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Old 20th Nov 2013, 14:44
  #165 (permalink)  
Agaricus bisporus
 
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As said above the 737 can be a bit of a handful on a g/a, esp a 2 engine g/a mainly due to the speed at which things happen and the pitch-couple.

In the last 3 companies I've flown the 737 for it has been recognised that the most commonly cocked up "normal" procedure is the 2 engine g/a, even among experienced, well trained Eu crews.

Why? We hardly practice them. We do loads of s/e g/a's, lots and lots, but two engine? Plenty few. We have increased the frequency in the sim but even so it is not a common manoeuvre, and one that tends to catch you unawares.

With (if true, 3 yr experienced flight engineers at the controls) it is even more likely to end in tears.

Pitch to 25 deg and speed loss to 120Kts before any recovery action was taken speaks of a very large helping of paralysys followed by a slo-mo "Oh Christ, Oh S***, Oh dear!", the aircraft rapidly getting away from the pilot - something you MUST not let a 737 do in a g/a, followed by a boched scramble to recover an aircraft on the brink of - or in an incipient stall with a pilot 1000ft behind the aircraft in the vertical profile. That is simply a recipe for disaster.

Sequence goes a bit like this...

G/a, TOGA, a/c pitches up strongly. Pilot fails to push hard enough (its very physical with 2 engines and if you're out of practice it can easily run away with you) Pitch is increasing. Other pilot taken by surprise. Eventually flap 15 is called and achieved but the delay hasn't helped the acceleration, if any. Eventually someone remembers the gear. The crew now completely out of their comfort zone as its already completely pear-shaped and over-maxed mentally. Airspeed already approaching 120 with 25' pitch, P/F pushing as hard as he can now, thumb on fwd trim too, fixated on pitch, trim wheel spinning hard. (We'll hear "Go down you bastard!" through gritted teeth on the CVR here) Sees airspeed reducing further (I bet 120 was nowhere near the minimum) so keeps pushing and trimming. Pitch finally reducing at 700m - 2200ft. About where you'd expect in this scenario. Power stays on and nose lowered below horizon - perhaps a bit too much in the panic - in incipient stall recovery, height reducing, speed increasing fast, pitch trim still running because he's still pushing real hard. Thrust levers slammed closed as speed rockets so a/c pitches forcefully down as pitch-couple is removed. With plenty of fwd trim by now and no thrust-pitch couple you'd then get straight from max effort push to max effort pull in a second or two resulting in exactly what we saw in the video.

I think 737 sim instructors will recognise this scenario.
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