Fly by Wire

AUTHOR'S NOTE

A few words regarding die technical details of this book. The C-500 aircraft, of course, is a creation of my own, yet the idea of a flying wing cargo aircraft has been studied for many years, to include a number of NASA conceptual designs. The inherent aerodynamic efficiency of the flying wing configuration may well lead to the launch of such an aircraft within the decade.

With regard to certain aircraft systems — in particular, flight recorder backup power and electrical bus tie-ins — I have taken some liberties from standing architecture for the sake of simplification. The essence of interplay between these systems, however, I hold to be largely plausible. Any other technical errors or faulty assumptions are my own.

As to fly-by-wire flight control systems, they are a fact of life. Fly-by-wire technology has been with us for nearly forty years and, by and large, has been beneficial to the safety of flight. But as with any technology, designers and flight safety experts must make an effort to challenge new systems from every conceivable angle — something I hope to have done here.