Why These Boeing Models Need A Tail Stand At The Gate

What if we told you that immoderate Boeing planes tin assistance their chemoreceptor without anyone rubbing nan yoke — oh, and this tin hap while nan level is parked astatine nan gate? It's a very existent arena called tail tipping. Unlike debates over yokes versus broadside sticks, this has thing to do pinch aviator input. 

The full point boils down to playground physics. An airplane connected nan crushed is simply a elephantine seesaw balancing connected its main landing gear. For everything to enactment level, nan halfway of gravity needs to enactment guardant of this pivot point, but it moves arsenic group and cargo are unloaded. On immoderate planes, peculiarly longer aliases stretched models for illustration nan Boeing 737-900 series, nan separator for correction is amazingly slim owed to creation choices Boeing has made.

To beryllium clear, this is not nan aforesaid arsenic a tail strike, which happens erstwhile a aviator whitethorn return an fierce perspective of onslaught connected takeoff and scrapes nan plane's derriere connected nan runway. Tail tipping is simply a static, slow-motion screwup that happens erstwhile nan level is stationary. To forestall these graceful giants from unexpectedly tilting back, crushed crews employment a amazingly low-tech solution — a tail stand. Often called a pogo stick, it's a sturdy rod placed nether nan aft fuselage that acts arsenic a kickstand, physically preventing nan tail from dropping. For craft for illustration nan 737-900ER, this isn't conscionable a bully thought — it's often modular operating procedure.

The kickstand isn't conscionable a bully thought — it's nan final, beingness defense successful a multi-layered strategy designed to negociate a known creation characteristic. For years, nan work for this strategy fell successful a spot of a grey area of who was responsible for bringing nan instrumentality into play. Starting in 2019, nan Federal Aviation Administration has told airlines it is their nonstop work — nary much finger-pointing allowed. 

This meticulous crushed choreography is conscionable an illustration of nan highly circumstantial procedures crews must maestro for these workhorse aircraft. The 737 family's agelong history has led to a big of unsocial characteristics that mightiness look counterintuitive, including nan reasons why you can't usage a Boeing 737's rear exits successful a h2o landing.

Recognizing that gaps tin beryllium successful interpretation, European regulators are now taking a much nonstop approach. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has rolled retired caller regulations that make crushed handling companies formally and straight accountable for safety. The agency moreover specifically calls retired craft tail tipping arsenic a cardinal consequence to beryllium managed by crushed crews. This move from guidance to nonstop regularisation shows a increasing acknowledgment that arsenic craft designs are pushed to their limits, nan procedural safeguards meant to support them safe request much rigorous oversight.

So, what happens erstwhile nan procedures aren't followed, aliases nan humble tail guidelines is missing successful action? Simply put, gravity happens. As it turns out, physics does not attraction astir formation schedules. A mates of high-profile incidents, specifically pinch nan Boeing 737-900ER, show conscionable really easy things tin spell wrong. 

In 2018, a Ukraine International Airlines 737-900ER fell unfortunate to a cleanable large wind erstwhile crews unloaded nan beforehand cargo first but nan conveyor for nan rear cargo broke. As passengers departed their seats, nan level tipped. Another illustration occurred successful 2021, erstwhile a United Airlines 737-900ER carrying nan University of Southern California shot squad tipped complete astatine a location airdrome successful Idaho. United, 1 of nan U.S. airlines pinch nan largest Boeing fleets, knows these procedures well, but nan smaller Idaho airdrome reportedly didn't person nan required tail stand. As unit and instrumentality were unloaded, nan level pivoted backward onto its tail.

These incidents item that nan information strategy is simply a chain, and a azygous surgery nexus — beryllium it a surgery conveyor loop aliases a missing portion of crushed instrumentality — tin bring nan full point down. Or, successful this case, pointing up.