"Outside the Box" but sources are included!!!
To start let me say thank you to everyone who has made constructive inputs to keep all us investors "in the know" as much as possible during this process. That being said, as I have read the posts by the LT and Baltia I have formulated a THEORY based on research and an educated guess.
Assumption: The slides, packing of the slides, or hardware used in the slides are the problem with the mini evacuation failures.
Basis of Theory: "Outside factors" have temporarily impacted our Mini Evacuation Procedure and we expect these factors to be rectified in the near future. --I chose to focus on the carefully selected words of "outside factors." My theory is that they are stating the obvious, but it is so obvious it has been overlooked trying to find some profound reason...but it is as simple as "Temperature."
IF you read the following link you will see the following information from a reputable source...Air and Space Smithsonian. This article was written in 2007 and I believe it to still be relevant. It is about A380's but the requirements for slides are same across the industry as we all have previously discussed. The article states, "In the early 1960s, slides had to deploy in 25 seconds in non-extreme weather: no wind and medium-range temperatures. Today’s slides must deploy in six seconds in temperatures ranging from –65 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit and unfurl in winds up to 25 knots (28.7 mph). --that's the requirement!
However, packing is critical due to "louvers" in the slides as the following statement from the article will show..."Slides inflate with an initial boost from a canister of compressed carbon dioxide and nitrogen. The canister provides only about one-third the volume needed to inflate the slides. The remaining volume is supplied by ambient air, channeled into the slides through aspirators. When the inflation mechanism is triggered—by a lanyard pulled by the slide as it tumbles from its storage case—gas from the canister accelerates through the aspirators at high speed, creating a vacuum that sucks ambient air into the aspirators through louvers. When the slide is fully inflated, the louvers close.
Now back to my theory of temperature...Simple physics, in very simple terms, cold air is more dense than hot air (i.e. hot air/gas will expand further). Therefore, with only 1/3 the required air supplied by the canister onboard and ambient air being required to do the rest of the inflation...IMO it is not too far a stretch to believe cold air COULD be part of the problem.
Now on to my "Outside the Box"...2 possible solutions to this problem.
1. Baltia is doing paperwork to fly the aircraft to a warmer climate and have the FAA meet them there to conduct the mini evac allowing for a possible chance at better inflation. (I think this is less likely given the expected warmup coming this week...if it could be rescheduled that fast???)
2. Baltia may be researching the possibility of changing or more accurately adding to the hardware in each of the slides. This piece of hardware is the size of a soda can and could (I assume...yes yes i know what that makes me
) be folded into the packing fairly easy. This is described here..."At its Phoenix, Arizona plant, Goodrich manufactures airliner evacuation slides for a number of airliner models, including the 16 slides aboard each giant Airbus A380. To get the A380 slides fully inflated in six seconds, Goodrich developed an inflator that uses a gas generator about the size of a soda can that contributes more inflation gas volume to the slides without adding too much bulk and weight to the slide package. When a propellant in the generator is ignited, it produces a highly compressed gas almost instantly. This gas mixes with stored gas in the canister to accelerate slide inflation." (I believe this COULD be the paperwork Baltia has been working all weekend on...as described by the LT, see Ihub for that post).
Once again this is just a theory, if nothing else maybe I showed someone out there a new article about evacuation slides that had not been seen before.
Go Baltia we are all still with you!!!
Air and Space Smithsonian article: http://www.airspacemag.com/flight-today/how-t...01/?no-ist
To start let me say thank you to everyone who has made constructive inputs to keep all us investors "in the know" as much as possible during this process. That being said, as I have read the posts by the LT and Baltia I have formulated a THEORY based on research and an educated guess.
Assumption: The slides, packing of the slides, or hardware used in the slides are the problem with the mini evacuation failures.
Basis of Theory: "Outside factors" have temporarily impacted our Mini Evacuation Procedure and we expect these factors to be rectified in the near future. --I chose to focus on the carefully selected words of "outside factors." My theory is that they are stating the obvious, but it is so obvious it has been overlooked trying to find some profound reason...but it is as simple as "Temperature."
IF you read the following link you will see the following information from a reputable source...Air and Space Smithsonian. This article was written in 2007 and I believe it to still be relevant. It is about A380's but the requirements for slides are same across the industry as we all have previously discussed. The article states, "In the early 1960s, slides had to deploy in 25 seconds in non-extreme weather: no wind and medium-range temperatures. Today’s slides must deploy in six seconds in temperatures ranging from –65 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit and unfurl in winds up to 25 knots (28.7 mph). --that's the requirement!
However, packing is critical due to "louvers" in the slides as the following statement from the article will show..."Slides inflate with an initial boost from a canister of compressed carbon dioxide and nitrogen. The canister provides only about one-third the volume needed to inflate the slides. The remaining volume is supplied by ambient air, channeled into the slides through aspirators. When the inflation mechanism is triggered—by a lanyard pulled by the slide as it tumbles from its storage case—gas from the canister accelerates through the aspirators at high speed, creating a vacuum that sucks ambient air into the aspirators through louvers. When the slide is fully inflated, the louvers close.
Now back to my theory of temperature...Simple physics, in very simple terms, cold air is more dense than hot air (i.e. hot air/gas will expand further). Therefore, with only 1/3 the required air supplied by the canister onboard and ambient air being required to do the rest of the inflation...IMO it is not too far a stretch to believe cold air COULD be part of the problem.
Now on to my "Outside the Box"...2 possible solutions to this problem.
1. Baltia is doing paperwork to fly the aircraft to a warmer climate and have the FAA meet them there to conduct the mini evac allowing for a possible chance at better inflation. (I think this is less likely given the expected warmup coming this week...if it could be rescheduled that fast???)
2. Baltia may be researching the possibility of changing or more accurately adding to the hardware in each of the slides. This piece of hardware is the size of a soda can and could (I assume...yes yes i know what that makes me
) be folded into the packing fairly easy. This is described here..."At its Phoenix, Arizona plant, Goodrich manufactures airliner evacuation slides for a number of airliner models, including the 16 slides aboard each giant Airbus A380. To get the A380 slides fully inflated in six seconds, Goodrich developed an inflator that uses a gas generator about the size of a soda can that contributes more inflation gas volume to the slides without adding too much bulk and weight to the slide package. When a propellant in the generator is ignited, it produces a highly compressed gas almost instantly. This gas mixes with stored gas in the canister to accelerate slide inflation." (I believe this COULD be the paperwork Baltia has been working all weekend on...as described by the LT, see Ihub for that post). Once again this is just a theory, if nothing else maybe I showed someone out there a new article about evacuation slides that had not been seen before.
Go Baltia we are all still with you!!!
Air and Space Smithsonian article: http://www.airspacemag.com/flight-today/how-t...01/?no-ist
