Quote:
Originally Posted by kiwiokie
If the aircraft ran out of fuel at say 25,000ft without pilot input would it have any glide slope or would it nose dive? I remember being amazed at the tiny impact zone on the WTC from an aircraft hitting at 500mph.
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In a simple airplane, if power is lost, and there is no pilot input and the aircraft's autopilot has all three axes engaged, it will glide downwards at the same speed at which it is trimmed during powered flight. So if it was cruising under power, at say, 150 knots, then it will glide at the same speed. If the airplane is trimmed for a certain speed, and you add or reduce power, the airplane will climb or descend at the trimmed speed; it won't go faster or slower, unless the trim is reset.
But I don't know whether there are overrides in a Boeing 777's automated flight controls.