Originally Posted by
bravo24
Yeah, except the 767 CDL doesn't let you fly without this panel. The fact that the flight was completed and the aircraft landed safely doesn't mean the crew necessarily made the right decision. They were lucky The crew continued the flight with an unknown condition. Even if they did know that the door was missing they don't know what the effects are on fuel burn or long term operation of the pack - and I guarantee you that AA maintenance control didn't know either.
I didn't say the panel could be CDLed. I just mentioned that planes do fly without panels.
Do you always know the condition of your airplane? I would suggest the only way you know is from indications and after the shudder there were no more indications of problems.
As for fuel burn, I think they keep a fuel log and could ascertain if there was a huge discrepancy in planned versus actual fuel burn. And too, one does get used to seeing x EPR or x% N1 in cruise. Had a much higher power setting been required to compensate for the drag, it would have been noticeable.
So, we can conclude that every time there is some question about something that happens, return to base? It won't work. Every operation tries to operate with conflicting mandate
S Speed versus fuel. Time in route versus schedule. Absolute safety versus challenging conditions. Costs versus benefits derived. Conflicts. I would have continued.
We do the best we can.