Here is a circumstance where a more accurate preflight check could have prevented a crash. It was a single mechanical error that caused the crash of Japan Airlines Flight 123. This mechanical error occurred when a bulkhead in the tail section of the Boeing made airplane was not repaired correctly. A row of rivets were not up to par after they were repaired. The maintenance workers didn’t follow the correct procedures in replacing the dysfunctional bulkhead. The rivets and plates used in the repair came apart mid-flight. With a proper pre-flight check, they would have seen and repaired the incorrect plates. This caused a catastrophic crash killing 520 people. This crash made the safety standards for most airlines heighten greatly. The standards
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Most airlines run these planes on a strict schedule. So with a timely schedule and many processes the small details can be often over looked. Often the flight crew and ground crew from the airlines are rushed in preflight check. For some small planes used in recreational flying, it takes about 30 minutes or more to fully check an aircraft that seats up to 4 people (Fowler). It should take over an hour to fully check a gigantic plane such as the Boeing 474 which is often used in most commercial flights. This is a plane that can seat over a hundred people and the crew squeezes in a flight check minutes before the plane is due to be back in the air. The constant wear and tear on these planes is tremendous. The crews are not given an hour to do something along those lines. “While we have seen a reduction in airborne accidents, surface operations remain problematic…” (Hersmans 21). If airlines did not pressure these ground crews as much, we would see a reduction in the problems during pre-flight check. Often this causes new pilots to be very eager to fly. One of the hidden purposes to a preflight check is to find any reason that a plane shouldn’t take off (Fowler). Sadly, with the eagerness of new pilots and the rush of airlines pressuring them, people often overlook the small details in a pre-flight check. Pre-flight is the last step before a plane takes off and is one that should never be done the wrong way. Most crashes can be prevented by just simply following the proper steps and ensuring that they are the abroad a plane safe to
Most airlines run these planes on a strict schedule. So with a timely schedule and many processes the small details can be often over looked. Often the flight crew and ground crew from the airlines are rushed in preflight check. For some small planes used in recreational flying, it takes about 30 minutes or more to fully check an aircraft that seats up to 4 people (Fowler). It should take over an hour to fully check a gigantic plane such as the Boeing 474 which is often used in most commercial flights. This is a plane that can seat over a hundred people and the crew squeezes in a flight check minutes before the plane is due to be back in the air. The constant wear and tear on these planes is tremendous. The crews are not given an hour to do something along those lines. “While we have seen a reduction in airborne accidents, surface operations remain problematic…” (Hersmans 21). If airlines did not pressure these ground crews as much, we would see a reduction in the problems during pre-flight check. Often this causes new pilots to be very eager to fly. One of the hidden purposes to a preflight check is to find any reason that a plane shouldn’t take off (Fowler). Sadly, with the eagerness of new pilots and the rush of airlines pressuring them, people often overlook the small details in a pre-flight check. Pre-flight is the last step before a plane takes off and is one that should never be done the wrong way. Most crashes can be prevented by just simply following the proper steps and ensuring that they are the abroad a plane safe to