Originally Posted by
orvil
I had a guy coming from the 320 have a horrible time with the 737. The instructor even went so far as to call Minne to talk with the 320 instuctors to get some help for this guy.
Luckily for me, I had already been on the airplane a few years earlier and only needed a refresher. The guy wasn't weak, he just wasn't getting the differences. Had a hell of a time. I even took the time to write it up. I never write anything up. The 320 guys need an FMS class added to the syllabus. It's just too different.
I agree that most things are backwards wrt the fms logic on the two airplanes. I'm still having a helluva time getting the vnav and remembering to punch lnav after executing.
Overall though I think the issue is not with the 737 but with the fact that airbus just does things differently. Having flown several other fms airplanes, the 320 is the only one that stands out as being substantially different. Managed flight is a great thing on the bus once you get used to it, but it's challenging to break out of that mindset when transitioning back to a "normal" jet. Not difficult, just challenging.
I really can't see it being a big enough deal though to be the cause of a training issue. The two airplanes do roughly the same type of flying and operate very similar profiles-with just two very different ways of skinning the cat.
I haven't seen the differences memo, but it sounds like a great idea. Maybe I should go look it up.