Bad tires

[CAflyer]

So lately there have been a few things in the news about planes popping a tired and crashing on landing or take off because of that. I figure tires pop more often than reported and nothing happens. What usually happens if a tire pops and what are conditions that would cause a bad crash. Is it something to worry about or not? I know I shouldn't worry about anything!

[Captain Hutch]

Hi CAflyer,

Good questions! Normally a blown tire on takeoff isn't that much of a problem and is low on the list of things to worry about. The main reason is that there is at least one other tire on that same side that will take up the load. Depending on the speed at which the tire blows, the pilot may decide to reject the takeoff, or continue the takeoff at his option and then return to land, possibly reducing the aircraft weight by burning off fuel prior to landing. There is a slight chance that when the tire blows that fragments of the tire will damage the trailing edge flaps or hydraulic lines in the wing behind the tire. If the pilots are aware that a tire did blow on takeoff (not always the case), they will probably not retract the gear since a damaged tire might possible damage the gear wheel well. I am not sure that I have heard of any aircraft crashing resulting from a blown tire except for posssibly the concorde several years ago on takeoff, and I believe that modifications were made to the aircraft after that.

A tire blown on landing probably will not present a problem since the extra tire should prevent directional problems.

Hope that helps!

Hutch :tiphat:

[CAflyer]

thanks for answering. Yeah I guess it's just like a car. Sometimes you get a blown tire and nothing happens but then other times it can make a big accident. Every situation is different I guess. Thanks.