Mazzy and others... you may recall last summer I got the opportunity to visit the A380 fabrication plant in Toulouse. Well, on my most recent visit I went one better. Apologies for posting this here, but this seems to be the most natural place for such a posting amongst my virtual friends and an inspiration for those wanting to move onto bigger aircraft after getting their PPLs ;-)
Well, the early bird etc.... I had to be up and out by 0730 local time in Toulouse (0630 UK time). My hosts had been asking favours from friends of friends and so this morning I got a personal tour of the A380 by Robert Lignee (one of the chief flight test engineers). While waiting for him to get his coat (-2C in Toulouse) I was also introduced to one of the test pilots who flew on the maiden flight.
Firstly was a tour of the outside, close ups of all the huge undercarriage assemblies and the absolutely massive wings. Although I've seen the A380 numerous times, and also been on board B747s is isn't until you are standing right underneath one of these machines that you appreciate the scale of the production.
Then through the secure controlled door at the foot of the boarding stairs and up to the first deck. A quick look into the cockpit - but it was very busy as the engineers were going through the pre-flight checks, and then an internal tour where I've never seen so much cabling, pipework, computer kit etc. Robert showed us his seat at the control and monitoring station - it looked like something from the control suite of a nuclear powerstation with multiple screens, keyboards, dials, switches. And the stuff they can do there with the computers during flight is quite impressive - much more than simple monitoring...
The interior is vast. Oh, and here is a hint for those who like to look out of the window on flights - don't ask for an overwing window seat on the lower deck during check in. All you will see is a mass of wing. And I mean a mass - it totally obscures any downward visibility but it is an awesome sight to see such a large wing.
Amongst all the cable and computing kit there are seats strategically placed along the deck. These are for the test engineers to sit in to monitor lateral and vertical movements to ensure that the flight will be pleasant for future passengers. Vibrations are automatically damped by computer controlled ailerons, and there are multiple independent ones on each wing. The roll / damping and counter-damping was explained to me but it was a bit beyond my engineering capability to understand it all.
Up the stairs at the rear of the cabin and onto the upper deck. Again - very wide and long. Much better views though, especially of the other A380 parked next to us. Down to the front where the cabin is kitted out with more seats. I must request that next time I'm around I can get on one of the test flights in one of these seats ;-)
Back down the front steps and a final cockpit check before disembarking. On the ground the Trent engine that had been looked at was now with its panels back on - and it began to spool up for a power test. Quite an impressive sound. I asked if a photo would be possible (they are not allowed). A sneaky camera phone shot might have been possible, but certainly not with a regular camera and definitely certainly not when there are engine tests underway. We finished off with a driving tour of the rest of the Airbus complex. Saw the first and last Air France Concordes, both sitting in prime positions, the other monster buildings for all the other A320, A330, A340 etc. fabrication and paint plants. It is a bizarre environment, probably only here and in Seattle where so many huge machines are made on such a large scale. There isn't anything to compare with it.
I was impressed by the passion and enthusiasm of everyone I met. And especially grateful that they could take time from their busy schedule to give me a tour before taking to the skies for yet more in-flight testing.
Mazzy - if / when we have the thread pub meet I'll be able to give a proper update. Back to the PA28 / DA40 at the weekend - they will look so small and simple after this visit!