If I throw a baseball made of aluminum at a skyscraper, will it smash down the steel girders?
Figure out the mass of your baseball and figure it out. Here is the calculation for a Boeing 767-200ER (Extended Range ==> more fuel ===> Higher mass) with full fuel. None of the videos show anything inconsistent with a wide body airliner with a full fuel load (roughly 23,980 gallons) being flown into a high rise building. The fire would spread vertically as a result of the burning fuel running down the elevator shafts, utility conduits, and stair wells. Add to that the structural damage of say, American 11 (Boeing 767-200ER, 179,170 kg @ 225 m/s), for example, hitting the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Gee, how damage would that do (It did not come out the other side, so all the KE was absorbed by the building.)? Enough to bring down a building? Lets see: 395,000 pounds = 179,170 kg 500 mph = 805 kph = 225m/s KE = 0.5*M*V^2 KE = 0.5* 179,170 *225^2 KE = 0.5*179,170*50,625 KE = 4.54 * 10^9 J 1 kg of TNT = 4.184 *10^6 J 4.54*10^9 / 4.184 * 10^6 = 1,085 kg of TNT = 2,287 pounds T
