Systems

To contact us Click HERE

Position: Over Puget SoundCompass Heading: 350 degreesAltitude: 6,000 feetIndicated Airspeed: 250 knotsEquipment: A321 V2500-A5 Pax-on-Board: 183 + 3 jumpers
Airborne...
My mood was light-to-moderately crabby until I saw what was waiting at the SEA-TAC gate... An A321. I love the 321 but do not get to fly them much because of fleet numbers. At the bottom of the jetway, L-1 (left cabin door, forward), I could smell the new odor wafting out of her cabin. Oooh, baby! You smell good.
I am a few minutes ahead of the co-pilot and four flight attendants who are standing in line at Starbucks. The stretch Electric Jet is dark, power OFF. I fumble with my geezer glasses, push the iPhone button for some Apple light and start reading the power-up checklist. There is something about the iPhone and Fi-Fi... They kind of go together.
With systems coming on line and stabilizing, I look into the cabin... Yikes, these things are long! You can barely see the rear galley. The flight deck is beautiful... I take a walk into the cabin admiring her newness. The pax seats look like they were installed at the factory this morning, instead of a few weeks ago.
OK, this is not so bad... I was wanting a northwesterly heading to Anchorage, but will make do with an easterly course line in this baby.
Noise Abatement...
Because it is after 2200 hrs. local, the departure controller turned us out over the water, i.e., a left bank after take-off from runway 34-Right to comply with noise abatement rules. As we seasoned Line geezers are fond of saying, I am using the emergency flight controls (stick & rudder, thrust levers) in the climb.
Light fingertip pressure is all it takes to maneuver this new enhanced Electric Jet; thrust levers are set in the climb power detent. Out of 10,000 feet, I flip the overhead switches to stow the main lights. You can actually see the twin light spears rotate downward as they fold into their little cubby holes under each wing root.
These 321s are very quiet. The speed increase out of 10,000 feet is a digital value on the airspeed indicator without an accompanying noise increase. Engine noise, because they are so far aft, is almost non-existent. It is a weird sensation compared to the 319/320.
11,000 feet...
Compass heading is 100 degrees as the departure controller clears us to the first virtual waypoint about 60 miles east of PPOS (present position). Fi-Fi is rolling through 270 knots as she enters the orange cloud bellies reflecting Seattle street lights. The flight director crosshairs are showing me the proper attitude for best climb rate and fuel burn... Hey, dummy! Pay attention! Put the little airplane in the center!
The crosshairs are one degree high; I pressure the joystick with my little finger and raise the nose to match. The engines are new, strong, and running cool. The fuel flows are... Uh, don't look yet. It only makes you paranoid; they are huge in this thick air.
14,000 feet...
The Electric Jet breaks out of the overcast and into the dark night sky. The stars are beautiful this evening, or is it morning? I look at the pilot's chronometer the wife-of-my-youth bought me when we were both young.
It is still evening, but not for long.
Enough fun for now... Auto-pilot ON, auto-thrust ON, check NAV engaged. The transition from my little finger to the Star Trek mode is seamless.
The Seattle departure controller gives us the frequency for Seattle Center and wishes us a good flight.
28,000 feet...
I hear a snap behind me... uh-oh; that sounded like a circuit breaker. Before I can put a light on the circuit breaker panel behind the co-pilot, the computers that monitor the system computers generate a fault warning... Center-fuel tank, right pump FAULT.
I put a flashlight beam on the circuit breaker panel and see a popped circuit breaker's white nub sticking out of the otherwise dark panel. Yep, we have lost a fuel pump. Interesting...
"Ding"...
A yellow master caution light illuminates the flightdeck along with a caution bell... Center-tank auto-feed FAULT. It's gone from interesting to very interesting... I suspect a check valve or pressure switch has failed, rather than the actual pump.
The fuel-tank system page illuminates on the lower LCD screen. The wing tanks are normal and in the green. So, the center tank has lost a pump; no problem. We can OPEN the fuel cross-feed valve and use the remaining center-tank pump to feed both engines. If we lose the remaining center-tank pump, we will be landing at O'Hare or Detroit for more fuel. The engines cannot draw fuel from the center tanks unassisted. The wing tanks; yes.
The email alert light begins to flash... Of course. Mother is calling; we are in a new enhanced Fi-Fi which communicates with Mother at all times. Maintenance Control, a subsidiary of Mother, says they show center-tank pump #2 (right) and the AUTO FUEL feed, center-tank are faulted. Amazing! I have gone from steam-jets with WW2 instrument panels to this airborne main-frame of computing power. I wonder what the young ones in the right seat will see in their time? Maybe nothing... The flight management computers might take over entirely. Get rid of these pesky pilots.
I send an email back to Maintenance Control: yes, the center tank system is having some problems, but assure them than everything is under control.
They respond with a promise to have techs waiting for the aircraft. In days gone by, we would have started preparing a booby-trapped blueberry muffin (insert realistic plastic bug) for the techs. Maintenance techs will eat anything left in the aircraft.
It's a kinder and gentler Line today... No booby-trapped muffins allowed anymore.
Manual fuel feed...
The automatic feature of the center-tank feed has failed, which means captain Dave will manually operate the remaining center-tank fuel pump. The fuel pumps give the engines more than they need at all times, so the excess returns to the wing tanks in the 321, tip tanks in the 320/319. Normally, the auto-feed function will shut the center-tank pumps OFF before the wing tanks/tip tanks overflow.
In manual feed, not so... Uh, think of a white plume jettisoning from the wing overflow vents causing multiple pax to ring their overhead call buttons in the cabin. Please don't ask me how I know about this... Well, OK... I did a carpet dance two or three Chief Pilots ago over this very thing.
Now, I am paranoid about the fuel overflow vents. It still makes me twitch thinking about it, but I will never overflow another drop of fuel as long as I am on the Line.
Center-tanks empty...
Yeah baby! The center-tanks are empty; we are drawing on the wing tanks. Life is good as I switch OFF the remaining center-tank fuel pump and close the cross-feed valve. We are good to go... Plenty of accessible fuel remaining.
Over Minny... 35,000 ft
Minneapolis is passing under our long, shiny belly when the lead flight attendant calls us, "Hey boys, dinner is ready."
I have been concentrating on the fuel and forgotten about hunger pangs. I ask her if they look edible... She assures me they are from the First Class carts. On certain legs we get First Class food, on others, lowest bidder crewmeals. There is no rhyme or reason.
I ask her to send up a strong coffee with the meals. We are living large this morning... Local time is 0220 hrs.
Fuel: Center tanks dry/wing tanks almost full.Hydraulics: 3,000 psi Electrics: Gen 1 & 2 under 30% of capacityOxygen press: 1500 psiFuel flow: 6200 lbs p/hr
Life on the Line continues...