I was told that an aircraft cant exceed Vmo if the cause is a really strong tailwind. Is this really possible? I always though what would happen if tailwind was so intense that it caused damage to the airframe. Has that ever happened?

That's incorrect: Vmo is WRT IAS, not TAS or GS, and thus completely unrelated to wind speed or direction.Cheers,- jahman.

If you get a sudden wind shift/shear then yes the aircraft can briefly overspeed. However a constant tailwind wouldn't cause a problem as explained above.

An increase in the tailwind would not cause overspeed, if anything, it could cause a stall.

An increase in the tailwind would not cause overspeed, if anything, it could cause a stall.

Do you fly in real life? I hope not if you believe that

Not precisely related, but I thought

Do you fly in real life? I hope not if you believe that

was somewhat belittling to Johan, and overly simplistic, and deserved at least some better demonstration of an extremely technical issue that is more dependent upon energy, mass and inertia than Johan's comment implies.A few years ago a Delta Lockheed L1011 encountered wind-shear/microburst, losing some 40-odd knots while on an approach into Dallas-Fort Worth. The aircraft bellied in, with significant loss of life. (152 pax, 8 crew, 1 on ground). The circumstances and eventual analysis of the disaster make for some very interesting reading.http://erau.summon.serialssolutions.com/search?s.q=NTSB+reports&t.TitleCombined=Delta+flight+191

See Microburst. Video

.Cheers,- jahman.

The circumstances and eventual analysis of the disaster make for some very interesting reading.http://erau.summon.s...elta+flight+191

Yes Paul, what happened to Delta Flight 191 is very interesting and is used in ground/sim training since the time it was discovered a microburst (and the incorrect pilot recovery technique) was responsible for the accident.Also, it is unrelated to what the OP asked.It is as squawkident said... windshear which you would "expect" at cruise altitudes. I am unaware of any accidents/incidents directly attributable to this (which is not saying very much tho). I would suggest searching the NTSB accident database (if possible).As a side note... the 787-8 e.g. actually has an overspeed protection function built in that will command elevator nose up and return the aircraft to Vmo/Mmo w/o pilot input.

Not really unrelated, Rob; indicated airspeed is what counts, whether stall or overspeed; and how an aircraft responds to a change in airspeed and what damage may occur, is dependent upon the aircraft's mass and inertia.If a simple examples are needed - then consider a tailslide: it is exactly the same as a strong tailwind with regard damage if the aircraft isn't built to take it, and it's airspeed will be negative with respect to the stall. Wrt Vmo - here the argument is redundant.I was merely commenting that's it's a complex issue, and thought SquawkIdent's comment aimed at Johan was a little harsh.

Yes we have different perspectives (in general) and can sometimes see relationships others might not at the moment (or ever )... so I do respect what you are saying Paul. I just meant unrelated in this sense.

I was told that an aircraft cant exceed Vmo if the cause is a really strong tailwind. Is this really possible?

In the sense that exceeding Vmo won't happen around a microburst, since microbursts occur at / near the surface and flying near Vmo happens at altitude (hopefully ). And it would be at altitude where one would expect that kind of shear (jetstream e.g.). Not talking about those days when winds are 60+ kts at 6000' ft.Interesting you mention a tailslide... The whole thing is running out one's momentum in the vertical then briefly falling back on the tail before the nose flops over. My sense there is there isn't much G and the airspeed can't be much before the nose falls... so structural forces are going to be very low. Maybe someone with this kind of aerobatic experience (I can’t remember ever having performed a tailslide) or an aeronautical engineer could help here.It's not just the change in airspeed... it's when (at what airspeed) the change occurs. For example, you can safely stall an aircraft as long as you are below maneuvering speed. Above that, you will bend something.Btw yes, maybe so about S.I.'s comment... hopefully coming from more of a ribbing sense as I have proven one can say something completely knuckleheaded despite have a degree or two and multiple licenses / ratings in Aviation.