Airbus Simulator Hints/Tricks/Tips
There seems to be a wealth of talented people that contribute to this forum and was hoping some Airbus guys might be able to share some hints or tips that help them through sim checks.
Are there any sequences that check pilots regularly see mis handled ? Im very new to the bus and keen to learn some of the stuff thats not necessarily in the manuals (as ive found they occasionally tell you only HALF THE STORY !) Cheers ! |
The best piece of advise i was given was plain and simple. " Turn the autopilot on, if you don't treat the sidestick like another man's co*k and don't touch it unless you really have to ". Best of luck
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13 knots
And when the trainer asks you "if the answer is 13 knots, what's the question"....it's how many knots are in the escape rope, had that a few times, not sure if it's a common thing amonst all sims.
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"if the answer is 13 knots, what's the question"....
If a trainer asked me that on a check ride, I'd see that he uses it:ouch: |
I agree with GRD, I was told in Toulouse by Airboose instructor to treat the sidestick with disdain, the less you touch it the better off you'd be.
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Secondary Pitch during EFATO
1. A common one this. During EFATO, the back pressure on the sidestick is not released to neutral as "Normal Law - Flight Mode" blends in from "Ground Mode". So at approx 100'RA with the sidestick firmly held in the "rotate" position, Normal Law interprets this as a "G" load demand and will increase pitch accordingly! This results in a speed decay below V2 unless it is caught very quickly. So..... REMEMBER to release the back pressure on the sidestick as the laws blend..or else you'll be doing it again!
2. I also recommend the use of TOGA if you are close to performance limit (hot/high/heavy/low QNH) - of course certification suggests that you will safely climb away remaining in FLX but...... I prefer to have as much perfomance as I can when close to the ground and other factors are against me. 3. ECAM DISCIPLINE. PF controls the pace that ECAM is actioned and PNF actions accordingly without swamping or leaving the PF behind - who is probably working hard concentrating on flying / navigating / communicating. DONT RUSH ECAM!!! Read it, understand what it is asking, and the implications of what you are about to do. Treat each individual failure as a chapter in a book i.e. finish one chapter before going on to the next. i.e. complete ENG 1 - FAIL by CLRing before looking at ENG 1 - START VALVE FAULT and so on. Complete the ECAM through to removing STATUS before applying GRADE/DODAR - you can always pull the STATUS PAGE back during you GRADE/DODAR. 4. Don't get bogged down with minuti details - you've probably got LAND ASAP in amber or red - so get on with it, but don't cut gig corners. 5. Enjoy it, learn from your mistakes and leave the session feeling you have improved!!!!!! A4 :ok: |
A4 - Thankyou exacty the kind of info i was after !. As amusing as it once was, we've all heard the sidestick gags before !!
For what its worth, a few that i have picked up recently: 1 - As soon as ANY flap/slat problem is identified, PULL SPEED. Then troubleshoot/ECAM. (This stops flap overspeed or decelerating below a safe manouvering speed). 2- Beware the double RA fault - The ECAM is relatively straightforward but Lots of 'unexpected' things happen close to the ground ! Question for the experts re ECAM discpline...... With a STATUS page requiring APP PROC's to be determined, do you 'interrupt' the flow of the ECAM and work it out then and there or do you finish the STATUS and come back to the performance calcs at a more convenient time ? |
These are my notes that I made during my upgrade training:
