Direct Law
One question for the Airbus pilots here. If you really really needed to, how would you get to Direct Law. Drop the gear in alternate law? But then suppose the aircraft had shifted into Abnormal Alternate Law due to an unusual attitude?
Machinbird, an excellent question! Although I am not an Airbus pilot, I am a CFI with 40+ years of experience and have a BS/MS EE with 50 years of experience programming and using computers. More importantly, I have a good friend who is a current and qualified A320 first officer.
A previous post really put this question in perspective. It stated that the computers fly the Airbus, the pilot merely gives suggestions! It is only when sensor or other hardware/software failures make it obvious to the computer that it doesn't have a clue, that the Airbus goes to Direct Law. There is no button that the pilot can push, that activates Direct Law. According to my friend (who works for a major US air carrier), he has never been trained how to take over the control of the aircraft. He believes that there is a combination of circuit breakers that can be pulled to shut down enough computers to force Direct Law. He also thinks there is a document in the cockpit that describes how to do this, and given a few minutes, he could make it happen. I (along with the rest of you?) firmly believe that the pilots of the A-320 had only seconds to react.
Last edited by bob1vt; 26th Jan 2015 at 02:59.
Reason: typo