Airbus thrust levers

lemansky

Hey!I thought that I had an idea of how Airbus thrust levers worked,but recently I have begun doubting myself.If anybody could start from scratch and go through the detents and their functions on say the A330 or A320, i would be very happy!Theres no pointin me telling you what I already know because I've gotten myself confused now!So i'm putting this out to any fellow aviation nerds.Thanks in advance:)
Lemansky

PCros

On Airbus A320’s and any other Airbus models, the thrust levers themselves don't shift when the autothrottles are engaged, so it’s a reminder for the pilot bring the thrust levers all the way back to idle to match the thrust setting of idle for landing.

This drove pilots mad especially when they converted over from Boeings to Airbus. If the pilot ignores the instruction, the thrust will still be at idle despite the position of the thrust levers.

Hope that helps you.

lemansky

Cheers that definitely gets me back on the right track!:D Appreciate that!

Does anyone know the story with the climb detent?After TOGA or flex when it's selected to climb, the levers stay here for the whole flight until they're retarded at landing i think, but i assume that the actual cruise settings are managed automatically even though the levers remain in climb??

FunkyDa

Where's "Fluffer", or "Phoenix Rising", to clarify this one?

lemansky

FunkyDa wrote:

Where's "Fluffer", or "Phoenix Rising", to clarify this one?

I'm fairly new....I guess they're users who will leave me once again in no doubt as to the answer!I hope they come along because it's been killing me to get this straight in my head seeing as I used to know the answer to my question!Its what happens when you listen to people even though you know they're wrong:D

PCros

Hey lemansky. I'm not an ATPL holder yet but I do hold a PPL. My uncle flies A321 and he was explaining that thrust lever situation to me a few weeks ago as I was confused aswell.

As far as I can remember he was telling me that Airbus thrust levers don't move when changes are made to the power and while the auto throttle is functioning, their position sets limit to maximum N1 the auto throttle can instruct. In general they're set to climb detent all of the time.

But if those guys mentioned are airbi flyers please correct me if the info isnt exactly right.

PhoenixRising

lemansky wrote:

Cheers that definitely gets me back on the right track!:D Appreciate that!

Does anyone know the story with the climb detent?After TOGA or flex when it's selected to climb, the levers stay here for the whole flight until they're retarded at landing i think, but i assume that the actual cruise settings are managed automatically even though the levers remain in climb??

Takeoff is performed with the thrust levers in the FLX/MCT detent or the TOGA detent, depending on aircraft weight, runway length, pressure and temperature etc..At thrust reduction altitude the thrust levers are pulled back into the CLB detent and the autothrust engages. The autothrust stays in until landing with the thrust levers staying in the CLB detent for the remainder of the flight. If the pilot intends to land with manual thrust, he'll disconnect it somewhere on the approach and the thrust levers are used conventionally. Alternatively the autothrust can be left in for approach and landing, so the thrust levers stay in the CLB detent until the pilot pulls them back to idle in the flare, thus disconnecting the autothrust.

lemansky

PhoenixRising wrote:

Takeoff is performed with the thrust levers in the FLX/MCT detent or the TOGA detent, depending on aircraft weight, runway length, pressure and temperature etc..At thrust reduction altitude the thrust levers are pulled back into the CLB detent and the autothrust engages. The autothrust stays in until landing with the thrust levers staying in the CLB detent for the remainder of the flight. If the pilot intends to land with manual thrust, he'll disconnect it somewhere on the approach and the thrust levers are used conventionally. Alternatively the autothrust can be left in for approach and landing, so the thrust levers stay in the CLB detent until the pilot pulls them back to idle in the flare, thus disconnecting the autothrust.

Perfect!That has totally removed any doubt at all from my mind.Thanks to PCros as well:D Cheers to everyone who posted-i really appreciate it!