“Boeing Has A BIG Problem” Richard Quest Unpacks Turbulence Death
Summary
TLDRIn this transcript, CNN's Piers Morgan interviews aviation expert Richard Quest about recent turbulence on a Singapore Airlines flight that tragically resulted in a passenger's death. They discuss the nature of turbulence, the limitations of aircraft systems in predicting its severity, and the broader implications for air safety. Quest emphasizes that while modern aircraft are sophisticated, turbulence detection is not foolproof, and he reassures that flying remains extremely safe despite recent incidents. The conversation also touches on Boeing's quality control issues and the importance of always fastening seat belts during flights.
Takeaways
- 🛫 The script discusses the current public perception of air travel safety, particularly concerning Boeing aircraft, following several incidents and whistleblower claims.
- 📉 A British man's death after a Singapore Airlines flight encountered severe turbulence highlights the potential dangers of flying, despite modern aircraft's advanced safety features.
- 🚀 Aviation expert Richard Quest explains that while the turbulence experienced on the Singapore Airlines flight was violent, it was not extreme in terms of altitude change, only several hundred feet.
- 🛑 The confusion around the incident stems from people mistaking a controlled descent to a lower flight level for part of the turbulence event.
- 🔍 Quest emphasizes that no plane has ever crashed due to turbulence alone, and the Singapore Airlines incident was unlikely to result in a plane crash despite the severity.
- 🌩️ Modern aircraft have sophisticated systems to detect weather patterns, but they cannot always predict the exact severity of turbulence within a storm.
- 🔧 Boeing is facing issues related to quality control, as evidenced by incidents like a door malfunction on an Alaska Airlines flight, which raises concerns about the company's commitment to safety.
- 👨💼 CEO changes and company statements about prioritizing safety are contrasted with incidents that suggest ongoing quality issues within Boeing.
- 👀 The media's focus on aviation incidents can sometimes amplify public concern, even though many issues are not systemic and have always occurred sporadically.
- ✈️ Despite recent incidents, air travel is statistically safer now than ever before, with a multitude of checks and processes in place from aircraft manufacturing to passenger boarding.
- 💺 The importance of keeping seat belts fastened during flights is underscored by the turbulence incident, as it can prevent injuries even during seemingly minor fluctuations in altitude.
Q & A
What concerns have been raised about Boeing's aircraft safety?
-There have been a series of claims and whistleblowers raising concerns about the safety of Boeing's aircraft, including high-profile incidents like a door blowing off an Alaska Airlines flight in January.
What happened on the Singapore Airlines flight mentioned in the transcript?
-The Singapore Airlines flight encountered severe turbulence, which resulted in a British man tragically dying of a suspected heart attack after the plane plunged 6,000 feet.
What is the significance of the vertical rate of ascent in the context of the Singapore Airlines flight turbulence?
-The vertical rate of ascent is significant because it indicates how quickly the plane was being pummeled up and down, which was several hundred feet a minute in this case, making the turbulence particularly violent.
What was the actual height differential the Singapore Airlines flight experienced during the turbulence?
-The actual height differential from bottom to top was about 400 feet, with the plane going from 37,000 feet up to 37,150 feet and then down to 36,700 feet.
Why can't modern aircraft detect the severity of turbulence like the incident on the Singapore Airlines flight?
-Modern aircraft can detect the presence of a storm, but they cannot accurately gauge the ferocity within it. Radar can show weather patterns, but the intensity of turbulence cannot be fully assessed until the plane experiences it.
What is a 'ride report' and how does it relate to turbulence?
-A ride report is information provided by pilots who have already flown through a weather system. It can help subsequent pilots understand the severity of turbulence that they might encounter.
What is the current belief about Boeing's safety and quality control?
-Boeing is believed to have a significant problem with quality control. Past incidents, including the MAX crashes and other issues, suggest a systemic problem that needs to be addressed.
How does the media's portrayal of aviation incidents affect public perception?
-The media's focus on incidents can create a perception of increased danger, even though many of these incidents were not systemic and were happening anyway. This can lead to unnecessary alarm and a skewed public perception of safety.
What is the general safety level of flying today compared to the past?
-Flying is safer now than it has ever been, with the chance of an accident being extremely low. The focus should be on other factors such as air traffic control and pilot training in some parts of the world.
What advice does Richard Quest give regarding seat belts on flights?
-Richard Quest advises always keeping your seat belt fastened while on a flight, even when sleeping, to avoid injuries from unexpected turbulence or sudden drops in altitude.
What was the context of the discussion about the MH370 flight disappearance?
-The discussion about MH370 was in the context of trying to understand what happened to the flight that disappeared from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, with the acknowledgment that the cause remains unknown.
Outlines
😨 Turbulence and Air Safety Concerns
This paragraph discusses the current climate of fear surrounding air travel, particularly concerning Boeing aircraft. It references several incidents that have raised safety concerns, such as a door blowing off an Alaska Airlines flight and a British man's death due to a heart attack following severe turbulence on a Singapore Airlines flight. The conversation with aviation expert Richard Quest explores the nature of turbulence, explaining that while it can be violent, it is not typically the cause of plane crashes. The discussion also touches on the limitations of aircraft systems in detecting the severity of turbulence and the importance of pilot reports in understanding weather conditions.
🛩️ Boeing's Quality Control Issues
The second paragraph delves into the specific problems Boeing has been facing, with a focus on quality control. It contrasts the profit-seeking mentality that led to the MAX incident with the current emphasis on safety under CEO Calhoun. The discussion points out a recent incident where a door was improperly secured, highlighting a lapse in safety protocols. While acknowledging that modern aircraft are well-built and safe, the conversation raises concerns about the potential for small issues to indicate a larger problem within the company's mindset. It also emphasizes the importance of not just the aircraft's safety, but also the reliability of air traffic control and pilot training.
💺 The Importance of Seat Belts in Air Travel
This paragraph emphasizes the critical importance of keeping seat belts fastened during flights, using the metaphor of an egg in a bottle to illustrate what can happen to passengers who are not restrained during turbulence. The conversation between the hosts includes personal anecdotes and a demonstration of the potential dangers of not wearing seat belts. It also touches on the Singapore Airlines incident as a reminder of the consequences of not following safety guidelines and the need for passengers to be more conscientious about their own safety.
🎙️ Reflections on MH370 and the UK Election
The final paragraph wraps up the conversation with a look back at the mystery of flight MH370 and the hosts' past collaboration to understand the incident. It also includes a humorous take on the optics of a UK election announcement that took place in poor weather, suggesting that the conditions may have detracted from the intended message. The conversation ends with a light-hearted discussion about the ideal (and not-so-ideal) travel companions on long flights, with a memorable anecdote about unknowingly befriending a famous musician during a flight.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Air Passenger
💡Boeing
💡Safety
💡Turbulence
💡Whistleblowers
💡Quality Control
💡Vertical Rate of Ascent
💡Autopilot
💡Ride Report
💡FAA
💡MH370
Highlights
Boeing has faced numerous claims regarding the safety of its aircraft.
Whistleblowers and high-profile incidents have raised public concern about air travel safety.
A British man died of a suspected heart attack after a Singapore Airlines flight encountered severe turbulence.
The turbulence caused the plane to ascend and descend several hundred feet at a rapid rate.
Despite the turbulence, the plane's movement was not extreme enough to cause structural failure.
Modern aircraft are equipped with sophisticated systems designed to detect turbulence.
Aircraft can receive 'ride reports' from pilots ahead to gauge the severity of turbulence.
Boeing has a significant problem with quality control, as evidenced by recent incidents.
The MAX incident was a result of profit-seeking over safety, according to documentation.
Boeing's new CEO has emphasized a shift towards prioritizing safety.
A recent incident where a door blew off mid-flight has cast doubt on Boeing's safety-first claims.
Despite concerns, air travel remains statistically safer than ever.
