. It has HUD and is certified for cat 3a approaches. Don't know of any regional aircraft that have windshear, but it's more important on heavier aircraft anyway.
And not sure where you find that the Q400 is not certified for icing?
Here's a couple of pages from the Q400 QRH on icing. Subject on first page: Take off in icing conditions.
First - the FO in that airplane has less than 1,000 hours, lived with her mom, had never flown in icing, worked at Starbuck's, and was fatigued from flying across the country the night before to commute to work.
DKRyan - You sound like you're taking issue, but then end up supporting nearly everything I said. Yes, RJ to airliner is apples to oranges, THAT's THE POINT...RJs are NOT the same as the majors whom they feed. The commuter airlines pay far, far less, have far less experienced crew. Why? To be able to keep costs down in smaller markets.
Despite what people say, "I would pay more for an experienced pilot" - airline marketing proves the opposite. People are very, very price conscious in buying tickets and generally will switch airlines for as little as $10. They view all pilots, all airplanes as the same.
And that's just not true.
Next - read through the accident and the Q400 certification more carefully, I did when they were published in AW&ST - the Q400 was subject to tailplane stall...and there are still questions on its suitability for icing. The QRH simply outlines procedures for encountering icing. Show me the limitations chapter that says it's approved....
Maybe the Q400 has an advanced FMS, but the CRJ-700 that I was riding on last night only had ONE FMC...again, my point, RJs lack much of the equipment of the major airlines. As the FAA mandates equipment, they get more, but right now, they don't have the same level. I've been in the back of several commuter planes and gone around/diverted when the weather was below CAT I. Again, RJs don't have all the equipment. TCAS is nice...but it's a minimum...there are no extras in RJs, not even redundant FMCs...
Clearly, they don't have PWS. And "it's more important on heavier aircraft anyway"?? What, RJs aren't subject to windshear? You're joking, right? You need excess power (like the bigger jets) to survive a windshear encounter...but more importantly, you need the good sense to avoid it.
Maybe that's why I watched an RJ (EMB-145) take off during a thunderstorm in Orlando. When United, Delta, Southwest, Northwest (pre merger) and American, those major airline pilots saw the rain shaft impacting the runway in a classic microburst scenario. EAch one in turn refused to accept a takeoff clearance while on the taxiway...each experienced, seasoned pilot examined the risk and refused.
But the RJ pilot said, in his eager young voice, "we can accept clearance"...and off he went...and just after rotation, in the early climb, as he hit the outflow of the rainshaft, his airplane dropped from about 200 feet to 100 feet. Luckily it didn't hit the ground. His airplane didn't have the specfic excess power of the 757s who refused to go, but he sure needed it.
What he needed more was the experience to refuse the clearance until the storm passed...or at the very least, a PWS radar that could do the analysis for him...but he lacked both, and nearly put his passengers into the ground at the departure end of the runway.
Ignorance is bliss.
