Black Box: Why Air Safety Is No Accident (Hardcover)

by Nicholas Faith (Author) "Air-accident investigators, or 'tin-kickers', are a very special breed..." (more)
Key Phrases: fan disc, airworthiness directive, cockpit voice recorder, United States, Sioux City, Ron Schleede (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Get the low-down on the mysterious instrument that records cockpit conversations, instrument readings and aircraft movements. This book details the work of aircrash detectives in determining what or who is responsible for an air disaster.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Zenith Press (March 3, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0760304009
• ISBN-13: 978-0760304006
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,332,619 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars An interesting book but without real direction., January 3, 2000

By	John Peter O'connor - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a book about air accidents written from the point of view of the crash investigation agencies. It describes the investigations and the conclusions reached and subsequent events.

This means that it is not really a book about air accidents but, neither is it a book about air accident investigators. The book does describe some aspects of the investigations but it does not really analyse the work of the investigators.

It is really a collection of annecdotal accounts of a number of accidents that were featured on an associated TV series.

The books title is rather misleading. Nowhere does the author attempt to say "Why air safety is no accident" rather, he just reports on the investigations.

I do have one major caveat about the factual accuracy of the book. The author's description of part of the Tenerife two-jumbo accident is at odds with the other descriptions that I have read. In particular, he states that there was some confusion about what the FO of the KLM aircraft said as it commenced its take off roll. The author states that it was not clear from the tape whether the FO said "we are at take off" or "we are taking off."

According to other reports of this accident, the FO clearly said "we are at take off" but they made the point that, in the grammar of his native Dutch, the meaning of that phrase is the same as the meaning of the English phrase "we are taking off." Indeed, the author fails to appreciate that this accident led to a major change in the approved phraseology for radio communications between pilots and controllers.

On the positive side, desipte its shortcomings, the book is interesting to read and I certainly enjoyed it.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book on a fascinating subject, January 30, 2002

By	Pookie "mstfmsgn" (VA United States) - See all my reviews

Nicholas Faith has written other books about disasters, notably "Mayday: The Perils of the Waves" about shipwrecks. Both of these books are the companions to a BBC television series and that might be why some of the text seems to be a little sensationalist. Then again, it's hard *not* to be dramatic about horrific events like commercial airplane crashes. Still, that's a tiny criticism of what is an otherwise well-researched and well-written book.

Faith does approach his topic anecdotally (that is, using specific crashes to explain the many causes of airline accidents), but in this way he covers every conceivable cause of commercial crashes *and* keeps the reader interested by offering concrete examples.

I would say the title is quite accurate, because Faith's primary sources of information throughout the book are the air accident investigators themselves--both current and former members of the British Air Accidents Investigations Branch and the American National Transportation Safety Board. The inclusion throughout the book of descriptions and explanations of crashes in the words of investigators themselves, is what makes this book so valuable as a source. Another reason it's valuable is that there are really no other books like it on the market today. I would recommend this book for everyone from the casual reader to the student writing a report.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Average Job, April 18, 2002

By	John G. Hilliard (Toronto Canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I must be a rubber-necker to the highest degree because I always enjoy these type of books. It has the standard fair, nothing really new on the format. The author does give us a good amount of detail, which she is known for. I would always like more photos, but there is enough to tell the story. If you like this type of book then you will enjoy this one.