Airframe by Michael Crichton Page B
Authors: Michael Crichton
Tags: Fiction, General, Suspense, Psychological, Romance, Thrillers, Suspense fiction, Espionage, Aircraft accidents, Aircraft accidents - Investigation, Adventure stories; American
Ads: Link
plenty of time to decide what to do. The aircraft is quite stable on autopilot Let's see what he decides. Ah. He decides to play with his controls. He pulls the slats lever down, then up... He's trying to clear the warning. But that doesn't change anything. So. He now realizes he has a system problem on his aircraft. But he remains calm.
He's still thinking ... What will he do? ... He changes the autopilot params ... he descends to a lower altitude, and reduces his airspeed... absolutely correct... He is still in the nose-up attitude, but now at more favorable conditions of altitude and speed. He decides to try the slats lever 63
again..."
The instructor said, "Should I let him off the hook?'
"Why not?" Felix said "I believe we have made the point."
The instructor punched a button. The simulator tilted back to level.
"And so," Felix said, "Mr. Ingram is restored to normal flight. He makes a note of his problem for the maintenance crews, and he continues on his way to London."
"But he stayed in the autopilot" Casey said. "What if he went out of it?"
"Why should he do that? He's in cruise flight; the autopilot has been operating the plane for at least half an hour."
"But suppose he did."
Felix shrugged, turned to the instructor. "Fail his autopilot."
"Yes, sir."
An audible alarm sounded. On the video screen, they saw the pilot look at the controls and take the stick in his hands. The audible alarm ended; the cockpit became silent. The pilot continued to hold the stick.
"Is he flying the plane now?" Felix asked.
"Yes, sir," the instructor said. "He's at FL two-ninety, point seven-one Mach, with autopilot disabled."
"Okay," Felix said. "Deploy his slats."
The instructor pushed a button.
On the systems monitor in the training console, the slats warning flashed, first amber, then white. Casey looked at the adjacent video screen and saw the pilot leaning forward. He had noticed the warning in the cockpit.
"Now," Felix said. "Once again we see the aircraft nose-up, but this time Mr. Ingram must control it himself ... So he brings the stick back ... very slightly, very delicately ... Good... and now he is stable."
He turned to Casey. "You see?" He shrugged. "It is very puzzling. Whatever happened to that Transpacific flight, it cannot be the slats. And not thrusters either. In either case, the autopilot will compensate and maintain control. I tell you, Casey, what happened to that aircraft is a mystery."
Back in the sunlight, Felix walked over to his Jeep, with a surfboard on top. "I have a new Henley board," he said. "Like to see it?"
"Felix," she said. "Marder is starting to scream."
"So? Let him. He enjoys it."
"What do you think happened to 545?"
"Well. Let us be frank. Flight characteristics of an N-22 are such that if slats deploy at cruise speed, and the captain goes out of the autopilot the aircraft is rather sensitive. You remember, 64
Casey. You did the study on it, three years ago. Right after we made the final fix on the slats."
"That's right" she said, thinking back. "We put together a special team to review flight stability issues on the N-22. But we concluded there wasn't a control-sensitivity problem, Felix."
"And you were correct" Felix said. "There is no problem. All modern aircraft maintain flight stability with computers. A jet fighter cannot be flown at all without computers. Fighters are inherently unstable. Commercial transports are less sensitive, but even so, computers shift fuel, adjust attitude, adjust CG, adjust thrust on the engines. Moment to moment the computers continuously make small changes, to stabilize the aircraft."
"Yes," Casey said, "but the planes can be flown out of autopilot as well."
"Absolutely," Felix said. "And we train our captains to do that. Because the aircraft is sensitive, when the nose goes up, the captain must very gently bring it back again. If he corrects too strongly, the plane noses over. In that case he must pull up, but again, very gently, or he is
He's still thinking ... What will he do? ... He changes the autopilot params ... he descends to a lower altitude, and reduces his airspeed... absolutely correct... He is still in the nose-up attitude, but now at more favorable conditions of altitude and speed. He decides to try the slats lever 63
again..."
The instructor said, "Should I let him off the hook?'
"Why not?" Felix said "I believe we have made the point."
The instructor punched a button. The simulator tilted back to level.
"And so," Felix said, "Mr. Ingram is restored to normal flight. He makes a note of his problem for the maintenance crews, and he continues on his way to London."
"But he stayed in the autopilot" Casey said. "What if he went out of it?"
"Why should he do that? He's in cruise flight; the autopilot has been operating the plane for at least half an hour."
"But suppose he did."
Felix shrugged, turned to the instructor. "Fail his autopilot."
"Yes, sir."
An audible alarm sounded. On the video screen, they saw the pilot look at the controls and take the stick in his hands. The audible alarm ended; the cockpit became silent. The pilot continued to hold the stick.
"Is he flying the plane now?" Felix asked.
"Yes, sir," the instructor said. "He's at FL two-ninety, point seven-one Mach, with autopilot disabled."
"Okay," Felix said. "Deploy his slats."
The instructor pushed a button.
On the systems monitor in the training console, the slats warning flashed, first amber, then white. Casey looked at the adjacent video screen and saw the pilot leaning forward. He had noticed the warning in the cockpit.
"Now," Felix said. "Once again we see the aircraft nose-up, but this time Mr. Ingram must control it himself ... So he brings the stick back ... very slightly, very delicately ... Good... and now he is stable."
He turned to Casey. "You see?" He shrugged. "It is very puzzling. Whatever happened to that Transpacific flight, it cannot be the slats. And not thrusters either. In either case, the autopilot will compensate and maintain control. I tell you, Casey, what happened to that aircraft is a mystery."
Back in the sunlight, Felix walked over to his Jeep, with a surfboard on top. "I have a new Henley board," he said. "Like to see it?"
"Felix," she said. "Marder is starting to scream."
"So? Let him. He enjoys it."
"What do you think happened to 545?"
"Well. Let us be frank. Flight characteristics of an N-22 are such that if slats deploy at cruise speed, and the captain goes out of the autopilot the aircraft is rather sensitive. You remember, 64
Casey. You did the study on it, three years ago. Right after we made the final fix on the slats."
"That's right" she said, thinking back. "We put together a special team to review flight stability issues on the N-22. But we concluded there wasn't a control-sensitivity problem, Felix."
"And you were correct" Felix said. "There is no problem. All modern aircraft maintain flight stability with computers. A jet fighter cannot be flown at all without computers. Fighters are inherently unstable. Commercial transports are less sensitive, but even so, computers shift fuel, adjust attitude, adjust CG, adjust thrust on the engines. Moment to moment the computers continuously make small changes, to stabilize the aircraft."
"Yes," Casey said, "but the planes can be flown out of autopilot as well."
"Absolutely," Felix said. "And we train our captains to do that. Because the aircraft is sensitive, when the nose goes up, the captain must very gently bring it back again. If he corrects too strongly, the plane noses over. In that case he must pull up, but again, very gently, or he is
Similar Books
