What goes into the 'black box' on an airplane?

Question

I always hear of the police or whatever looking for the black box after an air plane crash? Whats in that freggn' box that makes it so special?

Answer 1

There are two "black boxes" but they are not black. They are orange so they can be easily found. Only the media and those who don't know any better call them black boxes. In the industry we call the them FDR and the CVR. The flight data recorder records such things as power settings, oil pressures and other engine parameters as well as control inputs, airspeed altitudes and what not. The cockpit voice recorder records conversations picked up by a microphone in the cockpit plus anything said over the radio or intercom. That microphone will also pick up sounds such as flap handles and gear handles being move and hydraulics actuating. Both of the devices record for thirty minutes and then start over again in a continuous loop. They provide valuable information when investigating an accident.

Answer 2

The "Black Box" contains conversations with air traffic control and cockpit conversation. They look for that Black Box after a crash with the hope the information within it will give them some idea about what was happening just before the crash occurred.

Answer 3

John B is correct. The devices are critical to post-accident investigation. As the new state-of-the-art FDR.CVR come on line, they will be even more amazing.

It is alleged that the FDR info can be downloaded into a flight simulator and the CVR integrated to the timeline. The accident invetigators then can actually "see what happened" in real time through the simulator.

While it is not the total answer to a crash, it goes a long way in help to pinpoint-or eliminate-pilot error.

Answer 4

All of the information about the plane, how it is performing, etc. and also voice recordings from the pilot and co-pilot, and by the way, the black box is actually orange.