Pilot's artificial arm detaches while landing

LONDON -- A British air accident report has recounted how a pilot briefly lost control of a passenger plane after his artificial arm became detached from the control yoke during landing.

The report, published Thursday, said the incident took place as the Flybe flight from Birmingham, carrying 47 passengers, was approaching Belfast City Airport in gusty conditions in February.

The 46-year-old pilot had shortly before checked that his prosthetic lower left arm was securely attached to the yoke clamp, but as he performed a maneuver just before touchdown the limb became detached.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch said the pilot considered getting the co-pilot to take control, but concluded that the best thing to do was to move his right hand to the yoke to regain control.

"He did this, but with power still applied and possibly a gust affecting the aircraft, a normal touchdown was followed by a bounce, from which the aircraft landed heavily," the report said.

No one was hurt. According to the report, the pilot said he would be more cautious about checking the attachment on his prosthesis in the future, and that he would brief his co-pilots about the possibility of a similar event.

Flybe said the pilot remained one of the airline's most experienced and trusted pilots. Captain Ian Baston, director of flight operations and safety, said the company employs staff with "reduced physical abilities," including pilots. He said the airline ensures it adheres to Civil Aviation Authority requirements and never compromises on safety.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/08/14/4288797/pilots-artificial-arm-detached.html#storylink=cpy

This is so bizarre it could have gone in bizarre news! It sounds like his prosthetic arm was actually attached and clamped to the control yoke, and couldn't be released? WTH?

And WTH is a control yoke anyhow, any of you pilots out there?

My friend wiki says:

"A yoke, alternatively known as a control column, is a device used for piloting some fixed-wing aircraft.[SUP][1][/SUP]The pilot uses the yoke to control the attitude of the plane, usually in both pitch and roll. Rotating the control wheel controls the ailerons and the roll axis. Fore and aft movement of the control column controls the elevator and the pitch axis.[SUP][1][/SUP] When the yoke is pulled back the nose of the aircraft rises. When the yoke is pushed forward the nose is lowered. When the yoke is turned left the plane rolls to the left and when it is turned to the right the plane rolls to the right."

"Yokes come in a variety of shapes and sizes, the most common being of a "U" or "W" design. Some aircraft use an "M" style,..."


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoke_(aircraft)

IOW, kinda, sorta equivalent to a steering wheel & column in a car. Hope this helps.

This provides a little more detail, though it's still not clear to me what a yoke is, even though there's a pic.

It's unfortunate, but an accident and I'm glad there are equal opportunities for people with a disability. I guess an able-bodied pilot could get sudden problems too - fly in the eye, wasp sting on the hand or something.

BBM
'Shortly before beginning to land the Dash 8 aircraft, the 46-year-old had checked that his prosthetic lower left arm was securely attached to the clamp that he used to fly the aircraft, with the latching device in place.'

Oh thank you al66pine!

BBC isn't even showing anything like that in their pic, so I don't know what they're talking about!

Too many controls in planes, imo. We'd be better off being flown by robots. And could be, I've read. But passangers find it unacceptable.

zwiebel said:

Oh thank you al66pine!
BBC isn't even showing anything like that in their pic, so I don't know what they're talking about!

Click to expand...

Well, it does show, but not immed'ly recognizable to some of us.

In your posted pic above, look for the thing -kinda , sorta like a steering column on a car, BUT
the column is almost vertical from the floor of the plane & coming up between pilot's knees.
Above, each column has a yellow sticker/label w black print (landscape not portrait orientation).

The yoke --
on right side co-pilot is black L-shape piece (If pic showed whole thing, you would see entire Ushape. )
We can see a little clipboard attached to horizontal piece of the U.
On left side pilot, we see black L-shape but backward.

My pic has 4 ex's of types of yokes. Top example most closely resembles yoke in BBC pic, but not very closely.
Imagine putting any of the 4 ex's shown on the steering column in your car. Okay, you are cleared for takeoff.

There, now you know everything about flying that I know. LOL. You're welcome.

Ah, so I suppose they look a little like the original type of yoke, turned upsidedown, and that's where the name came from?

http://www.rubylane.com/item/709635-4488/Antique-Wooden-Shoulder-Yoke

I know quite bit about flying, but I wonder what the co- pilot was doing that he couldn't readily take over.
that is kinda the co-pilots job to help fly the plane in an emergency.

The yoke is kinda like the steering wheel in a car.

I guess I misunderstood the debate about whether airline crew should be armed. :waitasec: