THS versus elevator versus stabilator
Your thinking, Wolf!!! We might all be "thinking" too much, but down deep I feel we're homing in on a quirk with the Airbus design.
To clarify my understanding, it seems the 'bus trims for one gee ( Nz) in "normal" modes. It is roll- compensated ( unlike our Viper), so the pilot need not back trim while in a turn. Makes it easier to maintain a level turn, but how about a descending turn or a climbing turn? It is also compensated for pitch (unlike our Viper).
So my feeling is the thing trimmed the THS for a nose up attitude, and things got worse with low or no speed inputs to the "confusers". Worse, the AoA protection seems to have gone on vacation, so we have this beast with almost full nose up pitch trim and no AoA input helping to get the nose down. Something ain't adding up.
Our jet had no elevator - the whole stabilator moved, both of them. They also moved differentially to help roll. Nevertheless, our jet trimmed somewhat like the Airbus to maintain a gee command. Gear down it blended AoA and pitch rate into the gee command to make it "feel" like a normal jet. We still had a little trouble trimming for an AoA or speed like "normal" jets, but what the hell.
Only time we had "autotrim" was with otto on in "altitude hold". So if we pulled back the throttle the thing would trim nose up as we slowed until reaching 13 or 14 degrees AoA, then we would slowly descend( had one CFIT doing this, BTW).
Bottomline: The jet didn't help the pilots. The pilots were nor sure of the exact control authority and "protections" that they had. There will be a sad finding in the end, I fear. And i pray that training and maybe some slight mods to displays and control laws will be implemented.
Last edited by Jetdriver; 8th June 2011 at 02:35.