U-2: The veteran spyplane too valuable to replace

Re:U-2: The veteran spyplane too valuable to replace by iambateman on Sunday December 13, 2020 @09:08PM (#25412734)

Question on the stall issue: if a pilot starts to stall, wouldn’t they simply maneuver to get the nose down until they get enough speed to break out of the stall?

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Re:U-2: The veteran spyplane too valuable to replace by sandworm101 on Sunday December 13, 2020 @10:07PM (#25413095)

Coffin corner is the speed between stall speed and overspeed, some number close to mach 1 that the airframe cannot handle. A stall-induced dive at that altitude risks hitting a speed that will damage the wings. The U2 is essentially a fighter jet with glider wings: two things that dont want to play well together. It is a frankenstien's monster of an aircraft.

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Re:U-2: The veteran spyplane too valuable to replace by upofadown on Sunday December 13, 2020 @09:57PM (#25413035)

It might be impossible to recover from the resulting dive without exceeding maximum speed in this particular case.

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