Originally Posted by
DC-ATE
But I suspect a pilot could make a mistake on a FBW aircraft as well with the same results. I don't have the Cali report.
Same mistake - yes, but with different, non-tragic results achieved through possibilities provided by FBW design.
My recollection on Cali is that after what is today a textbook CFIT scenario they hit treetops just by a few feet on a ridge during the escape manoeuvre, lost flaps during this intial impact but remained airborne. Only then succumbed down to ground on the other side of a valley. The speedbrakes were left extended throughout the manoeuvre.
On FBW a simple algorithm can be provided: IF ([any]THR LVR >= MCT/CON): SPDBRK
0. I am not saying a mechanical system with similar effect is impossible to engineer.
Also on FBW
with protections (yet another category), you can have the pilot pull full back on pitch control and go to ALPHA(max) which can be set quite close to ALPHA(crit). Without protections, fbw or not (!), a StickShakeLimit becomes the pilots' ALPHA(max) and needs to be set further away from A(crit) to maintain margin for human performance.
Entry to the climb phase is significantly faster with protections and the performance available from the wing is utilized more effectively.
I suspect that comparison of contemporary FWB functions against the Little Rock scenario could also provide some credit to the argument.
Yours,
FD (the un-real)