Flickering Lights

Pro Member Captain
Kareem El-Sadi (crosscheck9) Captain

A few times, I've flown to Lebanon in their MEA A321, all newly purchased aircraft, very high tech, clean, and a joy to ride, however, there was one thing I've always wanted to ask, but never gotten around to. Upon landing at night, by regulation, they are required to switch off the cabin lights, however, before turning them off, I saw them flicker a few times. This doesn't always happen, but when it does, I get these little butterflies in my stomach Embarassed . I don't think it's techinical, because it wouldnt' happen regularly; I'm sure they'd have fixed it after the first time. Is there a reason for this, or just a coincedence? Thank you, and happy flying 😉

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Pro Member Captain
jarred_01 Captain

I think the flickering of lights occurs when the airplanes power source is switched from the engine power to APU power, and vice versa. I read about it in one of my aviation books the other day, I'll try track down some more info for you later on. 😉

Pro Member Captain
Kareem El-Sadi (crosscheck9) Captain

Ah, that may explain it 😀 -- Thanks Jarred 😉

Pro Member Captain
jarred_01 Captain

No probs Crosscheck, I've just found it here:

Of all the misterious things that can happen during a flight, one of the strangest occurs just as the engines are starting up: The air-conditioning stops, and the lights in the cabin blink for a moment. In fact, this can happen up to four times before all the engines are going. These flashes of power seem more like brownouts and can give the impression that the whole airplane is malfuntioning. However, the power lapse actually occurs because the pilots must switch the electrical power from the APU (or the airports power supply) to the generators in the main engines.

Hopefully that solves your question. 😉

Pro Member Captain
Kareem El-Sadi (crosscheck9) Captain

jarred_01 wrote:

Hopefully that solves your question. 😉

It sure does -- THank you 😂

Pro Member Captain
jarred_01 Captain

Glad to be at your service Captain. 😉

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