reply to nick lappos
Am not sure I'm ready to write an essay yet but this is something that has been in my mind for some time, basically are many of the developments that we seen recently really necessary?
For instance we have seen developments in engines and their control, but nothing has been done to airframes designed 30 + years ago. The same problems are there as when they were first developed, and don't tell me the manufacturer is not aware. My jaundiced eye will tell me that this is a way of generating income, as is many of the developments mentioned above. Is FADEC really necessary? Or are modern engine developments making control of those too difficult for operators to contend with? I don't know, but I do suspect that it isn't. Am sure that most crews can control an engine within the parameters required.
EFIS/IIDS cockpits are fine but what happens when one indicator in that display goes awry? That's new display ! And there goes 10s of thousands instead of the change of a single instrument costing some considerably smaller amount.
MELs get longer and more down time (and more expense) is the result.
Surely alongside the developments that have gone on we should be asking are they all going in the right direction.
I write the above because I am not sure that we are getting it right, I don't wish to appear a Luddite but to my mind developments have to be to the whole and not just to small parts of it. When we see complete new projects then many of them are thought through completely, but developments of existing products are often not thought about, which is really what i am talking about. I suspect many of our manufacturer friends will understand me.
Would like to hear argument on this subject, lets hear from pilots, engineers, bean counters ( ! ) manufacturers, who-ever !
Nick Lappos, can I say you have opened a very interesting debate. I might not have expressed myself well but I think you can see where I'm coming from as some people would say !