Airbus/Boeing
 

Hi all

Before i start, I dont want a A v B arguement here.

Could anyone who has experience of flying any Airbus, 318/319/320/321/330/340/380, could you please tell me how much actual control or input you have of the a/c at any given time on approach or landig. Is a lot of the landings done my computers now or are there still times when you do manual landings and take off's as well.

Many Thanks

Don't worry... SQ can wait
 

Most flying is still by input, there are no "computers" in the sense of it all being done by "PC World". So if you thought flying had suddenly ceased to have a future SQ will still be there. Trust me. Good Airline that, I like your style already.

In our airline we sometimes disconnect the autopilot up at 10'000ft or above, including using manual thrust and raw data - i.e. no significant guidance.

An average approach on a windy/rainy/grey day in the busy skies of UK airspace might involve disconnecting the autopilot around 1000ft and manually landing with autothrust still engaged to manage the speed and with the flight directors for additional guidance.

If visibility is extremely poor due to e.g. fog and the airport is certified for it, an autoland can be carried out, which is more workload-intensive for us as additional cross-checks of the systems and flight path must be carried out all the way to touchdown and throughout the initial rollout.

Summary: 100% of the time we have 100% control; 99% of that time we land manually.

Hope this helps.
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