::[ kampungkai ]::

Sunday, October 1

Emergency Slide-Raft

Sunday morning rain is falling
Steal some covers share some skin (I like that)
Clouds are shrouding us in moments unforgettable
You twist to fit the mold that I am in (oh)


ahhh beautiful day, Maroon 5's Sunday Morning playing in the background as i start my new entry of the week.

Ever thought how it would feel like being in a fire-drill on an aeroplane? Emergency doors deployed, cabin crews screamin/directing at the top of their voice, babies' crying..... everything in CHAOS.

Since an aeroplane is nothing less than 1 storey high from ground, u would fall to death, or break your bones if u were to jump off. That's where the inflatable emergency slides come to use.

Of course we wouldnt hope for one to be deployed. It would be so much better to walk slowly and gracefully off the main door and into the aerobridge, rather than sliding down and running on the tarmac to be greeted by firemen or SWAT team.

Photobucket - Video and Image HostingPhotobucket - Video and Image Hosting
Reservoirs

The slide-raft on every exit door is inflated with compressed gas. And these tanks shown here are used to store the gas. It is made of aluminum allow and wrapped with carbon fibre/fibre glass. It has a life span of 15 years and is colored orange(old) or white with orange band(new).

But why is it called slide-raft? because, it can be used both as a slide and a raft. But not all aeroplanes are fitted with slide-rafts, smaller planes are normally equipped with slide only, because they seldom travel over oceans.

Photobucket - Video and Image HostingPhotobucket - Video and Image Hosting
Hydrostatic Test

Every 3 years, these tanks would be removed from the aeroplane to be inspected, discharged, service, and recharged. As usual, aroplane parts are always related to safety, therefore frequent checks need to be done to make sure of its servicability, even though it is in good condition.

After the tanks have been discharged, they will undergo a Hydrostatic Test(HT), whereby the reservoir is pressurized with extremely high pressure in a water jacket to check the expansion of the reservoir. If the expansion is within limit, good. But if the expansion is out of limit, scrap the bottle.

After HT, the bottles are dried with warm air. Then, it is recharged in a cage, as shown in the above pic.

Photobucket - Video and Image HostingPhotobucket - Video and Image Hosting
Charging weight

Nitrogen(N2) & Carbon dioxide(CO2) are charged into the bottle with a specific ratio, depending on aeroplane model. As for the high-tech Boeing 777, they even include Helium into the bottle, i dunno why.

So, charging quantity is determined by the weight of the bottle rather than volume/pressure (temperature varies volume & pressure, so it would be inaccurate). Let's say we charge the bottle with CO2 first, so once the digital weighing machine reads the required weight, then we'll continue with N2 charging until the needle on the gauge reaches the green band.

It would take approximately 90-120 minutes just to charge 1 bottle. But when deploying the whole slide-raft, it only takes 6 seconds to discharge.

Photobucket - Video and Image HostingPhotobucket - Video and Image Hosting
Slide-raft

This is where the slide-rafts are being tested and check for leakages and servicability. It is humongous. Can be 10-15m long & 4-5m wide. Inflated with so much air to make sure it floats on water.

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
Test area

This is how the slide looks when it is deflated, just like a baloon. As it is packed into the door assembly, it is nicely folded in a proper manner, just like folding a parachute. Or else, it wouldnt deploy nicely or it might get stuck.

There are 12 doors on a Boeing 747-400, which also means 12 slide-rafts. All these slide-rafts are inflated using 2 reservoirs + ambient air within 6 seconds.

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
A door full with technology

See the buldge at the bottom of the door? that's where the slide-raft & reservoir is stored. Looks neat, but it can be a life-saver.

By the way, only cabin crews get to simulate jumping off on the slide-raft. I've never tried jumping off the plane on a slide, and there wont be a chance unless if it is a real-case-scenario. It would be too time-consuming and troublesome and expensive to run a fire-drill.

Well, it aint that hard after all, just pull the trigger on the door and u can slide off hahahah! but i wouldnt teach u how, for
SAFETY PURPOSES!

