Why Can Helicopters Fly?

[Valliam13]

This may have been asked but my forum search didn't return anything. So if all electronics are basically shut down, then how is it that helicopters can fly around in the book? And where are the airplanes? For that matter, if they would no longer be flying, then what happened to all the ones in the air at the time of the EMP or whatever it was?

[redman2006]

So, I am sure others will jump in and have lots of better info, but in the case of military vehicles and aircraft, those have been hardened to a point. I am sure the milItaly also has spare electronics for those that were affected, also, in the first few books, there were questions of a planned event by tptb. I do not know if that was resolved later, as I did not yet finish the series.

Civilian planes would have stalled in most cases just as the cars did. I believe there were mentions of this in the books. It may have been vague references to fires near airports and flight lines. It has been several years since I read the books.

[Cwi555]

Not all Military aircraft are hardened, nor will all civilian aircraft fall out of the sky. Proximity to, and amplitude of, the E1 component of a HEMP would be more of a deciding factor.

Some of both civilian and Military aircraft will survive. Same applies for all other vehicles/craft.

One thing that won't directly bring down aircraft or kill cars etc is a solar event.

High altitude electromagnetic pulse (hemp) initiated by a nuclear device has four primary components. E1, E2, E3, E3 heave. The first two are top down, the latter two are bottom up. A solar event is also bottom up.

By top down, I mean the energy comes from several miles up down to the earth. By bottom up, I mean energy that was transmitted into the ground flowing out and into the natural telluric currents of the earth. It is that form of energy that did the most damage in the Carrington Event 1859, and the 1962 Kazakhstan K3/test 184.

[kickstand]

Red & Cwi have given much better answers than came to my mind....my answer was gonna be PFM....Pure Freakin' Magic.

[W.Lynn]

Many aircraft (both fixed and rotary wing,) are also stored in metal buildings. Metal buildings that are often connected to the slab/ground with long pieces of all-thread lag screws. At greater distances from the center of the event, some machines will survive.

[Valliam13]

Thanks all. I didn't know that even with an EMP that things would still run or not. I'd just like to know I can hop in a plane should SHTF. haha.

[WhiteBear620]

Well as long as the plane was protected before the EMP, you should be good to go. EMP isn't a permanent thing in the sense of "now nothing electrical will ever work" and more of a "everything unprotected just got fried" kind of thing. A problem I could see is losing the infrastructure to keep that plane running.

[W.Lynn]

Fixed-wing aircraft will always be my first choice, especially with smaller aircraft. They turn into gliders if there is a stall (though a flat-spin after a flame-out during maneuvers in any size jet would hell'a scare me!)

Things that don't glide would turn into rocks, just like anything going over the edge of a rock face you'd rappel down turns into a rock - for those wondering, ANY falling object rates a warning shout of "ROCK!" to those below. If you shout "harness" or "carabiner" they might think you need them to send some to the top because they spotted a problem. Shouting about a rock is the fast warning to cover heads.

[chris0013]

just my $0.02....but it is necessary to the plot.....

[Job]

Most of the aircraft built/rebuilt after '79 started getting the hardened treatment. All current USMC aircraft are capable of continued operation after EMP. And I am relatively certain USA/USAF/USN-CG are similarly maintained. Hangers and storage facilities are hardened as SOP. Most sensitive parts are given ESD treatment at a minimum. The wrapping for EMP is also useful because it provides moisture/salt/dust protection. Not everything will work as advertised, but a viable force will more than likely remain in place.

[Valliam13]

I know a pilot and I love to fly... Therefore, I asked. And I guess it's not really relevant to the plot. LOL.