Emb-170 captain reports being cleared to FL350 from FL290; setting the new altitude in the fgcp; sel...

Narrative:

Our flight had leveled at 29;000 feet awaiting further climb. After receiving ATC clearance 'climb FL350' I set 35;000 feet in the altitude preselector and verified it with the first officer. I then selected vertical speed mode and spun the vertical speed wheel to begin the climb. A moment later I felt the aircraft increasing in a descent and immediately spun the vertical speed wheel to stop the descent and indicate a climb. After my input ATC also noticed the mistake and told us he was showing us in a descent. It took the aircraft a few more hundred feet to transition from the descent to a climb. ATC again verified the clearance of 'climb to FL350' which we again acknowledged. From there we climbed the 35;000 feet without further incident. Every input on the flight guidance control panel should be verified on the primary flight display. Also; using flight level change mode will always cause the aircraft to head in the correct direction towards the altitude set in the preselector.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: EMB-170 Captain reports being cleared to FL350 from FL290; setting the new altitude in the FGCP; selecting vertical speed and spinning the vertical speed wheel; but in the wrong direction; resulting in a descent.

Narrative: Our flight had leveled at 29;000 feet awaiting further climb. After receiving ATC clearance 'climb FL350' I set 35;000 feet in the altitude preselector and verified it with the First Officer. I then selected vertical speed mode and spun the vertical speed wheel to begin the climb. A moment later I felt the aircraft increasing in a descent and immediately spun the vertical speed wheel to stop the descent and indicate a climb. After my input ATC also noticed the mistake and told us he was showing us in a descent. It took the aircraft a few more hundred feet to transition from the descent to a climb. ATC again verified the clearance of 'climb to FL350' which we again acknowledged. From there we climbed the 35;000 feet without further incident. Every input on the Flight Guidance Control Panel should be verified on the Primary Flight Display. Also; using flight level change mode will always cause the aircraft to head in the correct direction towards the altitude set in the preselector.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.

Attributes
ACN	1174494
Time
Date	201405
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.ARTCC
State Reference	US
Environment
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	EMB ERJ 170/175 ER/LR
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Climb
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	MCP
Person 1
Function	Pilot Flying Captain
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Events
Anomaly	Deviation - Altitude Excursion From Assigned Altitude Deviation - Procedural Clearance

Emb-170 captain reports being cleared to FL350 from FL290; setting the new altitude in the fgcp; selecting vertical speed and spinning the vertical speed wheel; but in the wrong direction; resulting in a descent.