Modern day aircraft is highly dependant on electronic systems. Right from flight control to navigation, most of the systems are controlled by electronics. So what happens if there is a power cut on board an aircraft?
Video Credits: Captain Joe
Aircraft generally has primary and auxiliary power sources, if both of them fails a Ram Air Turbine is used to... power the vital systems. Ram Air Turbine, as the name suggests is a wind turbine which generates power by ram pressure. When RAT is deployed it generates power from the air stream by rotation of its turbines. RAT’s are connected to electrical generators which in turn powers the aircraft.
RAT is generally installed in an aircraft for safety reasons. 5 – 70 kilo Watt of power can be generated by a typical Ram Air Turbine. The amount of power generated by Ram Air Turbine is directly proportional to the speed of aircraft i.e. higher the speed higher the power. It can be termed as a mini wind mill with a capability of powering an aircraft.
Do all aircraft have Ram Air Turbine?
No all aircraft does not have RAT. For instance Airbus A380 has a RAT system and known to be having the largest RAT turbine, but Boeing 737 does not have a Ram Air Turbine. It totally depends on the design of aircraft whether to use one or not.
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