Originally Posted by BOAC
you may want to up that to at least 4? See '4holerpotholer' 23July 19:30 (around post #412 at the moment).
Wow, BOAC, spot on (quoting Potholer):-
"This, to me, is so relevant; happened to me when I was a brand new skipper, first flight after a month's vacation, new FO, dispatch with one reverser inop. First two sectors went without incident but on the third (FO's leg) I reminded him of the inop reverser. Retrospectively he removed his hand compeltely from that thrust lever, it was midnight, dark cockpit. At the flare & "Retard" call he only closed the "operative" TL. The aircraft squawked "Retard" at least five times and then after the two second latch the engine that still had it's TL in the Climb detent went to TOGA. Aircraft yawed significantly and came dangerously close to the edge of the runway (we were at about 5 feet AGL). I took control, whammed the other TL closed and got the aircraft back on the black stuff. Was a long runway, CAVOK & wind calm. Glad it wasn't on a short, wet strip.
"I know the "wait until the investigation" but that's it for me."
Direct 'echo' from the Congonhas CVR:-
"18:48:21.0 FWC twenty.
18:48:21.6 FWC retard.
18:48:23.0 FWC retard.
18:48:24.5 CAM [sound of thrust lever movement]
18:48:24.9 CAM [sound of increasing engine noise]
18:48:25.5 GPWS retard
18:48:26.3 CAM [sound similar to touchdown]
18:48:26.7 HOT-2 reverse number one only.
18:48:29.5 HOT-2 spoilers nothing."
In both cases, a last-minute warning about not reversing the wrong 'un. The pilot (at Congonhas, anyway) will have had his left hand, his feet, and above all his EYES and 110% of his attention fully occupied on getting the touchdown achieved as straight and as soon as he possibly could, given the wet, not-so-long runway. So, under such pressure, 'Reverse one side only' translates in your mind as, 'Concentrate on the live one, forget the inop. bugger......."
And then the 'Retard' call stops, you get the nosewheel down OK but then there are no spoilers, no autobrakes, the runway is unreeling fast.........and there's no further warning about the throttles, they're past and gone, they don't even occur to you as the possible problem........and your off-sider is new to A320s.......twenty seconds to live.........
Can it really have been that simple?
Last edited by RWA; 29th Sep 2007 at 17:41.