Originally Posted by
H Peacock
Wasn't the majority of the damage to the 'autoland Tristar' inflicted during the second impact from the bounce rather than the initial impact? The crew incorrectly pushed the yoke forward during the bounce which told the DLC to deploy the spoilers, dramatically increasing the RoD! The whole event was all very embarrassing; whatever did BA think about our gross mishandling of their old frames?
It could be, at MNLW and below, the TriStar could withstand a 600ft/min RoD at touchdown, which is pretty much a 3 degree descent with a bit of headwind. Certainly, bounced landings and inept handling do incur severe consequences.
As far as "what BA thought" goes, I have no idea. However, the training I received with them was excellent. In later years, we did the conversion in house. I do remember that some BA trainers were envious of the amount of CT we were able to do compared to their airline ration.
Overall, we treated the airframes with care and skill. They were well liked by virtually all who actually worked with them but, misunderstood by the many who did not.
OAP