Impressive dead stick landing in F-16, No engine, 9000' in 3.5 minutes

CCIP · 02-14-11, 12:43 AM

Well, the F-16 can't fly without the computers. Its "flying tail" that makes it so aerodynamically-efficient also happens to be aerodynamically-unstable and requires constant split-second adjustments to keep the plane flying straight. According to some (possibly exaggarated) reading I'd done on the F-16, the plane would flip out of control and get torn apart even from 'normal' flight were that system to fail. Nor are there any physical connections between the stick and the control surfaces.

For all it's worth though, the system works surprisingly well and is part of what makes it so snappy when it comes to maneuvering.

02-14-11, 12:43 AM	#6
CCIP Navy Seal Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Waterloo, Canada Posts: 8,700 Downloads: 29 Uploads: 2	Well, the F-16 can't fly without the computers. Its "flying tail" that makes it so aerodynamically-efficient also happens to be aerodynamically-unstable and requires constant split-second adjustments to keep the plane flying straight. According to some (possibly exaggarated) reading I'd done on the F-16, the plane would flip out of control and get torn apart even from 'normal' flight were that system to fail. Nor are there any physical connections between the stick and the control surfaces. For all it's worth though, the system works surprisingly well and is part of what makes it so snappy when it comes to maneuvering. __________________ There are only forty people in the world and five of them are hamburgers. -Don Van Vliet (aka Captain Beefheart)