A320 ENG Starter LIM

[planeboy_777]

Hi all

LIM-70 P 1/2

STARTER
‐ 3 consecutive cycles : 2 cycles of 2 min each, followed by a 3rd cycle of 1 min .
‐ Pause between start attempts : 15 s.
-Cooling period, following 3 start attempts or 4 min of continuous cranking : 30 min .
‐ No running engagement of the starter, when N2 is above 10 % on ground, and 18 % in flight.

My question over here is that the time "4 minutes" mentioned in the FCOM is RECOMMENDED, MINIMUM or the MAXIMUM time.

[AvroRider]

Sounds logic, since it's a LIMITATION it is : 4 minutes maximum

[planeboy_777]

LIMITATION can me Maximum or minimum
These are the Possible reason i can think off

Maximum time :- because the starter gets overheated
Minimum time :- So that the fuel gets evaporated completely

:confused::confused:

[HPbleed]

The way I read that is;

If you have three start attempts OR have cranked the engine for 4 minutes, you must then wait 30 minutes before trying again.

I don't believe there is a limit to how long you crank the engine following a tailpipe fire etc so that 4 minutes is a minimum - if you have only cranked the engine for 3:59 you can attempt a second start straight away (obviously considering the first limitation of pauing for 15 seconds.)

[EIU_EEC]

as per FCOM PRO-ABN-70 p62/80....cranking is stopped when "burning" has stopped. Likely 4 mins is more than enough but it seems the answer lies in the airbus iae manual...it states
8.2.2 Dry Cracking
A. Requirement
(1) A dry motoring of the engine will be needed when:
· it is necessary to eliminate any fuel accumulated in the
combustion chamber
· a leak ckeck of engine systems is needed.
To perform this operation, the starter is engaged and the engine is
motored but the HP fuel shut off valve remains closed and both
ignition systems are OFF. An engine dry motoring can be performed
for a maximum of three consecutive cycles (2 of 2 minutes and 1 of 1
minute with a cooling period of 15 seconds between each cycles).
After three cycles or 4 minutes of continuous cranking, stop for a
cooling period of 30 minutes.

So its the "maximum" limit whether the fire is out or not...either 3 cycles consecutively or continuously 4 mins then STOP! else you might risk starter fault.. anyways after tail pipe fire i would be calling maintenance not attempting another start.

[Magnetic Iron]

Myself If I cant start the engines after two starts. I will call maintenance if we do not know the reason of the aborted starts.

Limitations aside

[Swedish Steve]

The reason for starter time limits has nothing to do with fuel.
The limits are there because the starter gets hot, it has a very small oil system (less than one litre) and no oil cooling system at all. It is not designed for long operations. You stop using it to allow the oil to cool down.