
Cessna 188 Pacific Rescue - curtis
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cessna_188_Pacific_rescue
======
matt_morgan
"Vette ... instructed the Cessna to point directly at the setting sun. He did
the same, and noted the difference in heading between the aircraft as four
degrees. After making an allowance for the differing altitudes of the
aircraft, the difference in sunset times between the aircraft and Norfolk
Island was also noted. This data allowed the crew to calculate that the Cessna
must be southwest of the DC-10 by about 400 nautical miles."

A story for your kids when they think they'll never have to understand this
math stuff, since computers do it for them.

~~~
ceejayoz
That said, the kids might point out that most pilots these days will have a
GPS in the plane, as well as a backup iPad with Foreflight.

Especially if they're doing a cross-Pacific ferry flight.

~~~
sangnoir
The Cessna got lost because its direction finder was broken without pilots
knowledge, and the other _plane_ with backup equipment crashed en route. A
future retelling of the same story would be "While boarding, the ipad fell
onto the runway, cracking the screen and damaging the digitiser. The GPS then
malfunctioned"

------
porjo
Here's an explanation of the 'aural boxing' technique used by the planes to
find each other:

[http://www.navworld.com/navcerebrations/mayday.htm](http://www.navworld.com/navcerebrations/mayday.htm)

~~~
FabHK
In summary: You assume that the target is stationary(ish) and you know, say,
that it is to your front/left.

You fly straight and note when the other plane comes into radio range (i1),
and when it goes out of radio range again (o1).

Now you turn 90 degrees left and note when it goes into range (i2) and out of
range again (o2).

Now you connect i1 and o1 with a segment S1, and draw a perpendicular to it,
P1, through its midpoint (the "Line segment bisector"). Similar, with 1
replaced by 2.

The intersection of P1 and P2 is where the target is.

This works because the edge of the radio range is (basically) a circle that
you're intersecting with your segments, and the perpendicular bisectors go
through the centre of the circle.

Cool technique. It doesn't even depend on your turn being exactly 90 degrees.
It does depend on the pilot on the other radio jabbering on non-stop, and you
knowing where you are - without GPS etc.

Frankly, the navigators of early last century, before GPS and inertial
navigation system - respect. They knew how to reckon. (Here, the guys in the
jet had INS, apparently, but still, hats off!)

------
js2
Seems like a good place to share a few amazing plane related survival stories:

\-
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lauren_Elder](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lauren_Elder)
_Lauren Elder survives 1976 plane crash_

\-
[https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-17476615](https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-17476615)
_Juliane Koepcke: How I survived a plane crash_

\- [http://clear-prop.org/aviation/haynes.html](http://clear-
prop.org/aviation/haynes.html) _The Crash of United Flight 232 by Capt. Al
Haynes_

~~~
Stratoscope
Oh my, Lauren Elder's story is quite something. She survived the crash,
climbed down from the mountain including a 100' descent straight down a dry
waterfall, and made her way into Independence, California with a broken arm,
looking for help.

And people shunned her!

Because she looked a bit disheveled.

~~~
henriquemaia
From the Wikipedia's article:

> People saw her disheveled appearance and were afraid; _Charles Manson had
> recently been put on trial in the town, and his female followers spent a lot
> of time hanging around it_.

The full context makes people's reactions to her much more acceptable and
understandable.

~~~
Stratoscope
Very true, and I didn't mean my comment to be critical of the people in the
town. Of course they had reason to be fearful after what they had recently
experienced.

I was looking at it from her point of view: she barely survived a plane crash
where the other two people died, almost lost her life _again_ on the way down
the mountain, and then when she thought she'd reached "safety"...

Just an awful experience for everyone involved.

------
iscrewyou
> Gordon Brooks was the flight engineer on Air New Zealand Flight 901 and was
> killed when the DC-10 crashed into Mount Erebus, Antarctica, on 28 November
> 1979. Vette published a book about the Flight 901 disaster, called Impact
> Erebus.

And then Wikipedia leads me to this:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_New_Zealand_Flight_901](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_New_Zealand_Flight_901)

What a series of unfortunate events.

~~~
dsfyu404ed
There's an entire website for that. It's much more comprehensive than the wiki
page. Also it has that nostalgic early 2000s feel.

[http://www.erebus.co.nz/](http://www.erebus.co.nz/)

------
js2
> He touched down on Norfolk Island after being in the air for twenty-three
> hours and five minutes.

How is that possible? The Cessna 188 has a cruise speed around 110 mph (at 75%
power) and a range of 370 miles. That implies a bit over 3 hours of time
aloft. Stall speed is 60 mph. I'm not understanding how you get to 23 hours of
flight time.

~~~
chrisseaton
It's covered in the Bakula movie - they stripped the plane down to the extreme
and installed fuel tanks so huge that they could barely take off.

That's also why he was on his own - his oppo crashed on takeoff due to the
massive fuel load.

It looks like the full movie with the explanation is on YouTube
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4_f3T8AzJo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4_f3T8AzJo).

~~~
Stratoscope
Forgive my ignorance, but could you say what "his oppo" means? Thanks!

(Update: after reading the Wikipedia article I see that it probably refers to
"his colleague", but I wasn’t familiar with the use of "oppo" here.)

~~~
ceejayoz
Friend/companion. [https://www.merriam-
webster.com/dictionary/oppo](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oppo)

~~~
Stratoscope
Ah, roger that, thanks!

I see that this is a British English word, so it brings to mind the old
saying: "Two peoples divided by a common language."

