FBW. It is not "state of the art", it is old. Likewise, it is dependable. No authority would allow skimping on Stall Recovery training without unquestionable confidence in it. When I fly, I yank the straps tight, just short of pain. As a student, a defective seat rail slid me back full on take off. Luckily I am tall, and didn't need to squirm forward while flying solo at launch.
Throttle manipulation? Panel reads? Bouncing about when called upon to start reading a book through page four to find out life saving instructions isn't old, it is stupid. Likewise, when a specific throttle position is do or die, and you can't scratch your ass let alone smoothly caress the power, something is terribly wrong.
Look for Voice recognition commands to the controls in the future.
ACARS is a maintenance option, something to cut the costs for big carriers. It is not intended to substitute for FDR. It logs and sends information so the Mx crew at the next shop can prioritize their work and have a lead on important parts. Just because a message wasn't received certainly does not mean it was not sent. It takes the pilots out of the Mx equation as well, someone whose input will be included at the next stop.
I think the VS failed laterally while in flight, as a result of the fractures seen in the mountings in BEA's photography. This does NOT mean a failure of hydraulics, necessarily. My estimate of the lateral play in this control is 1-2 feet at the tip, post fracture. Obviously, if the VS failed flat (the photography does not show this), it would have been lost. So the cracks in the female bracket (tower) allow dangerous play, but suggest no loss (departure) of the VS/Rudder in flight. Some combination of lateral rods, remaining integrity of the lugs, and lack of overwhelming deflection argue that the VS was hobbled, not missing. At impact? Severely compromised lateral strength and a weakened bed may not have required much more than 2-3 g's for forward separation at water entry, (impact). A sharp pilot might read lack of crisp yaw control as a breaking or broken Stabilizer or Rudder, and laid off, or tried spoilers? Perhaps asym thrust for yaw control? Or was it RTLU at ~8 +/- ?
bear
Last edited by bearfoil; 1st Jun 2010 at 20:15.