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A321 crew on departure received an alert that the flight control system had reverted to alternate law. Crew returned for landing at departure airport. Aircraft reverted to direct law when landing gear was lowered.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1320494 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201512 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | A321 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Climb |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Aeroplane Flight Control |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Captain Pilot Not Flying |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Person 2 | |
| Function | Pilot Flying First Officer |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical |
Narrative:
While climbing through approximately 7;000 feet MSL on departure the airplane reverted to alternate law. After completing ECAM procedure and consulting the QRH; I contacted maintenance via radio. Maintenance deferred me to maintenance control via ACARS. Neither maintenance contacts had any ideas or explanations for me. We then [requested priority handling] and informed ATC of our intention to return to land. I also spoke to dispatch via ACARS regarding the diversion and landing performance data. I then briefed the flight attendants and passengers; telling them we were returning. The aircraft reverted to direct law when the landing gear was lowered (as expected). I then executed an uneventful landing.I do not know why the aircraft reverted to alternate law; but I intend to follow up with maintenance.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: A321 crew on departure received an alert that the flight control system had reverted to alternate law. Crew returned for landing at departure airport. Aircraft reverted to direct law when landing gear was lowered.
Narrative: While climbing through approximately 7;000 feet MSL on departure the airplane reverted to alternate law. After completing ECAM procedure and consulting the QRH; I contacted maintenance via radio. Maintenance deferred me to Maintenance Control via ACARS. Neither maintenance contacts had any ideas or explanations for me. We then [requested priority handling] and informed ATC of our intention to return to land. I also spoke to dispatch via ACARS regarding the diversion and landing performance data. I then briefed the flight attendants and passengers; telling them we were returning. The aircraft reverted to direct law when the landing gear was lowered (as expected). I then executed an uneventful landing.I do not know why the aircraft reverted to alternate law; but I intend to follow up with maintenance.
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.