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Yes. This angle is pretty clearly showing the side of the fuselage, and tail, and yes, it does show exactly the sort of pull up you’d expect if suddenly realising you’re about to impact the ground. The accident investigation will obviously work out the exact positions, geometry and timeline...

A bit of a leap, don't you think? For a start it's a part of the world in which there is very active spoofing of navigation aids. Plus 'pilot error' has always been a catch all phrase, often hiding other causes. In particular, there has never been an accident due to fatigue ('cos they always end...

Apparently a Polish air navigation aid calibration aircraft has been working there for the last few hours. It might just be a normal precaution, but interesting nevertheless.

Must be QF's fault somehow then. The trace for this accident is interesting. He seems a bit low at the start, and his sink rate below 1,000' is definitely too high. Speed and heading look okay. It's just been flown into the ground.

Yes, but after that same few beers, most of us can understand it. Whilst English is the international aviation language, there's a large degree of variation in just how well people understand it. It's another reason why the standard phrases of ATC are so important.

Some of us have trouble speaking one language, much less two. Scandinavians, in particular, can be very impressive with their language capability, and I feel dumb in comparison. I have one friend (not a pilot) who is fluent in six! You can pretty much pick how long people have been flying by...

Varies across airlines and type. I don't think any of the 737s have a tiller on the FO's side. QF's wide bodies all had them on both sides. FO's taxied on their sector, but they're never allowed to park (unless being marshalled out on an apron). Many parking guidance systems are position...

They wouldn't even answer the phone in that time frame. There's no minimum if you declare an emergency. Engines can be fixed quickly. I've seen 4 fan blades replaced on a CF6 in about an hour (take off/hit birds/return/fix/depart again). I don't know our overall delay but it was only two man...

Looks to be at least F20 extended though. I’ve landed one at Wellington on a calm day in that configuration, so I’m pretty sure that there’s more to this.

Two engines out, on different wings, is easy, with the systems still working fairly normally. And because you don’t have that huge rudder deflection, and its associated drag, there’s a lot more performance available than you might expect. I still wouldn’t take on an overweight landing unless...

You should do innumerable EFATO exercises during your training. The students at Pt Cook were intimately associated with the adjacent paddocks, as they would see this exercise pretty well every time they went flying. And for the newly arrived instructors, an engine failure as they climbed away...

I'd jettison the fuel to increase my margins of error. Someone else may choose to save the fuel. Neither of those involved a great deal of choice. The 'miracle' was simply gravity at work. I prefer old Boeing, to old Airbus. But, I'm not a fan of any new Boeing. Use about 2010 as the...

The duty period would have been somewhere around 20 hours. The CASA limits were 20 hours, but who knows what (or indeed if) the UAE limits are. I'll see if I can find out. Yes, although it's pretty much a department of EK/EY. Of course they wouldn't. Nobody does. All aircraft can be landed at...

Superglue is allowed, isn't it?

Well, there was a tool in charge for 15 years, so just following the example….

I'd presume it's mainly controlled by the proximity of other airways. Heading south, there's a fairly large hole to the east with not a great deal in it. But, going the other way, you run into numerous airways heading in and out of Sydney.

It wouldn't exist in commercial ops, and I'm sure it didn't often in the KC135. But, the fighters needed the fuel, so not much option about going or not.

It was pretty ineffective. The system seems to be encroach, and then demand the airport close/change. We think about the terrain, but not so much what's built on it. Light aircraft people might keep roads or cleared areas in mind, but not much use or interest for the bigger aircraft. I guess...

Well, Jetstar are pretty dodgy, but I guess you don't mean them. The Indonesians may not have an appetite for shutting down a major part of their air transport system, which would increase the risk they're prepared to bear. Nobody is knowingly going to fly into the main ash cloud, but the finer...

There is no actual decision to be made at V1. It's simply a call telling you that the abort option is no longer available, and that you will now continue with any issues. When you hear V1, you remove your hand from the throttles, and from that point you'll continue unless you deem the aircraft...