Fatal Words

Fatal Words
Author: Steven Cushing
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 188
Release: 1994-03-04
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9780226132006

On March 27, 1977, 583 people died when KLM and Pan Am 747s collided on a crowded, foggy runway in Tenerife, the Canary Islands. The cause, a miscommunication between the pilot and the air traffic controller. The pilot radioed, "We are now at takeoff," meaning that the plane was lifting off, but the tower controller misunderstood and thought the plane was waiting on the runway. In Fatal Words, Steven Cushing explains how miscommunication has led to dozens of aircraft disasters, and he proposes innovative solutions for preventing them. He examines ambiguities in language when aviation jargon and colloquial English are mixed, when a word is used that has different meanings, and when different words are used that sound alike. To remedy these problems, Cushing proposes a visual communication system and a computerized voice mechanism to help clear up confusing language. Fatal Words is an accessible explanation of some of the most notorious aircraft tragedies of our time, and it will appeal to scholars in communications, linguistics, and cognitive science, to aviation experts, and to general readers.

Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945

Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945
Author: Anthony J. Mireles
Publisher: McFarland
Total Pages: 442
Release: 2006-05-23
Genre: History
ISBN:

During World War II, the air over the continental United States was a virtual third front. The little-known statistics are alarming: the Army Air Forces lost more than 4,500 aircraft in combat against Japanese army and naval air forces in the war. During the same time, the AAF lost more than 7,100 aircraft in the United States to accidents in training and transportation. Such accidents claimed the lives of more than 15,530 pilots, crewmembers and ground personnel, and the stories of their deaths are largely forgotten. This work chronicles the 6,350 known fatal AAF aircraft accidents that occurred in the continental United States from January 1941 through December 1945. Each crash summary, based on official records, provides details such as crash location and cause, the people involved and the type and number of aircraft. An aircraft serial number index, a record of AAF aircraft still listed as missing, crash statistics and a directory of AAF stations in the United States are included.

Improving the Continued Airworthiness of Civil Aircraft

Improving the Continued Airworthiness of Civil Aircraft
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 87
Release: 1998-09-11
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0309173744

As part of the national effort to improve aviation safety, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) chartered the National Research Council to examine and recommend improvements in the aircraft certification process currently used by the FAA, manufacturers, and operators.

Fatal Civil Aircraft Accidents

Fatal Civil Aircraft Accidents
Author: Peter J. Stevens
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 219
Release: 2014-05-12
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1483193314

Fatal Civil Aircraft Accidents: Their Medical and Pathological Investigation focuses on relevant literature and discussions of the impact of medical and pathological investigation on fatal flying accidents. The publication first elaborates on public transport accidents, natural disease in the operating crew, impaired efficiency of a pilot due to intoxication, and non-medical cause for an accident. Topics include carbon monoxide intoxication, drugs, natural disease as a contributory cause for an accident, and natural disease as the primary cause for an accident. The book then takes a look at pathological evidence of events prior to an accident, reconstruction of events at impact and immediately after an accident, and natural disease in the pilots. The book ponders on glider accidents, natural disease in glider pilots, reconstruction of events during an accident, survival and safety equipment, and medical standards for glider pilots. The manuscript also examines fatal airliner accident as an example of mass disaster, official bodies and groups concerned with the investigation of an accident, identification of the bodies of the dead, and certification of death and disposal of the deceased. The text is a valuable source of data for researchers interested in the medical and pathological investigation of aircraft accidents.

Aircraft Accidents in Florida

Aircraft Accidents in Florida
Author: Robert Widner
Publisher: Lulu.com
Total Pages: 356
Release: 2009-05-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 0557035236

Over 1,000 documented accidents compiled from news releases, official accident reports and interviews with survivors.