~~~
cjbprime
If it helps, I grew up in England and never heard this word either -- sounds
like use outside aviation/Navy is rare.

~~~
NeedMoreTea
It's archaic, apparently an abbreviation of opposite number. We might use work
buddy today, where colleague is too wooden.

Was pretty common to hear amongst the wartime generation, but has declined
pretty rapidly since the 80s. _Never once_ heard it used for "sweetheart" as
Webster's seems to think.

------
curtis
This BBC article about Atlantic ferry pilots might also be interesting: "The
pilots who risk their lives flying tiny planes over the Atlantic",
[https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34484972](https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34484972)
(HN Discussion at
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17685358](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17685358)).

~~~
curtis
Here's another one: "The Parachute That Saved a Plane",
[https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2015/01/amazing...](https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2015/01/amazing-
footage-of-a-small-plane-being-rescued-by-a-cruise-ship-and-a-
parachute/384837/?single_page=true).

------
mastazi
Tangentially related: there is a website that gathers info about solo flights
around the world, with links to personal websites and blogs, people who found
this article interesting may like it:
[http://www.earthrounders.com/](http://www.earthrounders.com/)

Edit: there is also another website specifically related to solo flights
around the world completed before the advent of GPS:
[http://www.soloflights.org/index.html](http://www.soloflights.org/index.html)

------
hypertexthero
Potentially of interest: A free celestial navigation course:

[https://my.vanderbilt.edu/astronav/](https://my.vanderbilt.edu/astronav/)

------
yborg
Considering insuring the plane and pilot as well as the ferry and fuel fees.
wouldn't it be cheaper to crate and ship a plane that size than to fly it over
the open Pacific for 4 days?

~~~
goodcanadian
My understanding is that crating and shipping an airplane requires
disassembly. Then you have to reassemble it at the other end and reprove
airworthiness as it has been rebuilt. The price, not to mention time consumed,
is higher than just flying the thing to its destination.

------
antihero
I'm intrigued as to how the DC-10 had enough fuel to take such a massive
detour?

~~~
mcguire
A Cessna 188, even loaded to the gills with extra fuel, can stay in the air
for 24 hours?

~~~
ceejayoz
Probably. Throttle way back and fuel consumption drops dramatically.

------
Fnoord
"Vette wanted all the passengers to be involved, so he asked them to look out
of the windows and invited small groups to come to the cockpit."

Can't imagine this happening in this century, given 9/11\. Mind you,
regardless of airplane security being more or less secure nowadays, and
regardless of the chance of such a near accident/rescue happening plus the
chance of having a terrorist on-board; rather because of the strict rules and
the fear associated post 9/11.

~~~
FabHK
As a kid/teenager last century, I was frequently let into the cockpit of
airliners in flight, and sometimes even invited to sit in the jump seat and
fly along for a while - at least once even for the landing. Glorious. Innocent
days.

~~~
tangue
Since I saw this episode of "Air crash"[1] about Aeroflot Flight 593 when a
kid invited in the cockpit crashed an Aeroflot Airbus I'm pretty happy that
kids aren't any longer invite to the cockpit.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1kPAWVI5UA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1kPAWVI5UA)

~~~
FabHK
haha, yeah, I'm aware of that. I should say though that they let me sit in the
cockpit, but they didn't let me "drive" :-)

------
m3at
Interesting use of the instruments.

Aside from the clear compassion and helpfulness, I wonder how much of it was
thanks to careful training versus a creative use of the available tools?

~~~
gHosts
Wellll..... it seemed to be a long list of ....

1\. Tried this incredibly cunning and creative trick... 2\. It didn't work.
3\. Try another incredibly cunning and creative trick... 4\. goto 2.

And then just before the end, Get Very Very Lucky with something that had
nothing to do with cunning or creativity.

~~~
DiffEq
Not really, the Wikipedia page is a bit short on provinding the whole
picture...

They used Magnetic Heading difference, with the difference between the setting
sun angle, to determine general direction of the Cessna from the DC-10.

Then they used VHF boxing to pinpoint the Cessna. AT this point he was told to
Fly NW. This direction alone would probably have saved him.

However Navigation at dark over the ocean is an iffy thing so always work it
till you get home. So that is what they did. Since the Cessna could not see
the fuel trail made by the DC-10 since it was higher up and the pilot could
not see through his canopy, they used sunset settings times to further locate
the Cessna.

Now with this additional directional confirmation Vette could have told the
pilot a more exact heading and then, the oil rig location confirmed it.

If not for the initial course correction to fly NW the Cessna would have never
seen the oil rig and would be somewhere in the ocean today.

------
DrScump
This is reminiscent of the Frederick Forsythe short story "The Shepherd", in
which a Vampire (early British jet bomber) suffers instrument failure flying
westward to Canada on Christmas Eve.

I highly recommend the audio of the classic reading by Alan Maitland of CBC's
"As It Happens", available on their website. They rebroadcast it every
December.

------
bedhead
There was a made for TV movie about this in the late 80’s...it was one of the
things that first got me interested in aviation. Wish I could find the name of
that movie - any help?

~~~
coryfklein
From the article:

> The incident was dramatised in the American 1993 made-for-TV movie Mercy
> Mission - the Rescue of Flight 771. It starred Scott Bakula as Jay Prochnow
> and Robert Loggia as Gordon Vette.

