This Air France plane
is a prime example of how the Black Box system has serious flaws.

The aircraft are in near-constant (if not constant) radio communication with someone on the ground, i.e. Air traffic control.

Why don't they use some of the radio bandwidth (lets say, 9.6kbp/s, or the quality of a phone call) to stream the cockpit musings to a safe place on the ground?

Surely it is better to have low bandwidth copies of the recorder, than to have no frigging idea where the plane fell out the sky, let alone whats on the black box?

Discuss.
(Ethelred is watching cheese grow, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 15:52, 35 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

What happened
to the 'fact' that a blackbox sends a 'Here I am' signal for at least 30 days whilst under 3 miles of sea water?
( sandettie light vessel automatic New Twitter - @bollocksreally, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 15:54, Reply)

As they have little clue
as to where it is, basically somewhere between Brazil and Paris, then it has been mentioned that they may never find it within the 30 days.
(Ethelred is watching cheese grow, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 15:56, Reply)

Black box
Should be a tiny robot.
With a parachute AND flippers.
( Cawl, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 15:55, Reply)

close
parachute jetpack
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:01, Reply)

Yes!
It's gotta have a cute little pair of 1920's fighter-pilot goggles though.
( Cawl, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:02, Reply)

And a bushy moustache
And say "Tally ho!"
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:07, Reply)

Now that,
Is just stupid.
( Cawl, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:08, Reply)

Don't say that infront of the robot!
You'll hurt his feelings!
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:09, Reply)

They don't have feelings.
Stupid robots.
( Cawl, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:10, Reply)

You tell that to the blighter
He's trying to keep a stiff upper lip, but his Gentleman Adventurer exterior is beginning to crack.

Are... are those tears?
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:13, Reply)

Stop it!
I'm going to cry.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:16, Reply)

IT'S NOT TRUE!
If you fall for their tricks then we'll have John Connors appearing all over the place, trying to save the future.
( Cawl, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:17, Reply)

*listens to haunting piano solo*
*as, head low and his little robotic shoulders slumped as if his tiny jetpack had quadrupled in weight, the robot walks towards the setting sun along a lonely, dusty road.*
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:19, Reply)

*Imagines the sad song from Scrubs*
Ba da Dum Dum Dee Dum ... Dum .. Dah

*fifth lower*

Ba da Dum Dum Dee Dum ... Dum .. Dah
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:27, Reply)

*wipes a solitary tear from his eye*
What? No, I'm ok, just had something in my eye. Dust.
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:32, Reply)

I'm with you
on the tash front.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:11, Reply)

Woooooooosh
That's the sound of this post going straight over my head.
(Applebite Uh! A cow!, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:01, Reply)

Is that a poor pun
or an unintended one?
(Ethelred is watching cheese grow, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:02, Reply)

Unintended.
I honestly did not understand a word of it.
(Applebite Uh! A cow!, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:06, Reply)

Or get Rolf Harris to sit on every flight
and document it through the medium of cartoon
( Naked Ape call me Caitlyn, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:01, Reply)

ooosht titta haaah
*scribbles plane on fire"

Hey, can you tell what it is yet?

*wobbles wobbleboard*
(Ethelred is watching cheese grow, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:02, Reply)

I blame the kangaroo

Notoriously bad flyers and this one was probably cracked up to the gills after a week of whoring and drug taking in Rio.
( Naked Ape call me Caitlyn, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:03, Reply)

"can you tell what it is yet?.... yes, that's right, it's your impending death !"

( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:03, Reply)

Haha!
Nicely done!
( Cawl, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:11, Reply)

Passenger airlines use such old planes, that the technology wasn't really around then.
BA shorthule flights still use CRT telivisions, and they all use some sort of VHS/DAT tapes.

I've always thought, with the weight of the CRTs, they could retro-fit them with LCDs and still save a fortune on fuel (via the weight of them). They could also use digital or DVD for the programs, thus save a fortune on repuducing the tapes.

The low-cost airlines could make a fortune by adding in power outlets and wifi, but for the wifi, their staff will need training.
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:07, Reply)

True
But as you said, surely it would save a lot of cash by retrofitting a new radio module with data facilities than by losing serious amounts on insurance :|
(Ethelred is watching cheese grow, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:10, Reply)

I don't think it would save on insurance, and the costs mean creating a world-wide network of recievers.
The cost of SatPhones, on rent, is huge, and I don't think that network could handle the traffic.... there are a lot of planes out there.

You could say about quad-band, but planes go to places outside of quad-band reception quite a lot (eg, the middle of the alantic).
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:26, Reply)

All aeroplanes should have parachutes under the seats.

( whenanimalsattackhumans clad in global hypercolour, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:14, Reply)

With no training in how to parachute
more people on average will die trying to escape a crashing plane than will survive a crash landing.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:17, Reply)

Surely
no black box would ever be truly lost...if it was built inside a HONDA ACCORD?
(LongJohnBaldry, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:20, Reply)

Honda Accords
aren't allowed to have Black Boxes fitted for legal reasons. Vigilantes don't like to be traced.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:26, Reply)

Hmmm....
I think we should seek the opinion of INTERNETLAWYERMAN regarding the validity of such evidence in a court case.

And then mock him from within our Nissan Micras.
(LongJohnBaldry, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:29, Reply)

I've got a Nissan Micra
It's black....and a bit pants.

Actually, it belongs to the mrs as I don't have a licence :0(
( SpikeyPickle wishes he was mabazaritchie, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:35, Reply)

Are you sure it doesn't belong
to an immigrant stealing your job?

*runs off sniggering*
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:41, Reply)

Nope
We don't get many immigrants of any race round these parts - all very English, white and middle class :0)

The ones that do come here soon realise how shit it is and fuck off elsewhere.
( SpikeyPickle wishes he was mabazaritchie, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:45, Reply)