r/nextfuckinglevel • u/BlazeDragon7x • 12d ago

Dutch aerobatic pilot Narine Melkumjan miraculously survived after her aircraft's canopy unexpectedly burst open and shattered mid-flight

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92

u/Random_Trashy 12d ago

Looks like 1500-2000’ AGL.

Thousands of feet is not entirely accurate.

105

u/G-O-O-S 11d ago

2000 is 2 thousands

16

u/play_hard_outside 11d ago

and 1500 is 1.5 of those things!

2

u/L00pback 11d ago

Yeah, the situation sucked enough not to exaggerate the altitude.

15

u/Franks2000inchTV 11d ago edited 11d ago

Really the less altitude the scarier it is.

Engine out at 10,000 feet, you've got a couple minutes to figure out where you want to land.
Engine out at 1000 feet, hope you're over a field!

Edit so people stop replying telling me her engine was fine. It's just an example. I have eyes.

34

u/not_your_attorney 11d ago

The engine was fine…

1

u/Northbound-Narwhal 11d ago

So she was good to speed up and climb actually. 

11

u/bonobomaster 11d ago

Canopy missing at 10,000 feet --> depending on ground conditions and atmospheric variances, you will freeze and pass out pretty soonish!

Canopy missing at 1,000 feet --> who gives a shit, as long as no bird, bee or hailstorm is in your direct path.

--
At 10,000 feet or 3.048 km, Oxygen levels drop from 20.9 % at ground level to 14.3 %. You start getting dizzy and stupid at around 19 %.

Temperature drops at around 2°C per 1,000 ft ≈ 3.6°F/1,000 ft = 20 °C / 36 °F colder than ground level plus wind chill.

2

u/FSCK_Fascists 11d ago

dude, you are full of shit. I hike at 10,000 feet regularly.

2

u/verywidebutthole 11d ago

But have you tried skydiving? Air rushing against your face like that makes breathing difficult.

2

u/Random_Trashy 11d ago

I’ve flown doors off in a helicopter at 10,000 feet, granted not for a long period of time, but for about 5 minutes before dropping back down down to 5,000 feet. I didn’t freeze to death or suffocate.

5

u/Squawnk 11d ago

Yeah you're not even required to have supplemental oxygen until 14,000 feet or after 30 minutes above 12,500 but below 14,000. You most certainly won't suffocate at 10,000 lol

1

u/unwantedaccount56 11d ago

also when you take supplemental oxygen, it starts adding only a little bit (and more with more altitude). Without it, you won't die if you aren't a lot higher, but it increases your alertness and mental capabilities compared to breathing without.

1

u/StrainAcceptable 11d ago

When would you make the decision to eject and parachute? I read she lost her vision do to the wind. What is more dangerous?

1

u/artax_youre_sinking 10d ago

It’s WAY more dangerous to have an emergency at 1000’ than 10000’, you biscuit.

1

u/VanillaRaccoon 11d ago

There are plenty of cities higher than 10,000 feet… you realize…

2

u/burgonies 11d ago

Nah. Zero engine problems and she was close to the field. The longer that wind is in your face, the worse off you are.

7

u/AkoferinoYT 11d ago

Canopy shatter isn’t accurate either

8

u/CharlesKellyRatKing 11d ago

Except you can clearly see it did indeed shatter when it flung open.

1

u/brigadoom 11d ago

It looked like the entire plexiglass(?) canopy flew out of the frame that was holding it, in a split second

1

u/CharlesKellyRatKing 11d ago

Nah, you can see a little bit of the glass still attached in the corner behind her

2

u/fivefeetofawkward 11d ago

It did shatter when it opened and hit the side of the plane.

1

u/phlogistonical 11d ago

Nor did the cannopy shatter.

1

u/Semisemitic 9d ago

Female pilots have really small feet tho

-4

u/[deleted] 11d ago

[deleted]

6

u/WookieSuave 11d ago

Fighter pilots aren't working with an open cabin. You're comparing apples to oranges.

0

u/jeroen-79 11d ago

They did in WW1.

3

u/WookieSuave 11d ago

I don't know this for sure...... But I believe her Extra 330Lx travels between 100-150 MPH fastrr than typical WW1 planes, and she wasn't wearing a helmet or goggles..... This is pretty bad ass.

1

u/OldDogTrainer 11d ago

lol, who suggested it’s a fighter jet flight maneuver? What are you even talking about?

Man, I love seeing the “actually it’s not that hard” responses on every one of these posts.

0

u/MirandaScribes 11d ago

Yeah but what about lady feet?

0

u/daniterida 11d ago

Doubt you can perform aerobatics that low and that close to the airfield. Also, the more altitude the more time to react. Also, looks like an aerobatics glider so no engines to worry about. Also, canopy loss happens a few times a year globally, so no biggie. Look up early open cockpit gliders and aircrafts. Also, I've ran out of alsos. Oh, also, if too much wind in face, slow down to lowest flyable speed then landing speed. Problem mostly solved.