Lonewolf 50
Hello. The Airbus in the conditions imagined for 447 can be a handful. Automatics and FBW are two distinct subjects, suffice to say that Airbus trains reliance on the a/c and systems such that in the commercial cockpit, it morphs into dependence, and not all the Pilots fault, certainly not here. ACARS is not a flight tool, it is a maintenance convenience to save money (and very valuable in that regard). We are reading delayed messages meant for mechanics, not for flight support.
I personally believe that this dependence on auto played a very real part in this tragic accident. Even after AP dropout, the ECAM prompts a/c solutions for the computers, not avoidance of, or recovery from, upset. The manual must be consulted before action? Evidently, since Pitch and Power as a solution appears on the fourth page. Dark, bumpy cockpit, Captain most likely absent or due to relieve, there was no time for sequencing, prioritizing, or effecting control by hand.
The Airbus, (this one) has no Artificial Horizon, and Throttle lever position doesn't communicate truthfully the power status. At the cusp of upset, the computer and its trained for approach to flight does NOT entertain heroic manual efforts, the concept is foreign to the designer and flight support. What it does instead is steadily degrade pursuant to its own timetable and program.
gums is dead on, but his old fashion style (mine also) has no place in this modern cockpit. There is an Artificial Horizon (gyro) available for this model, it is an option and here it was not selected.
I don't accept necessarily that the pitots malfunctioned. In a cell, airspeed can realistically get bizarre; it is in some cases actual airspeed, but not accepted by the flying pilot because it doesn't make sense. Neither is a three way discrepancy unheard of in wide bodies, each ias being actual, subject to turbulence. Why is the windshear alarm not attracting more attention?
Neither is it known what RTLU fail meant. BEA assures us it meant only that the Rudder was captured by limits provided for >272knots.
regds,Bear
Last edited by bearfoil; 17th June 2010 at 19:41.