Landroger
Does it then follow that the production Concorde (BA
and AF?) was routinely fitted with a whole outfit of sensors that were not normally monitored unless you and your mates needed to know something specific? (I've just realised there are about four questions there, but you probably know what I'm getting at?
)
Actually Roger the Plessey PVS1580 system generally used 'spare' outputs from existing system sensors as far as the powerplant went, the one exception to this being T3 (HP compressor delivery temperature) which had it's own dedicated thermocouple. An engine surge would be 'indicated' on the recorder playback as a spike in EGT (Exhaust Gas Temperature), Pv (Inlet Void Pressure - a static absolute pressure measurement above the fwd intake ramp) as well as a collapse in P7 (Exhaust gas total pressure). The surge itself might only be evident for one to three recorded frames, before the engine recovered. The E/O would usually give you a head start by pressing an 'event' button on the system control panel, which put a marker on the recording. You then needed to decide (by looking at the frames immediately BEFORE the surge) whether the engine or the intake caused the surge in the first place. (Not always easy and straightforward). The recorded frames were generally one second samples, so there could often be quite a bit of 'searching' involved.
The observation is; a picture is beginning to emerge of one airline who cherished and took care of an extraordinary asset, while another, broadly speaking, did not.
Yet another remarkable aspect of Concorde, that the same aeroplane should have been held in such diametrically opposed regard
I see your point Roger, but personally I found that it was more a case of one airline not taking matters (and the aeroplane) for granted and approaching everyday Concorde 'life' in a disciplined and professional manner and the other, very clearly, not. I remember one visit to CDG where I was horrified by the state of the aeroplanes there: The airframes were generally filthy and festooned with repair 'patches' (one large one over the main passenger entry door looked absolutely awful) and the flight deck panels had at least one broken switch and a couple of cracked instrument glasses. (I thought 'surely they don't actually FLY the aircraft like this?' .... they did!!). When I witnessed with my own eyes how aircraft defects were being investigated I could only wonder if 'they' had any clue how the aeroplane really worked. It was blessed relief when I returned to LHR that evening, and could see two gleaming Concorde aircraft in the hangar.
One thinks of the TSR2 which, on the limited amount of flight data acquired by the single flying airframe, appears to have been an aeroplane in the same astonishing mould as Concorde. With later digital electronics the TSR2 would have made an unbeatable bomber, allowing the money and effort 'squandered' (?) on MRCA to be spent on an agile interceptor replacement for the 'Electrifying' Lightning.
I can only agree with you here Roger, the story is one of complete political and industrial madness; the designer and manufacturer of the finest quality and most capable aircraft in all of Europe being relegated to a producer of mere sub-assemblies and spare parts for certain European 'partners'
(Who must now be rubbing their hands together in glee at this short sighted British stupidity). As has been said here before;
'WHAT A WASTE'
I completely agree and what is more, your fascination mirrors my own with
my day job. Although MRI scanners are my day job, I still - after more than twenty years - look at some of the images it can produce and think; " That is bl00dy clever!"
I still haven't got over the 'novelty'.
Oh I can echo that 1000%. After having an MRI done last year (a very sick Dude indeed) I was absolutely AMAZED at the quality and detail of the resulting images. (Being a true engineer of course I drove everybody at the hospital nuts, wanting to know all the ins and outs of this incredible (but rather LOUD) machine). Truly amazing stuff Roger, I can see your attraction here.
Regards
Dude
