Engine Fires

[SirLoin]

In AH when the plane catches fire,it's a done deal..

Why not have the option of pulling an engine extinguisher button for bombers and have a chance to put out the flames?

And for fighters,them being able to nose down at high speeds with a slight chance the fire will go out and you can glide yout way down(instead of death)?

[Anaxogoras]

In AH when the plane catches fire,it's a done deal..

Not always.  Just the other day I shot up an A6M with .50's, his engine caught on fire, and I took him for dead (our altitude was about 1k ft).  Instead, he quickly ditched on water, and because we were in his territory, I did not receive credit for a kill.  I'm sure that A6M was salvagable...

I agree that it would be fun and more realistic to have more options during engine fires.  That would require more complicated engine modelling in general, but not everyone wants to head down that road.

Finally, instead of death, you can always bail out when your engine is on fire.

[Dastrdly]

from my experience ....ditching being the only option, how you fly seems to make a diff in time alive it seems.

lower speeds seem to keep you alive longer, possibly due to less stress on wings. i have also noticed some planes seem to last longer when on fire, zero in particlar but then again it could be the speed/stress factor.

[sunfan1121]

Originally posted by Dastrdly
from my experience ....ditching being the only option, how you fly seems to make a diff in time alive it seems.

lower speeds seem to keep you alive longer, possibly due to less stress on wings. i have also noticed some planes seem to last longer when on fire, zero in particlar but then again it could be the speed/stress factor.

Some D-bag had his zero flying with no wing, no tail, and on fire yesterday

[Krusty]

Put fires out? Nah. I'd rather you no longer can fire weapons once you're on fire. Too many folks press the fight for too long. I'd like to see bombers lose altitude from the formation as they try a shallow dive to put it out but then go POP!

[Wingnutt]

ive been pinged, suffer no damaged.. but yet im on fire and then explode..  happens all the time:huh

[dedalos]

Originally posted by Wingnutt
ive been pinged, suffer no damaged.. but yet im on fire and then explode..  happens all the time:huh

I think the fire, WAS the damage

[Wingnutt]

Originally posted by dedalos
I think the fire, WAS the damage

well what I mean is I get mo damage SOUND (ya know that dreaded sound that tels you something just fell off)  and im all green in the damage list..

but yet Im a torch.. what is burning? the oil or fuel.. that isn't leaking?  was my aircraft material doped with kerosene?  does the ground crew hat me THAT much?

[BaldEagl]

Originally posted by SirLoin
And for fighters,them being able to nose down at high speeds with a slight chance the fire will go out and you can glide yout way down(instead of death)?

I might be wrong here regarding aircraft fires but in all my real-life experience, the more air you put on a fire, the faster (and hotter) it burns.

[dkff49]

Originally posted by BaldEagl
I might be wrong here regarding aircraft fires but in all my real-life experience, the more air you put on a fire, the faster (and hotter) it burns.

until you reach the point that you add so much air that the feul to air ratio is offset too much to burn

[Wingnutt]

Originally posted by dkff49
until you reach the point that you add so much air that the feul to air ratio is offset too much to burn

you have to pass though the stage where you pretty much have a blowtorch before it goes that lean i would guess..

i would think going to very alt would work better..  less 02..  not really possible in a timely manner though

[Krusty]

Blowing out a candle just adds more fuel. Same principle. The flame goes out.

Kinda like flooding a car trying to get it to start. Too much fuel and it just won't ignite. The liquid fuel itself isn't burning so much as the vapors coming off the liquid as it hits air. Too much fuel isn't a problem.

[dkff49]

Originally posted by Wingnutt
you have to pass though the stage where you pretty much have a blowtorch before it goes that lean i would guess..

i would think going to very alt would work better..  less 02..  not really possible in a timely manner though

since i have never flown a plane in RL or been in one with engine on fire I am not speaking from experience but I would think that if you increase your speed enough (which I think is probably the purpose of the dive) this would pretty quickly not only add air to the mixture but also remove feul away from the fire. This would kind equate to holding a lit lighter and running down the street with it. In a couple of steps you will see the flame go out.

just a thought from a fire fighter

[P47Gra]

I think we should employ the co-pilot method of extinguishing fires.  If the plane is on fire the Captain or AC will instruct the co-pilot to walk the wing and put it out with a hand extinguisher.  

It works well on the ground I sit in the warm cockpit while the co-pilot walks outside for the pre-flight in 20 below weather.  I love being in charge.

JUGMAN

[SgtPappy]

Or solve a good deal of problems and turn the water... into water!