Aircraft systems and flight

 Aircraft Systems and Flight

August 23, 2022


FADEC


    The FADEC or full authority digital engine control is the brain of all jet powered aircraft and some piston engines. The FADEC on jet powered aircraft are in charge of monitoring multiple parameters hundreds of times a second such as engine inlet temperature, air pressure, fuel flow, turbine temperature, vane position and much more. Its overall purpose is to "provide optimum engine efficiency at any given flight condition" (SKYbrary Aviation Safety). They are complex computers that alleviate a lot of workload from the pilot, it can deliver max engine power without going over the operational limits therefore not over stressing the engine. The FADEC is in charge of start and restart procedures, it also monitors the engines overall health and can even diagnose system faults for ease of maintenance. It has many advantages but the one big downside is that is has full control over the engine and if it goes out, the engine fails.

    The FADEC is a redundant system and consist of multiple computers within one system and some engines even have a mechanical backup as well incase the entire system fails. The Pratt and Whitney 229 engines that I currently work on have an MFC or main fuel controller as the backup to a FADEC failure. The MFC has various check valve and servos that schedules the fuel and will limit the performance of the engine, its works just enough to get the aircraft back on the ground safe. I have seen a few FADEC failures  and they were all attributed to a sudden high electrical surge from an outside source and it fried the computers inside. 


Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC). SKYbrary Aviation Safety. (n.d.). Retrieved August 23, 2022, from https://skybrary.aero/articles/full-authority-digital-engine-control-fadec 

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