Quote:
Originally Posted by spence
Reasonable point, although I'd suspect a tire that ignited on takeoff could burn at least until 10,000 feet. By that point it could have spread?
I've heard of tires igniting on landing but never on take off...who knows.
-spence
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90% of the time, that's the brakes getting overheated and igniting the tire. In take-off, the brakes aren't being applied. Airlines use pure nitrogen in the tires, too, not compressed air, to decrease the chances of a tire fire.
As far as climbing to 45,000', I would say that an hour after take-off with full fuel, it couldn't climb that high. You'd have to burn off a lot of fuel first. If there was even the slightest chance of a fire, the last thing they would do is dump fuel. The 777 has a rated service ceiling of 41,000'.