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A300 first officer inadvertently placed annunciator light switch to the test position prior to takeoff; but no test sequence occurs. Cruising at FL330 all indicator lights in the cockpit suddenly illuminate; accompanied by several ECAM fault messages. The crew elected to divert and discovered the incorrect switch position passing 10000 ft.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 874037 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201002 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.ARTCC |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | Mixed |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | A300 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Cruise |
| Route In Use | Other Controlled |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Indicating and Warning - Lighting Systems |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | First Officer Pilot Flying |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 100 Flight Crew Total 10500 Flight Crew Type 1000 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy |
Narrative:
Prior to departure; the captain asked me to put the annunciator light switch in the bright position; which I did. The three position switch has dim; bright; and test. The test position tests all of the lights in the cockpit. Cruising at FL330; suddenly; all of the switch and indicator lights in the cockpit illuminated. The ECAM announced 'navigation air data computer; captain vsi fault; first officer vsi fault.' nothing in the QRH or aom (aircraft operating manual) covers this. We took an inventory of what was available. The engines were running; the nd only showed compass rose with heading bug; the autopilot was engaged; the FMC worked normally; etc. Since the radio frequency selectors and ILS selector are leds; they all showed 8's. The center frequency had limited coverage; so we backed up communications with 121.5. We declared an emergency and asked for vectors to ZZZ; since it had a 13;000 foot runway. In the current condition we didn't have down and locked indications on the gear; so we wanted a long runway in case we had issues with configuration. Descending through approximately 10;000; the captain noticed that the annunciator light switch was in the test position. The switch was moved to the bright position and all indications returned to normal. The landing was uneventful.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: A300 First Officer inadvertently placed annunciator light switch to the test position prior to takeoff; but no test sequence occurs. Cruising at FL330 all indicator lights in the cockpit suddenly illuminate; accompanied by several ECAM fault messages. The crew elected to divert and discovered the incorrect switch position passing 10000 FT.
Narrative: Prior to departure; the Captain asked me to put the annunciator light switch in the bright position; which I did. The three position switch has dim; bright; and test. The test position tests all of the lights in the cockpit. Cruising at FL330; suddenly; all of the switch and indicator lights in the cockpit illuminated. The ECAM announced 'NAV ADC; CAPT VSI fault; F/O VSI fault.' Nothing in the QRH or AOM (Aircraft Operating Manual) covers this. We took an inventory of what was available. The engines were running; the ND only showed compass rose with heading bug; the autopilot was engaged; the FMC worked normally; etc. Since the radio frequency selectors and ILS selector are LEDs; they all showed 8's. The Center frequency had limited coverage; so we backed up communications with 121.5. We declared an emergency and asked for vectors to ZZZ; since it had a 13;000 foot runway. In the current condition we didn't have down and locked indications on the gear; so we wanted a long runway in case we had issues with configuration. Descending through approximately 10;000; the Captain noticed that the annunciator light switch was in the test position. The switch was moved to the bright position and all indications returned to normal. The landing was uneventful.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.