1/ I'll say it one last time, We all know that Pitch can control airspeed in all phases of flight and indeed in some modes it does. Airbus and Boeing ( these silly people that MADE the Aircraft ) train that during approach phase down to the Flare phase they want you to use THRUST to control the Airpseed BECAUSE it's the quickest and SAFEST most efficient way to do it. You don't have time at 1000' or 500' to adjust Pitch primarily to control speed excursions especially ones +/- 10 to 15 kts during turbulent conditions. Please let us put this to bed once and for all.
2/ The Flare is a PITCH manoeuvre. If you Balloon high you'll need to relax or adjust the elevator to change the trajectory of the Aircraft back down toward the runway. That doesn't mean shoving forward so much you drive the nose wheel into the runway first. You still need to have some Piloting skill and fly the Aircraft!!
If you under flare or flare too late then in this case either increase pitch a little ( can't too much or you will drive the main gear harder into the runway ) OR indeed increase Thrust for second to try and arrest the sink rate before contact. It's probably a bit too late.
So, we all agree PITCH and THRUST are always used in conjunction to control the path of the Aircraft, movement of one will most likely need adjustment of the other. It comes down to the phase of flight as to which one does it best.
This is not rocket science, has been done this way since the advent of the commercial Jet back in the 1950's. Airbus and Boeing clearly write in their manuals how they want you fly the Aircraft they designed.
You can get wound up in science aerodynamics and wonderful theories about path management, energy state, thrust vectors and the like until you turn blue in the face but it doesn't change the facts of what's best and when.
Quoting again from the Airbus FCTM regarding the FLARE:---
Avoid under flaring. • The rate of descent must be controlled prior to the initiation of the flare (i.e. nominal 3 ° slope and rate not increasing) • Start the flare with positive (or "prompt") backpressure on the sidestick and holding as necessary • Avoid significant forward stick movement once Flare initiated (releasing backpressure is acceptable) At 20 ft, the "RETARD" auto call-out reminds the pilot to retard thrust levers. It is a reminder rather than an order. When best adapted, the pilot will rapidly retard all thrust levers : depending on the conditions, the pilot will retard earlier or later. However, the pilot must ensure that all thrust levers are at IDLE detent at the latest at touchdown, to ensure ground spoilers extension at touchdown. In order to assess the rate of descent in the flare, and the aircraft position relative to the ground, look well ahead of the aircraft. The typical pitch increment in the flare is approximately 2.3 ° (2.6 ° for A340-500/600 aircraft), which leads to -1 ° flight path angle associated with a 10 kt speed decay in the manoeuvre. Do not allow the aircraft to float or do not attempt to extend the flare by increasing pitch attitude in an attempt to achieve a perfectly smooth touchdown. A prolonged float will increase both the landing distance and the risk of tail strike.
Last edited by nitpicker330; 31st Mar 2014 at 00:38.