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brucek

What causes the "A-Floor" Error in A330-340?

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I get this error from time to time- is it PSS specific, or a realistic error with Airbus a/c? Is there some way to stop or fix the error?Thanks,Bruce.

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Guest jetBlue_83

I'm not sure what you mean by "A-floor error". I am guessing you mean that the A-floor light turns on and the aircraft throttles up to max thrust and pitches up?

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Yes- this is the issue I'm referring to. The a/c becomes almost uncontrollable, certainly under autopilot control. It may not be an error as such, but sure makes some wierd things happen. Do you know how I can prevent it occurring?Thanks,Bruce.

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Hi John,Thanks. Sometimes I get this in the take-of roll (prior to rotating). Do you know what could cause that? I understand about the stall and what to do about it- thanks for that info.Bruce.

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Guest Phoenix_7

depends on your loadedit settingsZFW and BLOCK fuel entriesthe weights for the 330 and 340 are330-200MTOW = 507,000MLW = 396,800330-300MTOW = 507,000MLW = 407,900340-200MTOW = 606,300MLW = 407,900340-300MTOW = 597,500MLW = 418,900John PSS SUPPORTsupport@phoenix-simulation.co.ukhttp://www.avsim.com/pss/phoenix.jpg

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I'm getting it mainly on approach - having just activated to appr phase and descending to 2000 to intercept the ILS - landing weight/gross weught is fine and within specs - haven't tried this on my FS2004 A330 yet - just on my FS2002 - going to try the tutorial flight this evening on the FS2004 version and see what I get from that...otherwise..I guess it's RTFM to see what I'm doing wrong...:)

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Are you using third party, real world, or otherwise variable weather?The PSS Airbus series as well as numerous other third party aircraft are having serious issues with the way FS2004 handles wind shifts - rather, I should say that FS2004 has serious issues with it's wind shifts.On numerous occasions, I have A-FLOOR'ed at cruise and on descent/approach due to a drastic wind shift. The autopilot and aircraft sees this as a drastic change in airspeed, and if it is changed to the slower side, it runs the risk of entering the A-FLOOR protection area. Most if not all aircraft in FS2004 are effected by this FS2004 deficiency.That said, the PSS aircraft are very difficult to regain control of sometimes. From a wind-induced A-FLOOR stall at 35,000 feet, I was only able to recover to straight and level by the 7,500 foot mark - and that was after immediate action when the A-FLOOR started up. The PSS model seems sensitive to pitch - if you get into the nose up stall, they tend to plow forward while falling out of the sky, in an almost pancake descent. Be sure to take swift, immediate nose-down action in order to salvage your flight!If this happens at low altitudes... well, errm, call the NTSB!-Greg

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Guest jyotig

I've had this problem several times--once right in "front" of a Vatsim controller when approaching Bangkok. I have two partial solutions for the problem.1. Stay at lower altitudes early in your flights. I have found that the wind shear/A-floor problems seems to be more common above FL330. It may have something to do with a lack of sufficient thrust to overcome the loss of airspeed--this would normally happen when there is an abrupt shift from a head wind to a tail wind. 2. On approach, keep the airspeed at 190 kts or above until established on the localizer and never (repeat never) put the landing gear down until you're on the glideslope. The aircraft usually pitches up in turns, and the combination of low speeds and the drag from having the bogies hanging out causes the aircraft to stall. Also, it's best to not go to full flaps until you're firmly established on the glideslope. I haven't experienced the A-floor problem since I started to follow these procedures. I hope this helps you. Mark Gibson

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Guest foophonic

why can't pheonix do an update and just get rid of the damn a-floor mode.. itcauses more problems that it solves.Just crashed from Fl350 because the a-floor kicked it. no ammount of nose down pitch and thrust would regain any speed.

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There is an easier fix if you use FSUIPC registered, avoiding you to change the way you handle approaches regarding IAS.There is an option in FSUIPC to "Smoother" winds changes in FS. You can even enter the knot/minute allowed ratio. This makes the problem disappears in my case, althought the IAS is still impacted by the winds speed change, I almost don't notice it anymore (because it change in my case about 1kt/minute so it's ok).-Jerome

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Guest Lusitania

I can't believe I read this this thread and no one could either explain or UNDERSTAND the Alpha Floor procedure.I actually read that someone complained that the A-floor should be REMOVED...My dear friends. First the Alpha floor is a sistem that corrects erratic angles and/or stall warnings but it is more like an automatic go-around protection, and basically should avoid crashes.Second, the PSS sim is very realistic concerning this feature. It should not, CANNOT be removed simply because you can't understand how this feature works. Third, it is not a PSS model/panel error that you lose control of the aircraft. It is YOUR error, because, like others said, your TOW is not correctly set, your fuel also needs more planning thus your landing in either CAT II or CAT III or even in simple APP mode goes freaky. the A-floor works with the correct planning as in real lifeJP

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Guest MoreN1EGT

I guess it the transition from the Jump in a Fly Jets to the Simulated Real-Life-Flying symdrome they are going through...

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Guest foophonic

fair piont if you are on approuch and your weight is wrong. At fl350 with the weight perfeclty ok, it is unacceptable for the A-FLOOR to kick in becuase the wind changed. The other response.. I've tried changing that smoothing setting in FSUIPC various times and it doesnt have any noticeable effect.

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>The other response.. I've tried changing that smoothing>setting in FSUIPC various times and it doesnt have any>noticeable effect.Are you using a weather add-on ? In my case no, and the problem disappears. Wind changes of one knot/degree a minute won't affect the IAS a lot...>it is unacceptable for the A-FLOOR to kick in becuase the wind >changed. Complain should be directed to MS !

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