The media may be amplifying the perception of increased aviation safety issues.
Air traffic control, pilot training, and ancillary parts are bigger concerns than the aircraft itself.
Planes will not be modified in response to the recent turbulence incident as it was not preventable.
The importance of keeping seat belts fastened during flights, even during turbulence, was emphasized.
MH370's disappearance remains unsolved nearly a decade after the incident.
Transcripts
if you spend any time at all online at
the moment you'd be forgiven for
thinking it's a terrifying time to be an
air passenger Boeing in particular has
faced a slew of claims about the safety
of his aircraft several whistleblowers
have raised concerns a series of
high-profile incidents including a door
blowing off an Alaska airlin flight in
January have caused understandable
concern and yesterday a British man
tragic tragically died of a suspected
heart attack after a Singapore Airlines
flight hit severe turbulence and plunged
6,000 fet so should we be alarmed was
there one better to ask in CNN star an
aviation Mega brain Richard Quest who I
haven't spoken to in many years Richard
great to see you good to see you Piers
it's a fascinating story this one of the
Singapore flight because in essence it
could happen to any one of us that flies
there are no unique factors about this
case other than you have a plane that is
flying along and all of a sudden gets
hit by turbulence but what interesting
Piers is that the diff the the the
height that this plane went up and down
was not thousands of feet it was only
several hundred feet at each time but
the ferocity because of what's known as
the vertical rate of ascent that's what
was so powerful this plane was being
pummeled up and pummeled down several
hundred feet a minute and that's why it
was so difficult and ultimately what
what level did it go from and to by the
end of this right now this is where you
not that much the greatest differential
of feet seems to be about 300 so it goes
from
37,000 up to 37150 and then maybe down
to
36,700 right the confusion here appears
is people are confusing later on where
they see the plane descending to 31,000
ft but if you look at the chart that is
a controlled DEC
on autopilot and it's a continual
descent down to a lower level the actual
incident the differential is from bottom
to top is about 400 feet but it happens
aggressively it happens at a rate of
ascent of a th000 a minute and at a rate
of descent of 1500 a minute these are
very very violent movements but they're
just not that big no I thinkon is saying
that no plane has ever crashed from
turbulence
right correct it is the the plane is
built I mean let's take this incident
for instance there is absolutely zero
chance in my view that this incident was
ever going to cause the failure and
collapse and destruction of the plane
this was not that great a movement it
was a brutal movement it was violent but
it wasn't like the plane dropped 10,000
ft believe me if that had happened you'd
had a lot more dead bodies here's here's
my question clearly somebody died from a
heart attack it was obviously scary up
there and other people got injured but
here's my question I just assumed the
modern day aircraft are so sophisticated
now the systems they have why is it that
they would not be able to detect such
turbulence approaching because I'm told
they have all these built-in systems
which are specifically designed now to
actually detect when this stuff is there
so what happened there is a difference
between detecting the presence of the
storm and really understanding the
ferocity within it so yes they did see
that there was a weather pattern ahead
and it was obviously one that they could
not go around so they had to go through
or at least go back go you know skirt
the edges of but when this thing happens
what they can't tell you is just how bad
yes the Radar's got yellows and greens
and reds on it that will help them
understand it the best way actually is
what's known as a ride report which
comes from Pilots ahead of them and one
of the parts of the investigation will
be were there ride reports that told
them this was not very clever to be
going through it should they and one
other point peers um look at my office
just sort of vaguely behind you you can
see all the detroiters of the day now
imagine you're on the plane and they're
serving breakfast and suddenly you're
told well in a minute or two you're
going to hit this all of this is just
going to go up into the air and that's
why there's such a mess and those panels
by the way on the roof they're meant to
be opened and to taken down so somebody
hits it something opens it they fail all
the really serious stuff that controls
the aircraft is hidden way way down
beneath under the floor or in the walls
now there have been a lot of BOE related
incidents you know we've had Wheels
falling off we've had doors falling off
uh we've had whistleblowers coming
forward
to point out all sorts of flaws and
