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I hope there's no chance that any element of this software is installed on the ECUs of Airbus civil types . .

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"If the aircraft had been higher, the outcome may have been different."

A statement that is applicable to practically every aircraft that has ever crashed.

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Thanks for that Wolf, I was recently discussing this A-400 incident with a current HH-60 pilot and he said the same thing- they were comforted to know that they could mash the levers forward and bypass the electronics/FADEC if need be- a mechanical bypass. Likely part of the legacy inherited from the original post-Vietnam battlefield helicopter requirements.

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Keep in mind that helo engines are designed to maintain 100% RPM at all times. In a helo the pilot does not change thrust by changing RPM. He changes thrust by changing collective on the rotor system

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So the pilot NEVER controls throttle/fuel flow to the engine.

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So the pilot NEVER controls throttle/fuel flow to the engine.

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I cannot agree with that. With all for helicopters I flew in the 60s I had to control the RPM at around max by using a twist grip throttle in the end of the collective. As the years have gone by pilots have been assisted in this difficult task (initially) by suitable mechanical links that adjusted the throttle (roughly) as the collective was moved and latterly by FBW systems which of course free the pilot of the task. How many of the older types are still in operation I do not know, but I am sure there are some.

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Not always so on modern helos either. Many have a system where a collective input does directly modify the fuel flow in order to anticipate the inevitable small change in rotor RPM that will inevitably follow.

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Am I missing something here??

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1. The aircraft suffered a fatal accident.
2. Media reports hint at unofficial industry sources which allude to the loss of thrust from 3 or more engines at low level during the intial climb.
3. The reason for this rumoured loss of thrust has yet to be officially identified.
4. FDR and CVR analysis is ongoing.

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My understanding of the Tactical fuel management is that it schedules the fuel in such a way that it minimises stress/fatigue due to the more dynamic manoeuvring required for the tactical role, up to +3G.

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Yes, that is my understanding of the system. It is, in effect, an autonomous 'wing relieving' system specifically for the tactical role.
If you look at any of the A400M display videos out there, the penultimate manoeuvre before the 120 degree wing-over at the conclusion of the display is a 3G pull-up.

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Whether MSN23 was fitted with such a system (software/hardware) is immaterial - a first-flight schedule would not be checking/testing any such capability, that would either be in subsequent flights, or - more likely - subject to specific functionality testing onboard one of the 3 development aircraft prior to being cleared for series production embodiment.

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Ah, yes, KenV. Let's see, now. You're in Texas and you clearly think the Boeing product has the better answer over the European thing.

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In common with most large aircraft, by design the A400M fuel system keeps as much fuel as far outboard as possible all the time for wing bending moment relief. As fuel is used from the feed tanks, they are topped up from the centre and transfer tanks in that order. (There is a slight modification to this in a tactical fuel loading mode which I won't describe here - but that's not important right now.)

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Airbus CEO Says A400M Black Box Data Recovered

By Robert Wall
May 27, 2015 12:26 p.m. ET

Airbus Group Chief Executive Tom Enders said data from the black boxes on the A400M military transport plane that crashed this month in Spain has been extracted, though Spanish authorities have not yet shared the crucial information.

“So far we have not had access to the data” though it has been available for more than a week, Mr. Enders told shareholders in Amsterdam.

Extracting the information wasn’t simple and in one case involved sending the box to its manufacturer, L-3 Communications, in the U.S., Mr. Enders said.

The May 9 crash, the first of an A400M, killed four of six Airbus employees on the plane. The other two were critically injured, though Mr. Enders said on Wednesday their condition was improving.

Airbus last week alerted operators that the plane requires one-time checks of the so-called electronic control units on each of the four engines before the next flight. The electronic box helps translate pilot commands into instructions on how the engine should operate.

Airbus also instructed operators to perform additional checks in case of later engine problems. Airbus said it found the issue, seen as a flaw in the system’s software, during its own analysis of what may have caused the crash.

Mr. Enders said Airbus wants access to the black box data, which stores conversations in the cockpit and, more critically, a large number of system parameters, to validate whether its hypothesis about the crash is accurate.

The U.K., Germany, Turkey and Malaysia grounded their transport planes after the crash, although France continued using the aircraft. Spanish authorities also told Airbus to stop flying newly built planes for the time being.

Mr. Enders said the data from the black boxes is crucial to determining exactly what caused the accident, take corrective action and gain clearance for the planes to start flying again more widely.

Mr. Enders said the crash would have an impact on the program, which was already behind schedule. He said he’s optimistic the accident “will not have a very detrimental impact on the aircraft deliveries and the cost situation in 2015.

The A400M program is several billion dollars over cost after repeated delays during its development. The program is unprofitable over the 174 aircraft already ordered, with pressure on Airbus to win additional deals to make money with the aircraft.

Airbus in January made management changes to the program and since then ”the situation is markedly improved,” Mr. Enders said.

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Les boîtes noires le confirment. Il n'y pas de défaut structurel, mais nous avons un sérieux problème de qualité dans l'assemblage final.

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Nous avons pris connaissance pour la première fois hier (mercredi) des résultats, ils confirment nos analyses internes

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The control software of the engines has been poorly installed just prior to the flight of the aircraft.

A400M, airplane cursed ? The track of a human error at Airbus is confirmed in the fatal accident of May 9 last year in Seville, said of corroborating sources. Specifically, it would seem that the control software of the power of the four motors - turboprop - has been downloaded incorrectly during the phase of so-called "pre-flight   ", i.e. the phase which separates the output of the device of the assembly line for its first flight. "  IS sure to 99   %  ", says a source close to the folder.

On 9 May last, the A400M MSN23 - that is to say, the 23e series - crashed some time after taking off for its first flight. Three of the four engines have suddenly lost power. The accident has cost the lives of four of the six persons on board. The appliance was the third to be delivered to Turkey. The black boxes have been found but the specialized unit of the Spanish Ministry of Defense in charge of the investigation has made no comment since.

5 Billion of additional costs

if the track to a procedural error is confirmed, the design of engines, very complex, is therefore not in issue. "  They are the consequence, not the cause of the crash  ", is it estimated to source close. Manufactured by EPI, a consortium consisting of the British Rolls-Royce , the French Snecma (Safran group), the Spanish ITP and the German MTU, the engines are at the origin of the previous setbacks of the program who have already cost 5 billion of extra cost to Airbus.



Marwan Lahoud, the responsible for the strategy and marketing of Airbus Group, goes in this direction. "  Black boxes the confirm. There is no structural defect.
But we have a serious problem of quality in the final assembly ", he says in an interview to "  Handelsblatt " to be issued on Friday. Last May 19, Airbus had recommended to its clients to regularly inspect the ECU, the engine electronic control unit, before the flight and perform additional checks after a possible replacement of engine or the ECU. But without establishing a link with the crash.

At this point, Germany, Great Britain, Turkey and Malaysia have suspended the flights of their A400M. France, she, the continues but only for the operational emergencies. In total, 174 A400M have been ordered by eight countries. Twelve only are in service. Independently of the crash, the program suffers from new delays. The dropping of paratroopers had major problems, and in-flight refueling of helicopters will not see the day, according to the DGA. All these problems have forced Airbus a go a load of EUR 551 million in its accounts 2014 ( "  Echoes " of 2 March).

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