Lufthansa 737 Overhead Panel

[Johnny Tightlips]

I just saw this picture of a Lufthansa 737 overhead panel. It appears that all of the switches for the fuel, hydraulic, air con and light panels are opposite to normal. Is this a specific LH request, and if so what happens when they sell these aircraft? I presume they would have to be changed back to normal as this would confuse most 737 drivers, myself included...

Photos: Boeing 737-330 Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net (http://www.airliners.net/photo/Lufthansa/Boeing-737-330/1940598/L/&sid=25bc4430525a56f841fa03b2f0adee84)

[Flying Wild]

I was told that DLH didn't agree with the Boeing switch logic, so paid an additional $500k per aircraft for the switch layout to be changed.

[hetfield]

LH outfit is: down/fwd = off.

[oceancrosser]

Buying an aircraft with a basically early sixties cockpit gives you a wonderful chance of options. Like going back in time. Like buying a Land Rover

[Spitoon]

LH outfit is: down/fwd = off.Just like the light switches at home.

[eagleflier]

Quote:
LH outfit is: down/fwd = off.
Just like the light switches at home.

Not in my home. What part of the world are you from?

[Spitoon]

Sorry - I should have been clearer, I was thinking about it from the perspective of a DLH driver.

I should have said 'Zu Hause in meiner Wohnung'

[TopBunk]

I understand that BEA used to have Bac1-11 series aircraft with opposing switch directions!

Now that is bizarre, considering that people used to operate both the Bac1-11 variants!

Doubtless someone will correct me:8

[Sciolistes]

Thai's old 737s were the same. Had to do a recurrent in the sim at BKK, pain in the arse it was.

[flox]

TU-134 had a same logic. And, as far as I could see on the photo, Caravelle too.

I guess it has to do something with old Europe vs US standards. Lufthansa, being in the business for so long, JU-52 and so on,most probably didn't want to confuse people changing to B737.

As someone noted above, same idea works at home and is used in industries as well. All switches are OFF at down position so that person falling down or needing to switch off fast just needs to hit it. And it is more difficulty to switch on by accident.

[hetfield]

Wasn't there a (british?) aircraft with throttles fwd = decrease thrust, aft = increase thrust?

[TopBunk]

hetfield

I think it was the French:hmm:

[Hobo]

Standard Boeing logic is that 'on' is with the switch towards the windscreen. Thus o'head panel switches are 'on' when 'down', and radios and pedestal switches are 'on' when 'forward' ( ie in the opposite sense with respect to the box to which they were fitted to those on the o'head panel).

Lufthansa merely wanted all the switches in the same sense relative to the box to which they were fitted.

[Watersidewonker]

I understand that BEA used to have Bac1-11 series aircraft with opposing switch directions!


Oh how I remember the good old days. It was like riding your first Chopper bike the wrong way down a six lane freeway into downtown LA, realising you'd left your ageing,greasy haired,engineering loving missus at LAX baggage hall.
My god i miss those days.

[Potsie Weber]

Even reversed the Equipment Cooling which is backward as standard with normal being in the "off" position. Is that a double negative?

[Love_joy]

You guys should try flying the DHC8! Half the switches go up for on, half go down...

When they designed the overhead panel it's like an engineer threw the switches up in the air, and bolted them down where they landed.

[Tu.114]

Lovejoy, You are rather generous with that observation - I would like to expand that to the rest of the flight deck as well. They must have loaded a cannon with switches and fired it at a cockpit mockup - where one stuck, it remained.

With regards to the power levers moving rearward to increase power, I seem to remember that the Luftwaffe operated some FIAT G-50 as advanced trainers. They had a remarkable number of accidents on this aircraft, as pilots were used to quickly closing the throttles when landing by pulling the lever back, which on this craft resulted in a power surge often flipping the aircraft over with undesired results.

[barit1]

I once had a farmer - in his 50s - as a C150 student. He was conditioned to pull on the throttle/spark lever to increase power.

No, the aeroplane doesn't work that way. :=