Aircraft Demolition : not careful

Yes, I saw the “Megastructures: 747 Demolition”. They guy said you must make sure about the tanks.

Here are some facts from the same documentary –

Not just the fuel but hazardous Uranium !!!

Megastructures 747 Demolition Channel 5 30 September 2008

After 24 years too old and too expensive – flown 12 times round the world

6 million pieces

AeroTurbine – Arizona

Salvaged parts £3.4 million

30% of recovered parts used in 747s

When new takes 100s of people 4 months to build

To break takes a few people 12 weeks using manuals used to construct

1st – Engines x 4

2nd – All recoverable parts for sale

3rd – Hazardous material

4th – Crush to extract aluminium, steel, copper, wire

Engines when new cost £2.5million after salvage will fetch £750,000 (£3 m for all 4 engines)
150 man hours to remove 4 engines

Recoverable parts/instruments – recalibrated and re-sold for use estimated value >£35,000

Cockpit Voice recorder, Flight Data recorder recovered from above passenger cabin at rear

Nose – Radome (normally withstands 500mph winds) weighs 90 kg after salvage can fetch £8,000

Actuators each approx. 90 kg x 10 fetch £40,000 – 2 in each wing flaps, 2 in rudder and 4 in tail flaps

5 sets of landing gear each can fetch £25,000

Even a coffee maker can fetch £1,000

Hazardous material must be removed fully – depleted uranium used to counterweight in tail for stabilization in flight. If exposed to heat during demolition depleted uranium can become radioactive. Not for smelting.

Fuel tanks must be emptied of all fuel and gas. A 6′ person can stand and walk inside the fuel tanks. 2 x 64,000 litre tanks in each wing and 1 x 64,000 litre tank under seats.

5 miles of tubing
170 miles wring
3 million fasteners

Reclaimed aluminium can fetch £15,000

Finally reduced to 6m x 6m scrap/junk

I thought it was just another normal Garuda landing looking at those pics!!!

Yes, I saw the “Megastructures: 747 Demolition”. They guy said you must make sure about the tanks.

Should have watched – Megastructures: 747 Demolition – Documentary

Should watch or get a copy of Channel 5’s Documentary 30 September 2008 – “Megastructures: 747 Demolition”.

This was referred to in this section of the Forum previously http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showthread.php?t=84793

There is always a good way and as always a yet better way in the future to do anything.

Draining fuel tanks should have been an automatic pre-cursor to demolition.

They’ll learn someday.

When scrapping an airliner the fuel tanks must be drained and vented,mind you when i was at Stanstead scrapping Trident 3B G-AWZU my mate thought the tanks were drained alas not……then up it went.The Stanstead fire service chaps came and put it out and said that they had been asking the management if they could burn it for years……in the end around a ton and a bit of alloy burnt.

That’s not good!

Paul