Date: 08 Aug 97 05:41:21
From: duenasd@kuentos.guam.net (David Duenas)
Organization: Kuentos Communications Inc.
References: 1 2 3
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In article <airliners.1997.1717@ohare.Chicago.COM>,
"[non-spam]jfmezei"@videotron.ca wrote:
> Karl Swartz wrote:
> > to the crash, which occurred at 2:35 am local time in heavy rain.
> > NTSB chairman James Hall said the glide slope portion of the ILS was
> > not functioning.
>
> Could someone put this missing glide slope in perspective ?
>
> Just how important is it to a landing in darkness with little or no
> visibility ? What other instruments/information would have been
> available to the pilot to help him stay on track to the runway ?
>
> Is it plausible that the missing glide slope would have resulted in the
> plane being much lower than it should have been in its approach ?
>
> How common is it for the glide slope to be inoperational for airports
> that handle 747s on a daily basis ? Is this a no-brainer for pilots when
> it is missing, or does this require a lot more attention ?
Suggest you check out web sites for NBC at www.msnbc.com. They had a good
description of what the glide slope was about. Really, it's like an
invisible line the plane rides down to the runway. If you have been
following the news, I don't buy the ILS as the cause. The FAA just
upgraded their radar system here and Guam now has one of the nations most
sophisticated radar sites. The Air Force actually operates the tower as
they also control flight ops for the bombers/fighters/etc. at Andersen AFB
on the northeasternmost portion of the island. Check out CNN, or ABC
siteas also. They had good general maps of the island as well as info.
My wife works for a major US carrier whose hub is here and they fly 747s
and DC-10s in addition to smaller 727s, etc. out of here all the time.
They will continue to fly day and night ops despite CNN's 7/6/97 report of
western carriers not flying to Guam at night. Only carriers from US are
Continental, United and Northwest. International carriers include KAL,
Thai, JAL, Air Nippon, Singapore Airlines, etc. We have had over 60
flights since the system went down for an upgrade. For more info, check
out www.radiopacific.com. This is the local talk show station everyone
here just about listens to. The morning show starts at 6:00 AM Guam time
which is 1:00 PM in the afternoon on the previous day in the west coast.
Check it out for a feel of what is happening. Don't wait to long,
though. Many people listen from around the world and they can't keep up
with demand on the server.
