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MCAS system is supposed to stop the plane from stalling. The faulty AoA sensor is causing the plane to think it’s about to stall and therefore MCAS works as de
by javagram 8y ago
MCAS system is supposed to stop the plane from stalling.
The faulty AoA sensor is causing the plane to think it’s about to stall and therefore MCAS works as designed to prevent the pilot from putting the plane into a stall.
Of course the design is wrong because the plane is actually pointing toward the ground and MCAS thinks it’s pointing to the sky...
- robryan 8y agoWhat about a single button to turn MCAS off and return to trim to a neutral position? Or a setting where the pilot is telling the system to ignore the sensor input. Maybe a bit like a self driving car planes will eventually have a system where they can use visual markers as a check on what sensors are reporting.
- weaksauce 8y agoThat may be where they will go with this but it may require a new certification and training.
- javagram 8y agoIndeed there are many ways to design this better. The 737 max was designed to not be any different to fly than previous 737s, so adding a button to disable this system was not allowed as I understand it. As these two tragic accidents have made clear that specification was pretty wrongheaded...
- fgonzag 8y agoSeriously, a MCAS indicator light (if MCAS is actively issuing commands), a big red button below it called "Disable MCAS" , and a MCAS disabled light (so pilots actually remember when it is disabled) should be more than enough to prevent this. Besides adding the AoA disagree light AND having MCAS use a triple AoA sensor vote to determine the AoA angle.