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Canary Cargo

Category:	Science
Submitted By:	starman
Fun:	(2.56)
Difficulty:	(1.6)

A cargo plane loaded with canaries is set to take off but the co-pilot has calculated the weight of the plane and its contents is just a few pounds over its maximum allowable takeoff weight. "No problem," he tells the captain. "I'm going back to the cargo area. When you hear me yelling, go ahead and take off." What was he planning to do?

Answer:

The co-pilot was planning to make a lot of noise yelling, scaring the canaries into flying which would lighten the load enough for the plane to take off. The fuel burned during takeoff would lighten the load enough for the birds to alight again after the plane was airborne. (The captain, however, knew this little trick wouldn't work and taxied back to the loading area to have some canaries removed. He knew that the canaries were heavier than the air they displaced from the closed interior of the aircraft and that their combined weight while flying would still be distributed to the airplane by air molecules)

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Comments on this teaser


Posted by mrice	10/16/01
If in fact the birds would remain in flight, then the co-pilots plan would work. This would be the same as training the birds to fly out of the plane, up into the air, then back into the plane while it flies by.

Posted by Captbob61	03/20/02
Who ships canaries?

Posted by ALW007	06/03/06
I assumed they were going to taxi some more until they burned a few pounds of fuel...

Posted by calmsavior	01/25/07
actually, it is the EXACT SAME, just as randyeatmon had said.

Posted by xdbtcp	06/23/10
OK, this one scared me a bit, as I had a feeling I knew his plan! 8)