Expert: Dacus T. Grant - 3/2/2011

Question
Hello. 
My name is Jon and I'm a researcher for the CBS tv show CSI: Miami. It's my job to make sure our show is as accurate as possible. I'm writing you in the hopes you can help us with pilot issues for our season finale. 

 If you happen to have some thoughts on this, we would love to hear them. 

This one's about a fugitive being brought back to Miami on a small plane. The fugitive engineers an escape by hiring a pilot and navigator who will divert the plane to a private airstrip where an associate will be waiting to pick him up. But his plan is foiled when our Hero realizes the plane is changing course, confronts the pilot, and the plane goes down into the Glades.

My questions are as follows:

- Is there a way to figure out exactly where the plane was diverting to, if the only piece of information we have is a minor course adjustment in mid air? The pilot diverted from the flight plan, so nothing was filed with air traffic control. Is there a way we can calculate -- based on the airspeed, altitude, and change in course -- where the plane was headed? Is it possible to use dead reckoning to do this?

- Are the airspeed and altitude at the time of the course change recorded in the plane's onboard computer? Or navigation system? Or would we check the black box? 

Our goal is to figure out where the plane was supposed to land so we can go there and capture the fugitive's associate...

ALSO...

We're looking for procedure and lingo for our Hero to perform an emergency landing of a G4 aircraft. He will have a little help from a battle-weary, wounded navigator, who is talking him through to a rough landing on an abandoned landing strip. We’re looking for a step-by-step here. And to complicate the matter, gunfire in the passenger compartment reached the cockpit. We’re looking for ideas for damaged instrumentation, especially damage that could complicate the landing process.

Hope this makes sense and that I'm not asking too much or stuff you don't know anything about. Whatever thoughts you have would be great to hear. 

Best

Jon

Answer
Hi Jon,
  I will try to help.  First I have a few questions/comments.  You said a small plane, but a G4 is not a small plane and the avionics are apt to be different in a larger plane.  A small plane will not have a black box. I am not a pilot, but a retired air traffic controller.  I think only commercial flights have flight data recorders.  I am familiar with the lingo so I will give you my best guess on what you are suggesting.

1. Is there a way we can calculate -- based on the airspeed, altitude, and change in course -- where the plane was headed? Is it possible to use dead reckoning to do this?
    In my opinion there is no way to determine where an airplane is going based on the criteria you describe.  Most aircraft use GPS and just like GPS in cars, the GPS will tell the pilot what to do but he is free to navigate wherever he wants.  Just like in your car you can program you can to go to Memphis and then drive to New York.  Using things like course airspeed and fuel you can estimate the original destination, but you would be just guessing.  For example an aircraft departing Memphis going north and having the fuel to get to Chicago could actually be going to St. Louis, or even Cape Girardeau.  Dead reckoning is just using known landmarks to determine where you have been and from there determine where you want to get to.  You could use dead reckoning to estimate the new destination, but not the original destination, except as in the example cited above. For example. you could have your hero recognize one or two airports that the flight has overflown and knowing the range of the aircraft, fuel on board, and rate of fuel consumption at altitude estimate the original destination.  Remember if the flight goes above 18,000 feet you must file a flight plan and have air traffic control clearance.  Below 18,000 you can file if you want to or you can fly VFR(Visual Flight Rules). Better with smaller aircraft, range and airport options are limited.  An example would be a Lear 24 departs New Orleans headed north, our here sees Jackson MS and Memphis TN. He knows the range of the LR24 is about 1700NM and he knows Chicago is about 900nm.  A logical guess would be Chicago or St. Louis.  If the aircraft got into trouble and had to land after passing Memphis a logical place would be the old SAC base at Bytheville.  

2.  Lingo and step by step.
N123:  Center this is November one two three, we have an emergency and need to land immediately.
Center:  Roger N123 what is the nature of your emergency?
N123:  We have had a sudden decompression and need to get down immediately.  
Center:   Roger N123, descend and maintain Flight Level two four zero (FL240), say Intentions.
N123:   Roger FL240.  In addition to losing pressure, we have also had gun shots , the pilot and co-pilot are both dead .  
Center:   Roger N123, Say Altitude and who is flying the aircraft?
N1213:  I am flying the aircraft I have no experience, however I do have a wounded ex-Air Force pilot assisting me.  He is gravely wounded and little or no help.  
Center:  Roger, N123 descend and maintain one two thousand.  
N123: Roger down to one two thousand.  Center the flight controls are pretty messed up and some of the gages are cracked.  I am not sure of my altitude; the gage is cracked and stuck at 315.  
Center:  Roger. N123 what are your intentions?  
N123:  I want to land as quickly as possible.  I noticed we passed over Memphis a few minutes ago.  Isn’t there an old SAC base around here somewhere?
Center:  Roger N123.  Yes the old Bytheville AFB is twelve O’clock and two five miles.  Let me check the weather and make sure they are VFR.  
N123:  Roger
Center:   N123, Bytheville is VFR showing wind zero three zero at three knots, visibility 6 miles.  Altimeter two niner niner two.   Fly heading three five zero.  Descend and maintain four thousand.
N123:  Roger turning to heading three five zero and continuing to descend.  
Center: N123 do you have ground contact?
N123: Affirmative.
Center:  Roger.  Descend and maintain two thousand one hundred .  Report the Bytheville airport in sight, expect a visual approach.  The airport is ten o’clock and one five miles.
N123:  Roger.  Looking for the airport.  
N123:  I have the airport in sight.

Center:  N123 Roger.  Be advised there are two airports very close together in that area.  
The Bytheville Municipal airport is 5 miles east of the old Bytheville AFB.
N123:  Roger I have both airports in sight and will attempt to land at the AFB.
Center:  Roger.  N123 cleared visual approach to the Bytheville airport.   Report your downtime on this frequency.  Altimeter 2992.  Good luck.

This is basically the air traffic controller and pilot discussion and lingo.  You will need to augment that with instructions that your hero is getting from his wounded pilot.  For example, make sure the landing gear is down.  Make sure altimeter is set correctly.  

Anything that you damage in the cock pit is going to make the landing extremely difficult.  Altitude readout, Altimeter, Airspeed indicator, Navigational equipment.  Whether the airports are IFR or VFR.  

If you would like to discuss this some more send me an email at dacusg@gamil.com

Thanks

Dacus Grant