14 Comments:

  • eeee.. I dowan to experience fire-drill inside the aeroplane..

    very informative tutorial :)
    but... even if u teach me, i also won't pull the trigger on the door lah..
    kkekekkee...

    By Blogger Chen, at October 01, 2006 10:12 AM  

  • Wah~ I like the slide raft, like run ride wey. But not when I'm taking flight lo!

    By Blogger Swee Ping, at October 01, 2006 10:51 AM  

  • Eh.. like snakes on the plane punya story. Haha. How to take you out lah? You stay in Kajang kan? So far far away. I can intro you pretty chicks. But you have to have your own wheels!

    By Blogger Gina, at October 01, 2006 10:01 PM  

  • I should be fun to be sliding by the plane. Especially with all the cute air hostess around. Yeah, the electric slide... To bad you don't get to do it. Neither do I. aihhh...

    By Blogger gus, at October 03, 2006 3:21 PM  

  • wow i like the lesson here.

    and ur pic in the real kampung kai version. :)

    By Blogger Winn, at October 05, 2006 6:31 AM  

  • wow i like the lesson here.

    and ur pic in the real kampung kai version. :)

    By Blogger Winn, at October 05, 2006 6:31 AM  

  • I believe this is gonna be really useful to me soon~ heheh

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at October 07, 2006 10:06 PM  

  • informative as usual...

    where are you la.. why not updating? :p

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at October 09, 2006 2:00 PM  

  • so technical things arrhhh...can learn many things tru ur blog o...hehehe

    By Blogger Pinky_piglet, at October 15, 2006 12:09 PM  

  • ´foi muito gratificante eu aprender a dobrar estes equipamentos na companhia aéria onde trabalhei, sou tecnico ha 15 anos e tenho muita experiencia misto., gostaria de trabalhar em outra companhia aéria e desenvolver minhas habilidades e meuas conhecimentos d e novo., meu nome é hercules Rio de Janeiro Brasil.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at December 31, 2009 9:29 AM  

  • Hi,

    I mostly visits this website[url=http://www.weightrapidloss.com/lose-10-pounds-in-2-weeks-quick-weight-loss-tips].[/url]Plenty of useful information on kampungkai.blogspot.com. Frankly speaking we really do not pay attention towards our health. Are you really serious about your weight?. Recent Research presents that about 70% of all U.S. adults are either obese or weighty[url=http://www.weightrapidloss.com/lose-10-pounds-in-2-weeks-quick-weight-loss-tips].[/url] So if you're one of these people, you're not alone. In fact, most of us need to lose a few pounds once in a while to get sexy and perfect six pack abs. Now next question is how you can achive quick weight loss? [url=http://www.weightrapidloss.com/lose-10-pounds-in-2-weeks-quick-weight-loss-tips]Quick weight loss[/url] is not like piece of cake. Some improvement in of daily activity can help us in losing weight quickly.

    About me: I am writer of [url=http://www.weightrapidloss.com/lose-10-pounds-in-2-weeks-quick-weight-loss-tips]Quick weight loss tips[/url]. I am also mentor who can help you lose weight quickly. If you do not want to go under difficult training program than you may also try [url=http://www.weightrapidloss.com/acai-berry-for-quick-weight-loss]Acai Berry[/url] or [url=http://www.weightrapidloss.com/colon-cleanse-for-weight-loss]Colon Cleansing[/url] for effortless weight loss.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at March 20, 2010 6:54 PM  

  • i without a doubt love your writing choice, very useful,
    don't give up and also keep creating as it simply just nicely to follow it.
    excited to browse more of your current writing, have a pleasant day!

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at March 22, 2010 12:32 PM  

  • Ѕupeгb post but I was wondегing
    if you сould ωrite a litte mοre
    on this topic? I'd be very thankful if you could elaborate a little bit further. Many thanks!

    my weblog :: best plumbers birmingham

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at May 31, 2013 1:09 PM  

  • By Blogger Unknown, at May 30, 2018 1:45 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home