On a spring afternoon at dawn, with a low overcast and a string of delays, her FO, Amir, announced a mechanical snarl: right pack fault. The cabin had already started to feel warmer; the ECAM cautions chimed a polite but urgent red. Mira reached instinctively for the printout. The cockpit diagram showed the overhead pack switches and their associated bleed valves; the checklist in the margins suggested isolating the right pack and verifying cross-bleed logic. Working together, they cycled switches and confirmed the bleed source through the schematic’s little cascade of arrows. The PDF’s diagram wasn’t a substitute for system knowledge, she reminded herself, but it stitched memory into action that morning: a simple visual reduced uncertainty and kept them calm while maintenance met them at the gate.
Shows critical engine parameters and warning messages.
She scrolled past the main instrument panel (six cathode-ray tube displays instead of the modern LCDs). There was the overhead panel with labels in French and English mixed: TRAIN SORTI next to GEAR DOWN . The pedestal had a dedicated slot for paper charts. And in the corner of page 14—a sticky note icon.
The lateral consoles also house the for nose wheel steering (located on the Captain's side) and the tablets/circuit breakers .
: Center Pedestal (MCDUs, Thrust Levers, Flap handles, Radios)
Enables tuning for VHF and HF communication frequencies, navigation aids (ILS/VOR tuning backups), and control over crew/cabin intercom volumes. Downloading an Airbus A320 Cockpit Layout PDF
: Controls the Engine Generators, APU Generator, External Power, and the DC/AC batteries.
The center screens monitor aircraft systems automatically, highlighting faults and providing emergency checklists, reducing pilot workload. D. The Pedestal Panel
She opened her laptop and typed into the search bar of the airline’s internal knowledge base:
The glare shield runs horizontally above the main panels and holds the primary interfaces for autoflight control. Flight Control Unit (FCU)
Unlike Boeing aircraft, A320 thrust levers do not move automatically during autothrust operation. Instead, they operate via detents: Takeoff / Go-Around power FLX/MCT: Flex Takeoff / Max Continuous Thrust
The MCDU is the physical interface for the Flight Management Guidance Computer (FMGC). Pilots use the alphanumeric keyboard to input: Flight plans and routing. Performance data for takeoff, climb, cruise, and approach. Weight and balance parameters. Thrust Levers and Engine Control