No problem Chris - you made valid, worthwhile points and nothing is personal on here!
For your information, from FCOM DSC-22_30-90 P 6/12:
The Thrust Lock function is activated when the thrust levers are in the CL detent (or the MCT detent with one engine out), and:
‐ The flight crew pushes the A/THR pb on the FCU, or
‐ The A/THR disconnects due to a failure.
The thrust is locked at its level prior to disconnection. Moving the thrust levers out of CL or MCT suppresses the thrust lock and gives the flight crew manual control with the thrust levers.
When the Thrust Lock function is active: ‐ “THR LK” flashes amber on the FMA ‐ ECAM “ENG THRUST LOCKED” flashes every 5 s ‐ ECAM displays “THR LEVERS......MOVE” ‐ A single chime sounds and the Master Caution light flashes every 5 s. All warnings cease when the flight crew moves the thrust levers out of the detent.
Is it possible people were previously using the FCU pb rather than the instinctive disconnect?