problems with the company and its
engines and so on and his aircraft what
is your belief about where the truth
lies does Boeing have a big problem if
it does what's causing
it yes is the short answer Boeing has a
big problem and the problem is one of
quality control let's go back to the max
incident the problem with the max
incident where where the the crashes of
the max incident wasn't quality it was
it was profit seeking over safety the
documentation is absolutely clear they
made mistakes in the way they designed
and the way they told Pilots about the
max but now take that as being your one
you then have Calhoun taking over as the
CEO and you have this two-year period
where he is telling us that everything
is changing things are getting better
safety safety safety safety first
nothing comes before safety and and then
right you have this door plug where four
plugs four screws are not put back on
and it not only blows the door out it
blows a hole a gigantic hole in Boeing's
argument that they are safety first
because For Crying Out Loud peers if
you're Safety First how do you not put
the four plugs back on the door why now
Michael O you know Michael of Ry yeah he
told me last year he said look we get
planes from Boeing and when we go
through them they're fine they're
perfectly safe but we find things that
aren't quite right right this isn't
being this isn't that something has been
left done blah blah nothing terribly
significant or serious but we fine we
have to put it right Alaska was an
egregious case of that and now boing
doesn't have um here's boing does not
have to convince me that it makes
brilliant bloody brilliant planes that
fly beautifully and are fuel efficient
it has to convince us all that it can
make those planes so that 6 months later
it doesn't have to go and repair them
you see my my parents don't fly at all
my mother's flown like once in 25 years
she's terrified of it I've never had any
problem I hate heights funny enough but
I've have no problem flying at all um
but I got to say the more of these
things that happen the more slightly
Twitchy you get and what you just said
is not massively reassuring because I
always think it's like if the little
things start to go wrong you always
assume that inevitably there's a mindset
issue that could lead to a bigger thing
going
wrong and that's exactly the sort of I
mean you're talking about Dog bikes baby
syndrome that we have in journalism you
have one incident and sudden you have
millions of incidents and they were
always happening all the time anyway but
suddenly you're seeing them all and this
is really I think where we in the media
have gone slightly a bit bit bit off
beam uh let's take United I mean United
has had a series of incidents but those
in were happening anyway and they
weren't that serious but it did raise
the question which is why the FAA got
involved and which is why United took
the measures that it did and which is
why United is now told yes you can take
new planes again you can carry on
expanding because there was nothing
systemic that's the word you need to
focus on and in Boeing's case there was
something systemic at Max arguably there
has been something systemic on quality
and that's what they have to address but
thank goodness there are a million and
one people and processes between when
the plane is handed over from Boe to the
airline to when you and I actually get
to sit on it and it starts to fly is it
safer to fly now than it's ever been do
you think just not withstanding all this
oh completely absolutely you got more
chance of being hit by lightning than
than than than an accident in a plane
absolutely I flew yesterday Riad to
London London to New York I'm flying
next week from somewhere else
I don't know I don't worry to be honest
to be honest P I do not worry about the
aircraft itself that I've seen Wings in
testing being sent to 45 50 degrees I've
seen just how wellb built the plane is
even if I mean ignoring the door blowing
off I worry more about air traffic
control I worry more about pilot
training in some cases in some parts of
the world and I worry about all the the
ancillary parts that make it but I do
not worry about the actual plane falling
apart it is the least of my problems and
this incident yesterday on this
Singapore Airlines flight as a result of
what happened as a result of the fact
somebody died are they going to be
modifying planes now to try and avoid
this recurring in the way that it did no
no they won't be because there's nothing
they could have done the man died
regretfully and and tragically uh
probably a heart attack what they will
be appear if I say to you and we've
known each other a while if I say to you
uh always keep your seat belt fastened
you immediately yawn and then here we go
apple pie motherhood and turn the light
turn the gas off if you're going away
from Chris if you're going away for
Christmas lag your pipes in Winter all
the usual
bromides right you think oh good here we
go again H Tell Me Something I Don't
