Yup, on the ATC selection of the comm page was our oceanic clearance … the updated version. When the light bulb illuminated in my head, I scrambled my finger to the mouse pad. A new track meant a new oceanic entry point - which hadn’t been entered because our clearance hadn’t been received via the normal means of an ACARS printout. And as luck would have it, weather deviations were required. We had already suspected this because ATC informed us that our North Atlantic track would be changed. One of the messages just happened to be our oceanic clearance. Big deal, right? Well, the result was that the comm annunciation was making us think that an electronic game of crying wolf was occurring, when in fact we had other messages. No matter how often I sent the operative status, the EICAS screen displayed an indication that the message hadn’t been received via a “comm” annunciation. ![]() With the paper roll crisis averted, I realized that my next step was to select the message that restored the operative status to the printer. The correct direction made the process far too simple. I had loaded the paper to feed from the wrong direction. An adjustment later, all was well - except for one problem. And who has time to read the instructions on the back side of the feeder lid? When the roll wouldn’t fit despite my animated persistence, I realized that the plastic spindle had been pushed too far to one side. I, on the other hand, had only seen the task demonstrated. My copilot had a little more than 300 hours on the airplane and never had the opportunity to experience the loading task. I retrieved a new roll and proceeded to begin the process of loading. Meanwhile, back at the paper roll crisis, a break in the action allowed me to shift priorities. Of course, the flight director automation had already initiated the altitude capture mode. It wasn’t until we were rapidly approaching the altitude in question that I was able to get the verification. I needed a simple verification, but frequency congestion prevented me from making that request. In the midst of the paper crisis, the controller had issued a climb clearance that conflicted with the altitude stated on the SID. Shanwick Oceanic would be sending the confirmation at any moment. …Īpparently the vendor of the paper roll had not imprinted a long enough warning stripe, notwithstanding the fact that the priority of the inbound crew was its ride to the hotel and not changing the ACARS printer paper the message on the EICAS screen announced, “Printer Inop.” Crap! I had already requested our oceanic clearance electronically. And the airplane generates a lot of paper. It may seem rather trite, but the automation of the 777 requires that it generate information onto paper - weather, flight plan data, etc. ![]() It was my copilot’s leg, and he was doing an admirable job with his flight test.Īs the climb progressed into flight levels, the ACARS paper was giving the warning sign of the dreaded purple stripe on the side. Many of us believe that the London controllers are paid by the number of vectors provided and the intermediate level-offs required. The task at hand was safely navigating the airplane across the North Atlantic.Īs is typical of departures from Heathrow Airport, we were given a series of flight test maneuvers in the form of turns and climbs. (You have to be old enough to remember the original movie, Airport.) Our issues were simply a matter of managing a handful of glitches that had the potential to distract us away from the task at hand. Nothing along the lines of stark terror that included bells, whistles, sirens or Dean Martin wrestling the controls occurred. ![]() Such was the case for one of my flights from London back to JFK. That ability keeps the proverbial blue side up, especially when non-normal circumstances occur. What defines us as competent pilots is our ability to establish a priority for each management task. That fact is not news for most readers of this magazine. Regardless, all airplanes dictate a given level of cockpit management for any given phase of flight. For my purposes, and the fact that we are celebrating the 75th anniversary of its birth, my money is on the DC-3. If alcohol were included in this debate, days rather than hours would pass before a collective agreement occurred, if at all. December 2010 - A diverse gathering of aviators from all age groups could probably debate for hours the first airline airplane that required administrative thinking to manage the cockpit.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |