Beta preview - Checklist Please

[markadeane 272]

Captains!

 

One of my favourite things about getting to grips with the PMDG 777 is not just that you learn how to operate a new machine in the ‘day-to-day’ sense, but that there are wonderfully complex systems beneath the surface, designed for those ‘one-in-a-million’ events most of us will never encounter.

I’ve fast learned that the 777 handles uneventful flights, well, uneventfully. Don’t get me wrong, this plane is an absolute joy to operate, from start to finish, but those of you who have cut their teeth on the NGX will find yourselves surprised at how many processes and actions the 777 actually does for you “behind the scenes”. I still find myself looking up at the overhead panel after start, thinking “I must have forgotten to do something here” but in fact, nope, it’s all been taken care of! Electrics, bleed air, many systems are configured as required.

The checklists are elegant, and very easy to accomplish using the ECL (Electronic CheckList). Checklists associated with critical phases of flight are minimalist and/or the items on that list are largely automatically checked off so a simple glance will confirm that you’re configured for that phase. This is really helpful in the single pilot environment that is FSX.

Where things get really interesting, though, is during abnormal situations. That’s where the smarts of the 777 really show, and that’s what I want to cover in the rest of this post.

DISCLAIMER: I am not versed in any of the memory items or operating procedures of the 777 with regards to the following failure. Please don’t post telling me that I did a, b or c wrong. What I’m trying to demonstrate here is how a pilot with limited procedural understanding gets assisted by the system when a major failure occurs.

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So. I’m in the cruise from Barcelona (LEBL) to Lisbon (LPPT), minding my own business when this pops up.



Hmmm. OK. Let’s look at the HYD page.



Oookaaaaayyyy, and it’s decreasing. Looks like we’ve got ourselves a leak!

Once the Hydraulic reservoir quantity falls below a certain level,  the pumps can no longer maintain the 3000psi and so the entire centre system drops off line.

OK. Let’s work the checklist. We set the ADP 1 to ON, and obviously we know that the answer to the checklist condition is “no”. So let’s select that option.



Note the checklist now reads as complete, as I've already configured the overhead by the time I took this image, but we still have a page (or two) of information to look at.

 

 

Hmm, OK so we have a fair few systems knocked offline here. No auto speedbrake/spoilers, and we’ll be using ALTN gear and flaps, limiting our landing config to flap 20 for the reasons stated in the ECL notes. Not a life threatening emergency, but a few of those systems that we take for granted have “gone INOP” this evening.

Oh, and check out that flight controls page...

 

Note that despite all of this, the aircraft is happily cruising along, as if it hadn’t a care in the world. This is good, as it allows us in this single pilot environment to “work the problem” and strategise. As the ECL has told me I need to allow more time for flap and gear deployment, I’ll set up a hold at ADSAD and configure during the hold. That way I can take as long as I need to set up before I exit and commence the approach.



Right that does the trick there. Now, we’re coming up on TOD, so let’s follow our normal procedures here. The descent is unremarkable from here, we get ATC clearance to hold at ADSAD not below 4000ft, so we set 4000ft on the MCP, and head on down.

Once we’re in the hold, VNAV has slowed us down to 240knots so we can get on with flap extension. We arm the ALTN flap system and review the checklist page. It doesn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know from our earlier review of the notes, so we’re good to go. Rotate the ALTN flap selector to EXT and the flaps SLOWLY start to extend to 20. This reflects the nature of the real 777, where the alternate system drives the flaps electrically, rather than hydraulically.



Here I’ve gone into VS and MCP SPD modes to slow down, while leaving LNAV to fly us around the hold. By the time we turn inbound to ADSAD the flaps are at 20 degrees. Not long after leaving the hold, we lower the gear.



With three greens, and flaps set to 20 I have brought the speed back and armed the approach. We’re good to continue!



Note as we conduct the landing checklist, I skip the Speedbrake using the ITEM OVRD option on the ECL. You’ll recall that the use of the auto speedbrake was prevented, as per the notes. We’ll manually deploy that on the ground.

From here, the last few minutes of the flight is fairly unremarkable. I ease it on, deploy speed brakes and apply manual braking to roll out. Piece of cake!

So there you have it. A reasonably ‘serious’ failure, but one that is entirely manageable thanks to the robust system redundancy on the 777 and the fantastic resource that is the ECL. I might add that there are dozens of pages of checklists to help you through almost every type of failure that a real 777 could encounter. PMDG have nailed this aspect of the airplane, and I can't stress just how useful it is!

As for me? I have a tonne of paperwork to do now. Rob is a mean chief pilot when it comes to incident reports…

Cheers

[EGFF 772 21]

WOW this is amazing, getting me more and more excited about this aircraft!!! 

 

Thanks!!

[Simoncharlesward 1]

Mark,

 

Awesome stuff thanks for sharing ! 

 

How is shaky Wellington, bit quieter now  ?

 

Regards

Simon Ward

NZCH

[moekarout 32]

Stunning! I cant describe what i feel now!!

 

Please release!!

[Airbusman330 300]

Now this is one of the more interesting posts, thanks for sharing. 

[Aamir 2,907]

This was absolutely excellent, thank you so much for posting it!
It's pretty awesome to see the checklist in action like that, gives me *SOME* reassurance the first time I try and lift this big birdie off the ground xD

[pete_auau 1,154]

 

 

Please release!!

They have  oh  forgot  to the testers of  course

[EGFF 772 21]

Hahaha

[SMITI07 53]

Remarkable thread! This aircraft is so modern and sophisticated. PMDG appear to have nailed it in this simulation.

[Don t moderate me this way 882]

This is a feature which, after years of flying PMDG A/C with failure mode 'off', will finally make me configure the failure module for a different kind of flightdeck experience - even though it'll take me quite a while to handle even a single failure properly!   B)

[RiceySpicey 586]

One of the best threads I have read so far. Great detail and images - this really shows off how much work has gone into this aircraft. Beautiful job guys!

[Benzhangar 108]

Great topic of that simulation. This should be pinned.

[Lenny 5]

Awesome, awesome post, Mark. Thank you for sharing.

The way you describe how you made the flight, is exactly the way I do mine. As much realism as possible but maybe not completely by the numbers/procedures due to the lack of time.

Seems the PMDG T7 is THE airplane to get for this style of flying.

 

Can't wait!

[captainsazzman 83]

Those pictures are in extreme HD. I could clearly see the tiny sratches in the flap lever housing (pic where you said u lowered gear)

[MaxAltitudeFilms 20]

Well done Mark! Seems like you handled the situation 'like a bossss'