波音737MAX客机飞行员竟然这样学习驾驶该机型!
埃塞航坠机事件已过去一周,随着多个国家相继禁飞波音737MAX机型,对该机型的质疑也越来越多。
据BBC报道,埃塞俄比亚交通部长表示,航班数据显示此次坠机事故与去年10月的印尼狮航坠机事故有“明显的相似之处”。
图 via BBC
也就在刚刚,《华尔街日报》发布快讯,表示美国交通部已对波音737MAX客机如何通过安全审批展开调查。
图 via WSJ
The U.S. Department of Transportation is investigating the Federal Aviation Administration’s approval of Boeing Co.’s 737 MAX jetliners, according to people familiar with the probe, an unusual inquiry into potential lapses in federal safety approvals for new aircraft.
据知情人士透露,美国运输部正在启动一项非同寻常的调查,以查清联邦航空管理局在对波音737Max喷气式客机的安全审批过程中是否有漏洞。
▲ FAA’s 737 MAX Approval Is Probed (via WSJ)
而主页君在读过《纽约时报》16号的一篇文章后,更是觉得匪夷所思。
图 via WSJ
文章说,在接连两架飞机坠毁后,除了对飞机本身技术性问题的质疑外,人们也想知道飞行员是如何接受该机型驾驶训练的。
然而,这一问题的答案却让人瞠目结舌:许多737MAX机型的飞行员都是通过iPad软件学习这个新机型的。
For many new airplane models, pilots train for hours on giant, multimillion-dollar machines, on-the-ground versions of cockpits that mimic the flying experience and teach them new features. But in the case of the Max, many pilots with 737 experience learned about the plane on an iPad.
要驾驶新机型,飞行员必须在价值数百万美元的巨型机器上训练数小时,在模拟驾驶舱里模拟飞行体验,并学习新功能。然而许多驾驶MAX机型的飞行员,因其有737机型的飞行经验,对于这个新机型的学习都是通过iPad软件进行的。
▲ After 2 Crashes of New Boeing Jet, Pilot Training Now a Focus (via NYT)
在这里有必要解释一下的是,波音737MAX是波音737装配新发动机的衍生机型,因此737MAX的驾驶员基本上都是驾驶过737的飞行员。
When Airbus announced in 2010 that it would introduce a new fuel-efficient and cost-effective plane, Boeing rushed to get out its own version. The strategy depended heavily on building a plane that worked essentially the same as the previous generation. Regulators agreed that it was a derivative model and that it didn’t require additional simulator training, a significant savings for airlines.
2010年空中客车宣布推出新机型,其燃油效率和成本效益均有很大提升。为与之抗衡,波音公司匆忙推出了自己的新机型。这一战略在很大程度上依赖于上一代飞机造出一个基本相同的机型。监管机构一致认为,这是一种衍生机型,因此不需要额外的模拟机培训,而且对航空公司来说也省了很大一笔钱。
▲ After 2 Crashes of New Boeing Jet, Pilot Training Now a Focus (via NYT)
但是衍生机型并不能合理解释,为什么飞行员可以不经模拟飞行训练就直接驾驶新机型,尤其是在明知这一架架飞机将肩负多少人命、多少幸福完整的家庭的情况下。
Jim Albaugh and Nicole Piasecki, Boeing executives at the time, talking to reporters in 2011 about plans for the Max. Today, there is only one simulator specifically designed for the Max in the United States.
时任波音公司高管的吉姆⋅阿尔堡和妮可⋅皮亚塞基在2011年接受记者采访时提到MAX系列机型。时至今日,专门为MAX设计的模拟机在全美只有一台。
“We would have liked to have had a simulator” from the start, said Jon Weaks, the president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association. “But it wasn’t practical, because it wasn’t built yet.”
西南航空飞行员协会会长乔恩⋅韦克斯表示,“我们从一开始就希望能有一个模拟机。”“但这一希望并不现实,因为它压根还没有建好。”
▲ After 2 Crashes of New Boeing Jet, Pilot Training Now a Focus (via NYT)
西南航空飞行员协会的培训负责人格雷格⋅鲍文(Greg Bowen)表示,航司的高层曾告诉他,设计模拟机软件所需的工程数据直到飞机快完工了才在最后时刻敲定。