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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
The boy wonder from Kenya must be protected at all costs.:)
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On a divergent topic. I sit in my F18E Hornet Superbug. It is black out, while my aircraft is parked on the carrier deck. All power is totally off. I have two options. Either start the engines using the internal battery on, then throw the correct sequence of FPU on then Engine left or right crank switches. BUT. the cockpit is totally dark. Can't see a damn thing in order to click the mouse cursor on the Battery. So I program into the system key strokes to toggle the main batter switch. That works. BUT. In F18's the soft lighting for internal controls are not ran from DC voltage. So I must in the dark fumble around the cock pit and try to click on a black screen and find where the EXT PWR Switch is located. If I luck out, then I get minor lighting in the panels etc., so I can then find all the required switches and buttons to start the engines. Once the engines are started and I have set the correct sequences of gen tie bars etc., I get full cockpit lighting in left and right main side panels as well of course all the main display units etc..
I have no wander flash light to use to snoop around in the cockpit. So it is hit a miss. It is almost impossible to find the EXT PWR switch by moving the mouse cursor around the dozens and dozens of toggle switches, other type switches in the region of where I must successfully do a RESET on that switch in order to get any internal lighting.
I have been pissed off for a long time over this slight but very important step the aircraft designer did not accommodate for. It forces me to during night ops to "cheat" and hit a sequence of keys that will automatically start the aircraft engines and set most of the major switch positions.

Which of course will include having cockpit lighting turned on in some areas of the cockpit.

Obviously sitting at the keyboard and facing a black interior cockpit with no real deck crew personnel to hand one a flash lite is a bummer.
It pisses me off. I't can drive one to the point where they feel they might have to dip into the box wine Chianti.

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Back to the real world. As many here. I wonder if the alphabets will finally break on this stuff. Their cover up has been so effective thus far, but they must realize Fox reaches a pretty large audience, and people show others that have been keeped in the dark where they can go to find out what the hell is really going on with the terrible mess.
308 posted on 10/28/2012 7:09:34 PM PDT by Marine_Uncle (Honor must be earned.)
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To: Southside_Chicago_Republican

Bookmarked


309 posted on 10/28/2012 7:15:12 PM PDT by Southside_Chicago_Republican (If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 308 | View Replies ]

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