PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - Afriqiyah Airbus 330 Crash
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Old 21st May 2010, 20:22
  #795 (permalink)  
jshg
 
Join Date: Aug 1998
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The A330 in particular will bite you if you are a little high, with a tailwind maybe, and you increase rate of descent. The autothrust reduces power from pretty low to idle, and can be quite relaxed - lazy - if you then pull up again (on the profile). It will often allow IAS to fall well below required, particularly with winds light or tail. Below 100ft radalt the autotrim freezes, so if you were doing (say) a 4 degree slope at 100ft then trim will freeze at that value.
Now imagine a very low G/A after the above approach. Power is at idle, and on the 3-spool Trent at least takes ages to produce meaningful thrust. Autotrim has put the aircraft into a 4 degree slope so a harder pull than normal is required. IAS is below the bug, possibly still reducing, and although the engines are accelerating they are still at little more than idle thrust.
This may have nothing whatsoever to do with this incident, but I put it in for what it's worth.
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