Know But if I also give you the example
I'm just looking in my office if I can
find a suitable something to to
demonstrate let's take these things here
this is you on a plane now the plane
drops look what happens to you you go
down but the roof is here and you hit
the roof think of the egg in the bottle
put an egg in a bottle and shake it that
is you without a seat belt and there's
something plaz about passengers
particularly and I'm one of the worst
and I suspect you're up there too that
sort of fly frequently and with too cool
for seat belts I mean you know that's
for little old women at the front of the
plane whatever no I make sure now I
always fasten the belt and I keep it
Loosely fastened when I'm sleeping
because I don't want to be the egg in
the bottle that hits the roof of the
plane if we drop and and this thing
Singapore shows us you don't have to
drop much only a couple of hundred feet
I can't let you go without taking you
back to the last time we worked together
at CNN early 24 where for six
consecutive weeks night in night out as
I was hosting my my show Pi Morgan live
as it was then and you were my regular
guest through us at the aviation Guru
and we were trying to work out what the
hell had happened to that flight
MH370 from qua Lumpa to Beijing so my
question here nearly 10 years
later have we ever found out what
happened to that place no and I'm
looking for a copy of my book which is
somewhere here which I think I sent you
a copy of the no we haven't and that's
fascinating because you know people
people will tell me this happened that
happen we don't know just leave it at
that we don't know I have one question
for you peers if I may of course are you
excited at today's announcement on the
UK election it's interesting you know
what was really struck by is that uh you
know when things aren't going well for
you as a political leader and it just
when it rains it pours we would say
right as UK people and I watched Ry St
that came out came out number 10 door
and it was pouring with rain that's been
ghastly weather and they didn't have him
covered so he got absolutely soaked and
all I could think was the headline the
next day will be rather than rishy sunak
boldly goes for early election it's
going to be drowning Street you know
washed out washed out rishy you know
blah blah blah it'll all be rain and
soaking jokes and wet jokes that is not
a great optic all I could think I was
mesmerized not by the fact that was you
know July 4th which is Independence Day
has all his connotations for that and
it's a definitely a bold move by soon
that to do it but just as a former
newspaper editor the Glee I would have
felt at being able to immediately have a
big picture of this Dr WRA prime
minister with things can only get wetter
or whatever you want to say um that was
what struck me the Optics were
terrible which begs the question why on
Earth didn't they just move it inside
were they hoping to show was being man
who's like everybody else gets when it
you can't do it so I've got one question
for you before you go um and it's this
you fly a lot and you've already given
some insight into the ridiculous
schedule you have who is the person in
the world present company accepted who
you would least want to be finding
yourself sat next to on a long-term
longdistance
flight oh least want to least want to oh
that's easy that's easy wherever I'm
work working the CEO of the
company it's it's like being it's like
being you know the first time you're
invited to go on the corporate jet you
really think you've made it you're the
dogs butlocks and you really think oh
this is great and then you get to
realize you've got to sit on this bloody
plane and make polite conversation
without giving anything away to the CEO
wholy always gets the best seat out one
the front of the private jet so I love
sitting next to strangers and making
conversation and I love all of that and
I've perfected the art of saying you
will let me sleep now won't you do
forgive me not me go but um no the
person I would least like to spend 12
hours across the Pacific is the CEO I
once spent uh 10 hours flying from
London to Las Vegas on a Virgin Atlantic
Flight in one of their you know the pods
they used to do the in first class upper
class whatever they called it and there
was a very glamorous lady lying next to
me and we got on really well we started
having some drinks and laughs and talk
and we never actually got round to what
we both did and eventually she went to
sleep and one of the students came on
went you're getting on very well with
Shania I said Shania she went that's
that's Shania Twain I we'd be speaking
for three hours without me ever clocking
that she was at the time the biggest
country music star in the world on her
way to the Country Music Awards in Vegas
so you never know on a plane is my thing
you never know uh Richard great to catch
up with you thank you so much anytime P
anytime take care
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