1) Study the visual circuits, you will be practicing a lot of these and you should be able to spit the procedures out. 2) Anytime performing VOR/NDB approaches use Flaps 1 when overhead, Flaps 2 when inbound, gear down, 1 and half mile to FAF flaps 3 and half a mile to FAF flaps full & .3 miles start descent. 3) SE OPS During Climb a. Thrust MCT b. A/THR OFF c. Revise ALT d. Speed VFTO (Managed speed) e. ECAM ACTIONS 4) SE During Cruise a. THR MCT b. A/THR OFF c. ALT set 20,000’ (just to initiate descent) d. HDG 090 degrees offset (If in RVSM airspace, leave the airway by 10/25 nm) e. Speed Green Dot f. ECAM Actions g. Reset ALT lower than what it shows in FMGS 5) SE OPS During Descent a. If FMA reads ( THR IDLE | OP DES | ……) – THR MCT b. ECAM actions 6) Engine Failure on Take off after V1 or if call is GO a. TOGA b. Vr, +climb gear up c. Take off heading, in trim conditions auto pilot on d. 400’ Primary ECAM actions e. Inform ATC, request RW heading, and lower altitude f. When on Bleed page, ask PNF to turn the APU on. g. Status Page : NO OEBS, NO COMPUTER RESETS, NO ENGINE RELIGHT (if engine flame out this is when you will apply paper checklist for ENGINE RELIGHT) After TO Check list and than read STATUS h. Ask ATC that you request Radar vectors, confirm if same runway and same wx. i. Ask PNF to prepare the FMGS for arrival, once complete, either you brief or ask him to do the briefing as well and than approach checklist. j. At an appropriate time inform CC and Dispatch that you are returning back. Tell CC due to Technical problems and dispatch for the abnormalities. Make a PA for guests as well. k. Once Approach checklist is complete inform ATC that you are ready for the approach. 7) For NPA make FPA corrections in .5 degrees, ie 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, or 4.0 8) Startup problems, tell GND and engineer as soon as possible after engine shutdown. Take new clearance for subsequent engine starts. 9) Anytime G/S is inop ask ATC if it is the TX problem (RX failure may occur). 10) All LOC intercept must be on HDG mode. 11) Read Overweight Landing Procedures and Gravity Gear Extension, you will be using it a lot of time. 12) Read ILS from above. 13) Anytime problem with APU and starting with External Pneumatic ask dispatch if the destination station has a serviceable external GPU and pneumatic available. 14) For NDB approaches on MCDU RAD NAV page, tune a non tuneable ILS frequency and set the correct course, use this course as a guidance for FPA. 15) Read Emergency EVAC a. Must turn the Dome light to Bright b. A/C excursion must evacuate 16) Must consult QRH 2.32 for delta V ref and confirm with ECAM 17) Abandoning Approach a. If a fault occurs after established on finals or whenever the checklist cannot be completed by 1000’ AGL abandon approach, inform ATC that you are abandoning approach. b. Select HDG, and initiate climb and request RV or further instructions. c. Any abnormalities below 500’ AGL continue and land. 18) HYD failure- two types: a. Recoverable Failure i. Low Pressure ii. Pump Overheat iii. Reservoir Overheat b. Unrecoverable Failure i. Low fluid level 19) Anytime Recoverable failure, try to recover it once committed to land that is below 1000’ AGL, recover the system and than turn the pump off. 20) Anytime you have slat and/or flaps fault always leave the facility with some slats/flaps out. Always fly in select speed VFE NEXT- 5 until configured for landing. So in case of flaps locked use config 1 in case of slats jammed use config 2 before leaving the facility for approach. 21) In case of SLAT & FLAPS locked at 0, leave the facility with config 1, select speed VREF + 60 and insert VREF+50 in FMGS, at 300’ AGL speed MANAGED. 22) If Landing Gear is stuck in down position, the flight cannot be continued to DEST, return back for landing. 23) Whenever you have ADR and IR fault, read which one to apply first ADR or IR? 24) For all SE approaches check the following: a. If APU available bleed on b. Autobrakes LO or MED c. GW whether overweight landing checklist is required or not d. Rudder trim zero between 100’ to 50’. 25) Read Dual FCU fault. 26) Read Dual FAC fault. 27) Read Dual HYD failure. 28) Read Landing Gear faults. 29) Read flaps/slats faults. 30) Read Engine Tail Pipe Fire checklist. 31) Read REV UNLOCK in Flight checklist 32) Anytime PFD failure on takeoff, continue takeoff with ISIS, turn the other A/P On and than ECAM actions. 33) Anytime there is A/P failure immediately engage the other one. 34) BSCU reset cannot be done more than twice. 