88
votes
Accepted
Why does JetBlue have aircraft registered in Germany?
I am the pilot who delivered this aircraft on Friday.
The German registration remains on the aircraft up until the time we (JetBlue) purchase the aircraft. Prior to transfer of title, we perform a ...
- 646
51
votes
Accepted
What's that in front of the overhead panel?
That's where the analogue/backup compass is stowed. The compartment can be opened downward if you ever need to use the compass, as seen in this image:
- 35.4k
49
votes
Why does JetBlue have aircraft registered in Germany?
That is a very very new aircraft. The notes on the jetphotos.com posting (photo taken 2/21/2021, uploaded 2/27/2021) say:
the first A321neo for jetBlue with the Mint suites on board for North ...
- 12.2k
45
votes
Is it possible to upgrade a Boeing 747-8 and Airbus A380's engines for greater speed?
I just wanted to comment on this question since some of my code is on the A380's GE engine.
Those engines are optimized for fuel efficiency at their cruising altitude and speed. The tradeoff that ...
- 531
41
votes
Accepted
Could the Boeing 787-9 near vertical takeoff demonstration be performed by Airbus A350 aircraft?
No.
Firstly, as a comment noted, the takeoff was hardly "near vertical", the camera angle makes it look so. The takeoff angle in the video certainly is much steeper than a normal one, but Airbus ...
- 13.5k
36
votes
Accepted
Are there any airliners not made by Airbus or Boeing?
Yes. Ignoring companies that used to exist but are now bankrupt/merged into Airbus or Boeing, you have companies from countries that aren't historically too friendly with the US and Western Europe. ...
- 4,193
35
votes
Accepted
How does the Airbus flight computer's voting system work?
As far as I read in various documents about A320 and remember them correctly:
There are three systems handling different parts of the primary flight control:
ELAC (elevator & aileron computer) ...
- 55.5k
35
votes
Is it possible to upgrade a Boeing 747-8 and Airbus A380's engines for greater speed?
If the engines are upgraded to "better" ones, the manufacturer would make it result in increased carrying capacity or increased range (or both), but not increased speed.
The limitation is the ...
- 39.4k
35
votes
How many flight hours do the first retiring A380s have?
The A380 that was being scrapped was the 3rd aircraft on the production line. After being used for a short time in the test fleet of Airbus, it became the first line number that was delivered to a ...
- 77.1k
33
votes
Why are aircraft parts built in different places and assembled in one?
You can only hire so many people at one place, and also only find so much land there, so when the whole process no longer fits, there is no other option than start building components at other places ...
- 55.5k
32
votes
Was the Airbus A300/A310 ever supplied with a yoke and not a sidestick?
The sidestick was a design that came about along with the new fly-by-wire technology of the A320 in the late 1980's. The physical leverage of a yoke was no longer needed for flight control cables. The ...
- 70.6k
31
votes
Accepted
How much training does an A320 pilot need to fly an A321?
From Flight Training International:
Airbus A320 Type Rating
The Airbus A320 family of jet airliners consists of five aircraft: the A318, A319, A320, A321 jet airliners and ACJ ...
- 18.5k
31
votes
Accepted
How many flight hours do the first retiring A380s have?
No they are nowhere near being worn out. These aircraft are normally designed for anywhere from 40-60,000 cycle lifespans, and more on shorter haul a/c (depending on how long each cycle is), perhaps ...
- 118k
29
votes
How can an Airbus Beluga fly only with two engines and use short runways?
This airplane is based on the Airbus A300-600. The maximum take-off weight of the aircraft is 155 tonne as published in the wikipedia. In addition, the the manufacturer has published the Aircraft ...
- 994
28
votes
Are there any airliners not made by Airbus or Boeing?
Being used but out of production:
Ilyushin Il-62 (up to 195 seats): last one built in 2010. Totally built 287, 13 remain in service
Tupolev Tu-154 (up to 176 seats): last one built in 2013. Totally ...
- 524
26
votes
How have engineers managed to increase commercial airliner wing aspect ratios over time?
As to what makes higher aspect ratios feasible, no magic here:
Aerospace materials have improved over time, in quality and strength.
Carbon gets a lot of hype, part deserved and part not. It's just ...
- 18k
25
votes
Why are Airbus captain control sticks placed on the left when most people are right-handed?
The Airbus is actually configured the same as the vast majority of other General Aviation and Civil Aviation aircraft.
The key factor is that the throttle is almost always the middle - meaning that ...
- 8,890
25
votes
Why does the wing root of the A330 have a pronounced twist?
Short answer:
To create a funnel for all the air streaming towards the fuselage.
Slightly longer answer:
Air approaching a swept wing will be accelerated towards the area with the lowest pressure and, ...
- 225k
21
votes
Why do Boeing and Airbus have distinctively different nose designs?
The answer to this is, in part to do with corporate culture and part aerodynamics.
The corporate culture and history part is that Boeing have always built their noses that way and senior engineers ...
- 311
21
votes
Accepted
How does envelope protection work in Airbus vs. Boeing aircraft?
There are two sorts of "autopilots", and it is important to make a distinction between the two. One is for the behaviour of the aircraft around its Centre of Gravity (CoG), the other one is for ...
- 60.7k
20
votes
What are the main differences piloting Boeing vs. Airbus aircraft?
Big difference is on Boeing with a yoke, it is like two linked steering wheels in a car. The pilot not flying can easily see what the other pilot is doing with his controls, as the yoke in front of ...
20
votes
Accepted
How did the nose landing gear of JetBlue Flight 292 get stuck sideways?
According to the complete NTSB report, following is a summary of what had caused the nose landing gear (NLG) to rotate 90° on Flight 292.
During flight, Brake Steering Control Unit (BSCU) performs1
...
- 29.3k
20
votes
Accepted
Is a Control Law Degradation in Airbus Planes displayed on the ECAM?
Since you are trying to understand how the crew is aware of law reconfiguration, it's important to look at this event in its context, why it does happen and what are the consequences for the control ...
- 68.6k
20
votes
Why are aircraft parts built in different places and assembled in one?
There are many considerations in where parts are manufactured or assembled, and not all are directly related to economics.
Both Boeing and Airbus have assembly lines located around the world, so it ...
- 70.6k
19
votes
Accepted
Does Airbus have a production problem?
A backlog of orders does not indicate a manufacturing problem. Quite opposite, it is good for the business as it adds stability. Airbus outpaced Boeing on every aircraft expect the A350/787 last year. ...
- 206
19
votes
What are the numbers in boxes on an A320 ND when terrain is shown?
14600 ft and 7300 ft.
A320 FCOM DSC-31-45 :
Minimum and maximum elevations encountered ahead of the aircraft, within the selected ND range.
- 7,836
19
votes
Accepted
Do pilots use the pedals in flight on planes with a sidestick (Airbus)?
The rudder pedals are not usually used in flight, even with the autopilot off.
The rudder on the Airbus A320 can be controlled via a mechanical connection to the rudder pedals in the flight deck, but ...
- 51.6k
18
votes
Accepted
What does "speed checked" mean?
Because there is a maximum deployment speed for things like flaps, gear extension (and sometimes retraction). Exceeding these speeds and using those devices can cause damage to control surfaces or ...
- 35.8k
17
votes
Why are Airbus captain control sticks placed on the left when most people are right-handed?
First, even if the aircraft is controlled using a yoke, the pilot is still controlling using his left hand (left hand on column, right hand on throttles/PCL). This is not much different and almost all ...
- 99.4k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible