My first 100 Bus hours- reflections on the A-320

I'm writing this while cruising at FL370, staring at a bright half-moon
through the windscreen, waiting for falling stars. There isn't a cloud in
the sky tonight. I have my laptop sitting on a pull-out tray in front of me
and plugged into a 110V outlet. The cockpit is quiet, as are the radios this
time of night. We are cleared direct destination. Most of the pax are
asleep. There isn't much to do, so I thought I'd share some thoughts about
the Bus.

I went through the company's assimilation program and received a type-rating
without ever touching a real Bus. I followed my standard training program
mantra- Cooperate, Graduate. Unlike previous training on other types, Bus
training didn't focus on knowing every nut and bolt, but rather focused on
things that pilots can control from the cockpit. Common sense prevails at
last.

Even with common sense, there is a lot to learn. The flight manual has 1600
pages divided into 4 volumes. Add to that some Jeppesons, a quick reference
handbook for emergencies, and a company operating manual, and the old flight
bag gets heavy. Fortunately, I've found that in practice most of these
publications are seldom used. If there is a problem, the airplane will tell
us. Then it will tell us what to do about the problem. The flight management
computers have a chart database, so the Jepps are set to the side quite
often. The FADECs calculate maximum N1 speeds. The FMS calculates maximum
altitudes. Rarely do we need to pull out a publication. The airplane has
it's own laptop with all the above documents on it plus more, such as the
minimum equipment list. Unlike the printed
version, the laptop has a search function which simplifies finding
procedures. The laptop also contains the performance tables for every runway
we can access worldwide. For ATIS, I hit a button and the printer spits out
a written ATIS for me. The printer spits out the
weight and balance too. It's so easy and yet I had to study so hard!

My first flight in the real airplane was sweet. That airplane was less than
a month old. It smelled new. The carpets weren't sticky. The seat cushions
weren't torn or flat. The cockpit is larger than my previous ride. I don't
hit my head on the overhead switches when getting into the seat (hopefully
the B-727 fire handle scars on my scalp will dissappear before I lose all my
hair). There is room for my overnight bag, so I no longer worry that a
passenger will deplane with my clothes. The seats are electric just like a
luxury car, though they won't fully recline. Each pilot is surrounded by 5
cold air vents which really do cool us off. The windows don't leak in the
rain so I won't have de-ice fluid running down my leg this winter. There are
built-in window shades on the side windows. Just pull them down and hook
them in place. The sewer stench from the front lavatory that overwhelmed us
with regularity on my old ride is pleasantly missing on the Bus.

The pre-flight is simpler. Test the fire detection, turn on the seatbelt
sign, and check the flightplan in the FMS. The exterior pre-flight is
simpler too which does bother me. It is nice to fly an airplane I can walk
under, however I can't get into the wheel-wells or avionics compartments
because I can't reach them. I can't run my fingers across the top of the
wing to check for ice unless I call maintenance to bring a lift-truck. On
the plus side, the APU runs so quiet I don't need earplugs. I don't need to
stand on tippy-toe to access the fueling panel. I don't need to hop on a
belt-loader to check the fan blades for damage. This particular airplane is
so new that the manufacturing stamps are still visible on the backside of
the turbine blades.

Starting the engines is easier. I no longer have to hold the start switches
in place. I simply flip the switch to 'ON', and the computers do the rest.
The computers will shut off the fuel and continue motoring the engines if a
hot-start happens. Then they will try a second start. If that is
unsuccessful, the computers will tell us to call maintenance. The computers
will also tell us if we missed anything important on the checklist such as
arming ground spoilers, arming auto-brakes, setting flaps, or turning on the
transponder.

Taxiing takes some care. Sitting higher than I'm used to makes me think I'm
going slower than I really am. The airplane wants to taxi at 40 knots at
ground idle. For the first few taxi outs, I had to refer to the groundspeed
read-out to keep from spilling the coffee while turning. Riding the brakes
lightly is okay, which took some getting used to because I'm programmed to
to use brakes as little as possible. The brakes are carbon fiber which
prefer to be a little warm rather than stone-cold. As with the brakes, I'm
programmed to always stow the armrests for take-off and landing. On the Bus,
it is preferable to have the armrests down for better control of the
joystick. It still feels a bit strange to have the armrests down for landing
and
take-off. The sidestick itself didn't feel strange, maybe because I've flown
sidestick before in a homebuilt.

The my first take-off was a rush. I chose to use maximum power which gave us
a weight
to thrust ratio of 2.4 to 1. We were off the ground in about 3500 feet. The
initial climb rate was like being in a 20 series Learjet. Reducing to climb
power still gave us 4400 feet/minute. Climbimg through FL300 had us doing
better than a 1000 feet/minute. We settled at FL370 at M.78 burning 4800
pounds/hour. We were burning 2.4 times as much fuel as a Lear 25, but
carrying 19.7 times as many passengers.

The descent is handled by the FMS for best fuel efficiency. I just sit back
and watch it do it's thing, crossing restrictions and everything. In my
previous rides, I flew climb and descent profiles that weren't in the manual
but could beat the flightplan's fuel burn figures by quite a bit. I was
mildly proud of myself when I discovered that the profiles I used are
similar to the profiles used by the Bus to save fuel. To beat
the Bus's flightplanned fuel burn, I have to use my brain.