35) Autobrake fault, do not reset in the air. 36) Read on which computers cannot be reset in air. 37) Shock Absorber Fault a. AC remains in GND mode b. Use MAN Pitch Trim c. Deselect MAX brake. d. Speed Select 250 kts. e. FDs ON, Bird ON (to come out of SRS mode) f. Clean on schedule g. Ignore the # symbol on PFD and fly the bird. h. If reset is successful or if ECAM calls for Gear Retraction slow to 220 kts. 38) Engine Flame out on RW, low speed RTO a. Do not stop on the RW and apply parking brakes b. Do not make a PA until clear of RW c. Advice ATC of the same, the idea is not to block the RW 39) Under following conditions ECAM actions can be started below 400’ AGL a. Reverser unlocked b. Exceedenses (Engine Parameters) c. Damage (Both N1 & N2 will have amber crosses) d. Stall (Engine Stall) e. Oil pressure (Genuine low oil pressure) 40) Emergency Descent 41) HYD Failure G+B & G+Y a. Go through FCOM and know how to read the summary b. Landing distances (Before preparing the approach, to be sure adequate RW length) c. FCOM 1 action on switches (HYD PUMP FAULT, PTU AUTO,, etc ) d. No Slats/Flaps selection during turn. e. Fly the attitude, may have to disregard the FD’s and do not exceed 25 degrees bank. f. Base to final, wider circuit and request longer approach. g. Ask for shallower intercept angle. 42) SMOKE REMOVAL Procedure 43) BOMB ON BOARD – Read QRH, specific kind of bomb Time, Pressure. Apply the procedure accordingly. 44) Anytime you have partial gear, HYD failure or Manual Gear extension do not vacate the runway and ask for tow truck. 45) During SIM skill test, no visual approaches unless CAVOK. 46) DUAL MCDU Failure 47) CREW Incapacitation a. TWO positive calls and no response consider incapacitation. b. Press the Take over button for 40 Secs (while pressing the button, AP cannot be engaged) c. AP ON and then gear up d. Call the IFM to flight Deck. e. Carry out the procedures 48) Beta target is available when a. TOGA/MCT b. Flaps/Slats are out c. One EPR>1.25 d. Difference between the two is > .25 49) For all NPA make sure to check time for procedure turns and Inbound in case of DME out. 50) TCAS Procedures 51) Self sustaining RPM is >43% N2, starter valve closed and N2 increases on its own 52) Must dry crank for 30 secs anytime a start is abandoned & fuel is introduced to the engine (start the other engine first, this will give time for N1 spool down and 30 sec dry crank will take care of getting read of fuel) 53) For Dual FAC fault, all speeds have to be calculated from QRH and double checked with FMGS 54) For SLATS/FLAPS fault the VFE is controlled by flap lever position whereas Vls is controlled by actual flap position. 55) Anytime you have runaway engine (short final thrust idle but thrust doesn’t reduce), shutdown the engine (ask PNF). 56) Know where to look for advisory conditions (QRH) and what it means. 57) If PACK ONE/TWO fault before takeoff and after takeoff you develop ENGINE BLEED TWO/ONE fault, use CROSS BLEED OPEN To supply opposite pack from opposite engine. 58) In case of LOC Failure on ILS 1 and GS failure on ILS 2, keep the ROSE ILS and you will get loc info from PFD/ND and GS from ND/PFD. |
Sumfingwong,
You ask, "With a STATUS page requiring APP PROC's to be determined, do you 'interrupt' the flow of the ECAM and work it out then and there or do you finish the STATUS and come back to the performance calcs at a more convenient time ?" Our procedures are to complete the ECAM prior to reaching for the QRH. This includes the procedure and the entire STATUS review. Only after announcing "ECAM actions completed." would we refer to the QRH for additional information such as speed increments, landing configuration and distance . The Evaluators (Check Pilots) and Simulator Instructors tell me that the things that are most often done incorrectly in the simulator are the engine failure in cruise, hold entries, go-arounds and ECAM discipline. These are all relatively simple items but seem to get botched on a regular basis. My Scottish Presbyterian Grandmother told me as a young boy, "Son, if you had time to fix it, you had time to do it right the first time." That is great advice for any aircraft (or simulator), but particularly the Airbus family. best regards, Bruce Waddington |
I'll second what Bruce says. It's too common to see people getting bogged down in QRH procedures before they've completely read through the STATUS page. So they are flying round and round the hold doing NITS briefs, making PA's, briefing for the approach - all with the STATUS page still up having never been removed.
