Originally Posted by
Machinbird
Too bad the A brand hasn't seen the value of this concept.
Brand A do see the value of the concept, as there is an audible "bell" warning when the trim wheel is moving on the A300/A310 types - i.e. those with a conventional approach to trim.
Approach to trim use is somewhat different on the FBW types, in the sense that the automatic trim will be operating more often than would be the case traditionally, and a mechanical aural alert every time the trim wheel moves could be an annoyance or distraction. That said, an aural alert when trim exceeds a certain value could be a useful addition.
In the case of AF447, it is pretty evident that the crew was so stressed that they had turned their ears off.
Is it that specific? We've got plenty of examples where a stressful situation has caused crews to disregard aural, visual and tactile warnings.
Maybe the C chord tone is too overpowering when combined with other problems? Haven't flown it, so I have no idea.
In our sim experiments, the C-chord was certainly no more intrusive than STALLSTALL, but they were both certainly attention-grabbers!