Jets don't descend and decelerate simultaneously very well. The Bus is no
exception and it requires proper planning to descend for an approach. The
wing feels like a glider at times. Speedbrakes come in handy and can be used
when the flaps are extended. Landings are real easy. It just wants to
roll on every time. It's almost too easy. I can be lazy and still have a
sweet landing. I fear I might lose the golden landing touch that my previous
rides have demanded of me.

Studying the systems has allayed my apprehensions about the design. There
are many improvements over older designs like the wiring for the fuel pumps
being outside the wing.
However, there are some vagaries that leave me scratching my head. There is
no protection against tailstrikes. The nosewheel centering mechanism is
hydraulic and has been known to blow a seal. The wingtips save fuel (2.4%
increased fuel burn without them) but they look silly. Retractable landing
lights cause an irritating vibration when extended. This particular plane is
new, but the
design is over 2 decades old and the FMS is a dinosaur compared to the new
stuff. The fuselage bends and twists in turbulence, but it weighs less which
saves fuel. The public address is set up to prevent an inadvertant broadcast
to the passengers when replying to ATC, but the backlighting for the switch
burns the fingertip like heck after a few sentences.

Overall, I like my new ride. It's comfortable. At the end of the workday, I
don't feel as fatigued.
It's efficient. We can carry 200 passengers yet weigh about 53,000 pounds
less than a B-757 at MGTOW. Passengers love it. Many of our passengers
comment favorably about the Bus. The seats are wider and the temperature
control is much better. The air conditioning pumps out clouds of rolling
condensation from the ceiling vents on hot steamy Caribbean days (some of
our less savvy passengers worry that it's smoke). Push a button during an
approach in a rainstorm and non-toxic rain repellent squirts on the
windscreen to help bring the runway into sight.

The time has come to open the cockpit door and accept the deplaning
passengers' accolades for another sweet landing as the condensation rolls
out of the ceiling vents.

D.

"Capt.Doug" wrote in message
...
I'm writing this while cruising at FL370, staring at a bright half-moon
through the windscreen, waiting for falling stars. There isn't a cloud in
the sky tonight. I have my laptop sitting on a pull-out tray in front of
me
and plugged into a 110V outlet. The cockpit is quiet, as are the radios
this
time of night. We are cleared direct destination. Most of the pax are
asleep. There isn't much to do, so I thought I'd share some thoughts about
the Bus.

SNIP

Thanks for sharing this Doug...

Very nice read.

Regards,

Jay Beckman
PP-ASEL
AZ Cloudbusters
Chandler, AZ

"Capt.Doug" wrote in message ...
I'm writing this while cruising at FL370, staring at a bright half-moon
through the windscreen, waiting for falling stars. There isn't a cloud in
the sky tonight. I have my laptop sitting on a pull-out tray in front of me
and plugged into a 110V outlet. The cockpit is quiet, as are the radios this
time of night. We are cleared direct destination. Most of the pax are
asleep. There isn't much to do, so I thought I'd share some thoughts about
the Bus.

I went through the company's assimilation program and received a type-rating
without ever touching a real Bus. I followed my standard training program
mantra- Cooperate, Graduate. Unlike previous training on other types, Bus
training didn't focus on knowing every nut and bolt, but rather focused on
things that pilots can control from the cockpit. Common sense prevails at
last.


Resistance is futile...Thanks for the great post!

Lets see, now how much training to get the type rating in a different Airbus bird?

Capt.Doug wrote:
I'm writing this while cruising at FL370, staring at a bright half-moon
through the windscreen, waiting for falling stars.

Great post. Thanks.

George Patterson
We don't stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop
playing.

On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 00:43:05 GMT, "Capt.Doug"
wrote in ::

[Interesting story snipped]

The public address is set up to prevent an inadvertant broadcast
to the passengers when replying to ATC, but the backlighting for the switch
burns the fingertip like heck after a few sentences.

I would be tempted to modify that backlighting. Find out what lamp is
used; remove the base from one, and replace it with an appropriately
colored LED (or 2) and dropping resistor.

Thanks for sharing your experiences. It sounds sweet.

"Capt.Doug" wrote in message
...
I'm writing this while cruising at FL370, staring at a bright half-moon
through the windscreen, waiting for falling stars. There isn't a cloud in
the sky tonight. I have my laptop sitting on a pull-out tray in front of
me
and plugged into a 110V outlet. The cockpit is quiet, as are the radios
this
time of night. We are cleared direct destination. Most of the pax are
asleep. There isn't much to do, so I thought I'd share some thoughts about
the Bus.

Here I thought you guys up there just read the newspapers.

Nice post Capt. Thanks for sharing. What is your route? Overseas?
West Coast? East Coast?...

"Capt.Doug" wrote in message news:tosif.99324

Nice account, Doug.


....hit my head on the overhead switches when getting into the seat
(hopefully
the B-727 fire handle scars on my scalp will dissappear before I lose all
my
hair).

Pshaw!!! Wear them with pride!


Taxiing takes some care. Sitting higher than I'm used to.....had to refer
to the
groundspeed read-out to keep from spilling the coffee while turning.

Any taxi speed limit? On the 747 also had to use GS readout. Limit was
10kt at heavy weights, iirc. Limit factor was tire overheat.

"Capt.Doug" wrote:

I'm writing this while cruising at FL370, staring at a bright half-moon

snip

It's a special thing that you typed this and sent it to the group.

Wonderful post!


Thank You

~Dave


Is there a PMAB? g

"Capt.Doug" wrote in message
...
I'm writing this while cruising at FL370, staring at a bright half-moon
through the windscreen, waiting for falling stars.


Cool story, maybe in another life.

---------------------------------------------
DW