Remember - any approach flown in ALTERNATE LAW will become DIRECT LAW at gear down. So select CONF 3 (NEVER select flap full in you are going into DIRECT LAW), get the speed at VAPP and be in trim before dropping the gear. For double RA failure you go straight from NORMAL to DIRECT. Finally - have a look at the AFTER ENG SHUTDOWN procedure in FCOM 3 Abnormals - there's a lot of good stuff in there with respect to APU Bleed and Fire Push buttons.............. A4 |
V1 cut.Pitch for 10 degrees for the first few seconds until the fd's settle down. The book says 12.5 but 10 works a treat initially in the sim!easy to aim for and gives you a few moments to gather your thoughts!
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Fantastic info - thanks guys !
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hold status
With regards to ECAM discipline, at the line:
LAND DIST PROC ..APPLY Pause long enough to decide on your alternates R/W length and Wx. Then continue with status to Its logical end. In real life the failure does not always occur within 25 miles of dep r/w!! |
All,
In my previous post I stated that "Only after announcing "ECAM actions completed." would we refer to the QRH for additional information such as speed increments, landing configuration and distance." However, there are two cases when our company procedures would have us leave the ECAM Procedures early. The first is upon reaching 'Engine relight initiate' in the ENG 1(2) Fail ECAM procedure. Our call would be to "Stop ECAM" and then call for the QRH Checklist for 'Engine Relight In Flight". The second is if the cockpit crew suspect smoke is coming from the avionics, air conditioning or cabin equipment, if there is an 'Avionics Smoke' ECAM, or if there is smoke, or the smell of smoke, in the cockpit. For these cases we have a QRH checklist that leads us through a checklist designed to find and hopefully eliminate the hazard. In all other cases of ECAM smoke warnings, such as CARGO and LAV we follow the ECAM procedures. best regards, Bruce Waddington |
If the a/c (320, CAE sim) is perfectly stable and balanced on the approach, you'll need a bee's dick of fwd pressure on the stick at about 200 feet as you hit ground effect to stay on profile.
Reference a post above re putting flap out overhead on a reversal (NBD,VOR) - are you not much better heading out clean to give youself room (staying less than 240kts of course) then flap 1 out with 20 seconds left before the turn, then flap 2 entering turn, etc? You get that bit further out, the turn is not as tight and more room to descend at a slower rate. |
Link starting the APU / XPDR to 'TA only' with the ELEC page while reviewing secondaries after an engine out.
NITS brief format works well for ATC too following your decision-making / DODAR. Open questions during a DODAR in my experience have really helped open up the situation and lead to a better performance. |
Engine stall, pum pum, fluctuating rpms...
- After confirming with PNF which engine is affected, retard gently to idle - FMA will prompt you to advance the other to MCT stop - if after TOFF, follow EOSID - once stalls are out, ask for QRH checklist |
I forgot
The annoying Master Caution with single chime every few seconds... check the FMA for a THR LK. Then the PF has to set thrust manually. Cautions don't stop till he moves the levers. If Captainis PF and does not take over thrust control, tell him to do it until he realises thrust is manual now. Surprisingly, many refuse to accept that fact and just ignore it. I wonder why... |
Would go along with all of the above except point 14.
