Analysis Of All Can Be Lost By Nicholas Carr

One of the most controversial and important air crash linked to human error of the modern world happened on the night of February 12, 2009. Colgan air flight 3407, operated by Continental Connection, was on final approach to runway 23 at Buffalo-Niagara International Airport as it disappeared from radar. The aircraft was a Bombardier Dash 8, a popular twin engine medium range turboprop Airliner used by many regional carriers. The aircraft entered an uncontrollable stall crashing into to a neighborhood 5 miles northeast of the airport killing all everyone on souls on board. The Captain, Marvin Resnlow and first officer Rebecca Lynne were behind the controls the night of the accident. The NTSB report determined error by both pilots cause the aircraft to crash. Thus, pilot fatigues, improper recovery form a stall were contributing factors. The victim’s family members pushed for congress to overhaul airline regulations. The NTBS investigation delivery multiple findings that eventually led to a modernization of airline operations and pilot training.

article Carr explains how machines are making humans lazy and are weakening our awareness and attentiveness. He gives examples about situations where humans relied on computer operated machines. One of those examples were about a plane crash that killed all 50 people on board. “It reveals that automation, for all its benefits, can take a toll on the performance and talents of those who rely on it.” said Carr. The pilot of that plane had training but the more planes he let be in auto pilot the less control inputs he remembered causing him to react in an adverse way and unable to safely land the plane.

As they flew over the Canadian Wilderness, the worst thing that could possibly happen to the pilot, happened. “He stopped as a fresh spasm of pain hit him. Even Brian could see how bad it was--the pain drove the pilot back into the seat, back and down.” (page 10). This was the start of the symptoms for a heart attack, the pilot was having a heart attack. All Brian knew about the plane he was in was a brief lesson from the pilot and what he had read in books. “He was flying but did not where, had no idea where he was going. He looked at the dashboard of the plane, studied the dials and hoped to get some help, hoped to find a compass, but it was all so confusing, a jumble of numbers and lights.” (page 16). Once he had the plane in control, he had to use his knowledge to land. As a result of the heart attack, this was the start of the longest 54 days of his life, he was all alone

When the tail engine exploded, many people thought a bomb had gone off somewhere on the jet because the noise was so loud (Flight 232, 8). The burst sent debris flying everywhere and some pieces of metal hit the jet’s hydraulic lines (Flight 232, 2). The hydraulics failed, which shut off all of the controls, making the jet especially hard to steer. The jet was disabled for about 45 minutes (Jet Carrying…, 1). Dennis Fitch was called to the cockpit during that time to try and help the pilots control the jet. They ended up using the throttles as controls, which was very hard to do. “None of us knew what to do,” Captain Haynes said. “We were all making suggestions. It was the crew working together.” (20 Years Ago…, 4) At first, the men from the Minneapolis Airport (MSP) were communicating by the Air Traffic Control (ACT) with the pilots. They told the pilots which airports were close and where they could land. At first, they suggested the Des Moines Airport, but it was too far away and the pilots did not think that the jet would make it there. Then, they suggested the Sioux City airport, and the pilots thought they could make it there. The men from the Air Traffic Control Center also helped whenever the pilots had a question about where they were or how many miles they were from the airport. The men would respond as quickly as they could, telling the pilots all of the information that they had (The Crash

accident started the problems faced by the crew members. They then changed their course and

In other words, if the two pilots used words that clearly told the air traffic workers that their lack of fuel was an urgent, dangerous matter, Gladwell feels the crash could have been prevented.

Automation can become a problem; whereas the software makes it even less likely that we’ll engage in efforts that test our skills. So the freedom and power we once felt because we knew a skill that someone else might not have, is no longer the case. Carr also points out that we become lazier in our free time, instead of partaking in a challenging activity, we watch TV, get on Facebook, play meaningless games. Lastly, the limitation of certain technologies is that of human consequences regarding automation. Chapter three gives the example of the commercial pilot, who has evolved into a computer operator, so instead of being in control of the situation, they are there to fix problems if they arise. This becomes a problem when technology malfunctions, and technology malfunction is relatable concern in many other

Any airline policy that says pilots should rely on automation rather than their own judgement should be repealed. Although some human factors can lead to a crash there is no better system to use than human intuition or your “gut feeling”.

(#6 & Pg. 217) The movie Flight then beings to stray away from the reality of Alaska Airlines Flight 261; Flight 227 begins to nose dive once again from 27,000 ft. at an uncontrollable speed. With strong communication with Ground Control, they are approved to dump all fuel in the rear and flap oil in attempt to level out the plane. Both Flight 227 & Flight 261 slow themselves down (#3 & Pg. 223) and transfer the controls from auto-pilot to the pilot’s control which causes both to increase their dive speed temporarily. (#13 & Pg.

Not enough fuel was burned so the captain requested an additional twenty minutes while the flight attendants prepped the cabin for an emergency landing and evacuation of the aircraft. During the communication of the cockpit crew it seemed that the flight engineer and first flight attendant tried to communicate things with the captain, in regards to the fuel, cabin, or landing gear, they heard it but were not really listening. With the captain focusing mainly on the landing gear scenario, the issue of the fuel and needing to land was not an important factor in his mind at that time. The aircraft then started to lose engines due to the starvation of fuel, after the number three engine went out the captain decided to attempt to land the aircraft. Unfortunately, they did not make it to the airport, it crashed into a suburban wooded area of Portland. There was no fire, and not only was the aircraft totally destroyed, homes and power lines were also. The crash site was 130 feet wide and 1,554 feet long, two crewmembers and eight passengers died, the rest suffered serious and slight injuries (Ranter,

William Langewiesche, one of the finest minds in aviation industry, a journalist and also an author who contributed with his experience in the aviation field to write some marvellous novels. Fly by wire being one of his marvels, unravels the crash of US Airways flight 1549 with minute detailing of events that led the crash landing in the Hudson in 2009. The total flight duration was no longer than the time required for reading this report. Both of the aircraft engines had failed due to multiple bird strikes causing power loss following the take-off which compelled the pilots to perform a controlled crash landing of the aircraft into the Hudson River. Langewiesche expounds the entire incident with real time characters involved and the series of events and emergency with finest details.

“The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that the probable cause of the accident was the pilots' failure to use available reverse thrust in a timely manner to safely slow or stop the airplane after landing, which resulted in a runway overrun. This failure occurred because the pilots' first experience and lack of familiarity with the airplane's autobrake system distracted them from using reverse thrust during the challenging landing” (FAA, 2005).

It’s fair to say that loss has the power to bring out people’s innermost behavior, and this is why Robert Hayden uses it to reach out to the best in humanity. If a mother was to realize that she was losing her child, she’d do whatever it took to prevent it. And if she lost him, she’d need a lifetime to come to terms with it. But she would feel worse knowing that her child existed somewhere, in a place she couldn’t reach and knew nothing of. Hayden, with his most fascinating technique, managed to channel his personal experience in African American history, using what he knew to shape and make sense of the unknown. His unique ability to use African American race to talk to all “citizens of earth” is remarkable. Of his many themes, accepting and coming to terms with the reality of loss is one that hasn’t been really explored. In an African American voice, Hayden warns that in a world that’s ever changing, loss is undesirable and unfair, but yet it’s unpreventable. He makes it clear that the only way to succeed is not fighting it, but accepting and moving on, a theme undoubtedly influenced by his childhood.

“we are going down and I can’t control the plane anymore, because the engine is fried” said Adam.

Fatigue of the crew, and mismanagement of their afforded rest periods also contributed to the incident. The most rested member in the flight station was the pilot monitoring with 3 hours of sleep in the previous 24