VOA慢速英语--狮航记录增加埃塞俄比亚坠机事件调查的压力

Lion Air Recording¹ Increases Pressure on Ethiopia Crash Investigation²

American company Boeing, the world’s biggest manufacturer of airplanes, hopes its best-selling Boeing 737 MAX will soon return to the skies.

That hope seems unlikely.

Airline companies and flight safety officials around the world ordered the 737 MAX grounded after two of the planes crashed.

On Wednesday, new information was released about the minutes leading up to the crash of a Lion Air passenger jet last October. The jet came down in the Java Sea shortly after leaving Jakarta, Indonesia’s capital.

The Reuters news agency says the new information appears to show the plane had a serious flaw. Experts believe the plane’s automated³ system may have forced the nose of the aircraft downward. They said this appears to have caused both the Lion Air crash and the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines jet on March 10.

The two crashes killed 346 people.

The automated system attempts to prevent the plane from stalling on takeoff.

Flight safety experts say neither crash investigation is complete. They add that actions of crew members and their training will also be looked at closely.

At Boeing’s headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, officials have promised to quickly release a new version of computer software for the 737 MAX. However, officials in Europe and Canada will want to test it themselves, instead of depending only on U.S. approval.

Investigators⁴ continue to examine the black box data recorder from the most recent crash.

Reuters has learned that the black box on the Lion Air flight showed the captain tried to get information from a 737 MAX handbook as he lost control of the plane.

For nine minutes, the jet warned pilots it was in a stall and pushed the nose down, the report showed. The captain fought to climb, but the automated system continued to push the nose down.

Investigators examining the Indonesian crash want to know how and why a computer ordered the plane to dive. They believe it was because of a sensor⁵ that did not work correctly. They also want to know if pilots had enough training to control the jet.

“It is like a test where there are 100 questions and when the time is up you have only answered 75,” said someone with knowledge of the cockpit recording. “So you panic.”

U.S. credibility damaged

Boeing has said there is a documented way for dealing⁶ with the problem. It also said the pilot and co-pilot are supposed to understand the process.

A different crew on the same plane the night before had the same problem, but solved it after running through three checklists. Bloomberg reported that the crew members got help from an off-duty pilot, who was on the same flight. The crew members apparently⁷ did not explain the problem or its solution to the next crew, investigators found. Those findings were released in November.

Boeing must wait for several investigations⁸ before the 737 MAX can return to the sky. In the past, Europe and Canada would have accepted the findings of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Now they will seek their own answers.

“Our credibility as leaders in aviation is being damaged,” wrote Chesley Sullenberger. He is the American pilot who became famous 10 years ago after landing a jet on the Hudson River, saving all 155 people on the plane.

Aviation officials want to be sure of Boeing’s new automated control system. They also need to know that pilots are fully⁹ trained and prepared to deal with problems.

The FAA said its “robust¹⁰ processes” and its cooperation “with the aviation community” were important to safety worldwide.

Voice recordings¹¹

In Ethiopia, experts were examining the in-flight recording of the captain and first officer of the Ethiopian Airlines flight . As with the Indonesia flight, they radioed control problems shortly after takeoff and asked to turn back. They struggled to get their plane up before it hit the ground.

However, experts say every accident is a mix of human and technical events. For now, more than 350 MAX aircraft are grounded worldwide. Boeing’s plans to sell nearly 5,000 others are on hold.

The 737 MAX entered service in 2017.

I'm Jonathan Evans.

And I'm Ashley Thompson.

Words in this Story

flaw – n. a small weakness or problem

stall – v. to stop suddenly because of a problem

panic – n. a state or feeling of extreme fear that makes someone unable to act or think normally

checklist – n. a list of things to be done

credibility – n. the quality of being believed or accepted as true, real, or honest

aviation – n. the business of flying airplanes or helicopters

robust – adj. strong and healthy

1 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

2 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

3 automated   

a.自动化的

参考例句：

• The entire manufacturing process has been automated. 整个生产过程已自动化。
• Automated Highway System (AHS) is recently regarded as one subsystem of Intelligent Transport System (ITS). 近年来自动公路系统(Automated Highway System,AHS)，作为智能运输系统的子系统之一越来越受到重视。

4 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 sensor   

n.传感器，探测设备，感觉器（官）

参考例句：

• The temperature sensor is enclosed in a protective well.温度传感器密封在保护套管中。
• He plugged the sensor into a outlet.他把传感器插进电源插座。

6 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

7 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

8 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

9 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

10 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

11 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