If you tune any ILS when flying a NPA then you will get a check appr guidance message. On FMS2 equipped aircraft selecting the ILS on an NPA will cause the VDEV to be obscured which is inconvenient on a conventional NPA and absolutely forbidden for an RNAV. This 'tune a random ILS' is therefore regarded as bad practice by most and is to be discouraged. |
320 driver
I dont think Desi pilot is saying to SELECT the ILS p/b on the FCU but rather to put in a pseudo freq and correct inbound course ( of the NPA ) into the ILS field on the RADNAV page. If you then select ILS presentation for the approach the green ( NDB ) needle will sit in the middle of the ILS rose and corrections left or right are instinctive. The PFD will display the donut/brick dependent on FMS state. Works really well using VOR field as well.:O |
........lots of people don't read and digest the Airbus Flight Crew training Manual for the A320. This is a major mistake, as it has vital info.
Much of the (excellent) info. in this thread is in the manual. The more effort you put into reading it, the more confident you'll feel, operating the minibus. Enjoy, and the best advice I can give, is to make a one, or two line note in a notebook, of every small little non-normal item that crops up, and later, read the relevant manual, be it Ops, Fcom,Mel,FCTM, to further increase knowledge. :ok: |
I love the "trick" of using ILS or VOR course indicator to use it with the NDB.
Problem is that you need to have the approval of the left seat guy, and that is not so easy! |
6) Engine Failure on Take off after V1 or if call is GO a. TOGA b. Vr, +climb gear up c. Take off heading, in trim conditions auto pilot on d. 400’ Primary ECAM actions e. Inform ATC, request RW heading, and lower altitude f. When on Bleed page, ask PNF to turn the APU on. g. Status Page : NO OEBS, NO COMPUTER RESETS, NO ENGINE RELIGHT (if engine flame out this is when you will apply paper checklist for ENGINE RELIGHT) After TO Check list and than read STATUS h. Ask ATC that you request Radar vectors, confirm if same runway and same wx. i. Ask PNF to prepare the FMGS for arrival, once complete, either you brief or ask him to do the briefing as well and than approach checklist. j. At an appropriate time inform CC and Dispatch that you are returning back. Tell CC due to Technical problems and dispatch for the abnormalities. Make a PA for guests as well. k. Once Approach checklist is complete inform ATC that you are ready for the approach. I personaly do not agree on a few things : f) Better starting the APU when on the ELEC page. APU bleed is only a good idea in case of engine flameout, if you had a damage or a fire, you must first close the crossbleed before applying any apu bleed. g) The sequence is no OEBs, no Computer resets, no normal checklists. At this point you have a normal checklist, the after takeoff. Read after take off checklist, this is not the moment for the engine relight. QRH comes after ECAM actions complete. i) Transfer control to the PNF and prepare yourself the approach. You wouldn't want to fly an approach single engine that you have not prepared nor briefed? 10) All LOC intercept must be on HDG mode. 17) Abandoning Approach a. If a fault occurs after established on finals or whenever the checklist cannot be completed by 1000’ AGL abandon approach, inform ATC that you are abandoning approach. b. Select HDG, and initiate climb and request RV or further instructions. c. Any abnormalities below 500’ AGL continue and land. c) If you are talking about Low Vis Ops, the gate is the alert height, or 100 ft RA. Below 1000 ft and above the AH a go around is mandatory for all the reasons described in FCOM 4. 19) Anytime Recoverable failure, try to recover it once committed to land that is below 1000’ AGL, recover the system and than turn the pump off. 20)So in case of flaps locked use config 1 in case of slats jammed use config 2 before leaving the facility for approach. 32) Anytime PFD failure on takeoff, continue takeoff with ISIS, turn the other A/P On and than ECAM actions. 33) Anytime there is A/P failure immediately engage the other one. 39) Under following conditions ECAM actions can be started below 400’ AGL a. Reverser unlocked b. Exceedenses (Engine Parameters) c. Damage (Both N1 & N2 will have amber crosses) d. Stall (Engine Stall) e. Oil pressure (Genuine low oil pressure) I would add : 59) Review sidestick interference effects and sidestick priority logics. This can get you out of troubles if you get a sidestick interference at low altitude and low speed. 60) Packs off take off, when selecting packs off, one or more remain on. Options : Try again; take off with packs on if perf permit; Select bleeds off; start APU and APU bleed ON. 61) When you get IR or ADR failures, before touching anything related to these failures, ask yourself if what you are about to do makes sense. Like A/C dispatched with ADR 2 INOP. As per MEL ADR ref FO on 3. During flight you get IR 3 FAULT. If you go on and select IR 3 off, your FO loses his air data reference. the ECAM is an electronic QRH, it gives priorities but does not think for you. Cheers ! :ok: |
