A220's fly-by-wire system blends Airbus and Boeing traits, test pilot says

The Airbus A220's fly-by-wire system was designed by Bombardier's CSeries engineering team in Montreal, not by Airbus, before Airbus took over the programme in 2018. The aircraft uses a sidestick and envelope protection in the same vein as Airbus jets, but it also calls for manual trimming and offers speed stability closer to a Boeing.

According to the account, the CSeries engineers examined both the A320 and the 777 and turned down both approaches. What they built instead is a hybrid: protection logic in the Airbus tradition paired with conventional handling feel in the Boeing tradition. The system runs on the aircraft's triplex flight control computers.

Chief test pilot Chuck Ellis said the outcome behaves like the Cessna 152 a pilot trained on. That comparison sets the A220 apart from other narrowbody types, whose fly-by-wire systems follow more familiar manufacturer lines.