Airbus Simulator Hints/Tricks/Tips 6 months. Just do everything the check guy wants to see, impractical in real life or not. Any pre-ride training seshes are extremely useful and should be utilised to the full. Use every valuable minute to your advantage and don't be afraid to ask for specific exercises that you can learn from for either the sim check or real world. Know where the references are even though you know some by heart. A simple manual switching, like for a Brake Sys Fault, and the checkie might ask why you didn't use the book reference if you just went ahead and did it off your own pat. Do not rely solely on the QRH and that ECAM - pull out those FCOMs because they'll have stuff in em not shown anywhere else. Use them for each and every relevant problem he throws at you even if it says "Crew awareness". This will keep your @rse fully covered and prevent you forgetting anything, especially those notes in italics and "Items not shown on ECAM". Airbus manuals are so damn bloody confusing and mish-mashed like a dog's dinner, that its easy to overlook and miss something important. Another thing - don't be thrown off by any damn checkie bitching on about sim time running out. No pilot worth his stripes rushes a G+Y inop or Emer Gen until all bases are cleared, all speeds and distances double-checked by both pilots, full briefing understood by both. Let him rant afterwards at the debrief on how long it took you to complete the exercise, but there's nothing he can put on paper if you've done the entire procedure timely, correctly and without rush. Oh and never ever bull**** any checkie - if you don't know something just say so. The bugger will see right through you if you don't. If in doubt anytime: balls-to-the-wall TOGA. Even if you screw up the approach (or TO for that matter) better to just go around and try again then push a bad position and prang, and then the checkie ticking the FAIL box on your form. Summary: if you have the book reference for everything you say and do you're fireproofed to the hilt. Good luck! :ok: |
If PM doesnt push Thrust Levers all the way to TOGA and they are put into CLimb after the V1 cut, you won't get MCT until they are (briefly) put into and out of TOGA position. ( don't ask me how I know this...)
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If PM doesnt push Thrust Levers all the way to TOGA and they are put into CLimb after the V1 cut, you won't get MCT until they are (briefly) put into and out of TOGA position. ( don't ask me how I know this...) Did not really get all the process you are describing, but anyway, if you get an engine failure during takeoff, you are either in MAN TOGA or MAN FLX. If you are in MAN FLX and you don't select TOGA thrust (you don't have to from perf calculations), when you will need to select THR MCT you will need to move it out of its detent because FLX and MCT have the same lever detent. That is the only reason. In single engine moving the lever out of FLX/MCT and back again is like saying I don't want FLX takeoff thrust anymore but MCT thrust. As soon as you are back, you get THR MCT (provided you are in OP CLB) and A/THR white. cheers. |
10) All LOC intercept must be on HDG mode. Our old CFM aircraft have no GPS and thus must be in HDG mode but the rest of the fleet can intercept quite happily from NAV. |
I-2021,
You are indeed correct. Must get proper sleep before posting. I find that rather than just moving the thrust levers out of the Flex/MCT detent, it is more reliable in the Sim to move them briefly all the way to TOGA and back. Regards |
@Wirbelsturm
Yes, completely forgot about it but so true :) |
A/C Confiuration/Speed sequence
Hi "Compressor Stall"
Could you, or anyone else, describe a safe configuration & speed management sequence based on distance to land. I assume radar vectors [so you can appreciate your distance to land but you don't know it for sure] and a corect sequenced F-PLN. Thank you! |
That was the case with non GPS fitted aircraft where the nav accuracy could cause problems intercepting the localiser. Our old CFM aircraft have no GPS and thus must be in HDG mode but the rest of the fleet can intercept quite happily from NAV. back on the subject just to add that you need to intercept in HDG if your navigation accuracy is low and greater than 1 nm. Cheers. |
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