Script Document

Air Systems Bleed Air

Script Writer: Roshan P. Bhojwani

Lesson Introduction
Welcome to the PMDG 777-200LR Bleed Air Groundwork lesson, from Angle of Attack.
In todays lesson, you will learn all the important characteristics of bleed air including how it is utilised, and why it is
important. It is an interesting topic to study, but youll find the simplicity of bleed air operation does not do justice to
how essential the system is for the safe completion of a flight in the 777.
For this reason, we are going to look at the following topics:
-

Bleed Air description, application and sources.

Bleed Air ducting system,
Engine Bleed Air supply,
APU Bleed Air supply,
Ground air connection.

Controls & cockpit indicators associated to the 777 will be discussed throughout the lesson.

Bleed Air System Overview

Bleed air is essentially highly compressed, highly pressurized, very hot air that is used to power certain aircraft
systems that make use of pressurized air as opposed to fuel, electricity or hydraulic power. The pressure and
temperature properties of bleed air make it a useful and reliable source of energy for many different aircraft, ranging
from small turboprops all the way to the 777.
Normally, bleed air will also be referred to as pneumatic power. In the 777 specifically, bleed air is used to power a
considerable amount of aircraft systems including:
-

Air conditioning,
Pressurization and trim air,
Wing anti-ice,
Engine anti-ice,
Aft and bulk cargo compartment heat,
Air driven hydraulic pumps,
Hydraulic reservoir pressurization,
Potable water tank pressurization,
TAT probe aspiration,
Engine and APU start systems.

The air conditioning and pressurization systems depend on bleed air because of its high pressure and density. The
wing and engine anti-ice systems take advantage of bleed airs high temperature to eliminate and prevent icing
formation. Many other systems depend on bleed air, and one of them is especially important: engine and APU start

Script Document
Air Systems Bleed Air
Script Writer: Roshan P. Bhojwani

systems. Bleed air provides the necessary pressure to turn the N2 rotor and start compressing air so that it may then
be burned and the energy transferred to the turbines to turn the N1 rotor and thus the engine fan.
Now where can we extract bleed air from? Either of four sources may supply pneumatic power.
-

Engine (1) bleed air system,

Engine (2) bleed air system,
Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) bleed air,
Ground Power Unit (GPU) bleed air.

Bleed air for engine starts is provided by the APU or ground air.

Bleed Air Ducting System

All four sources feed into a heavily insulated ducting system known as pneumatic manifold that collects all the bleed
air and supplies it to the respective user systems whenever there is demand for it.
For example whenever the wing anti-ice system switch is placed in the AUTO position, and the ice detection system
senses possible icing conditions, the anti-ice bleed air valve opens and bleed air is allowed to flow from the pneumatic
manifold to the wing leading edges in order to heat them up and minimize the risk of ice development.
Lets look at a diagram of the pneumatic system.
We can right away notice that there are three main sections in the duct: the left, right and center pneumatic ducts. The
center one has a center-left and a center-right portion. The different sources of bleed air feed into different sides of
the manifold, and different user systems extract bleed air from different sides. Its hard to remember the diagram
entirely, therefore you can rely on the air systems synoptic display to aid you. This display is reached by pushing the
AIR synoptic display switch on the display select panel. You can monitor parameters associated to the pneumatic duct
pressures, as well as which source is actively providing bleed air to the aircraft.
What we do have to emphasize is that the left engine supplies bleed air to the left side of the manifold. Similarly the
right engine supplies to the right side. APU bleed air is ducted into the center-left side and lastly, ground air is
supplied to the left portion of the manifold.
Three isolation valves, named Left, Right and Center, divide the manifold into the respective segments. During normal
operation, the system keeps the left and right isolation valves open, but the center valve closed. Only in abnormal
conditions, such as during single bleed source operation or engine starts, does the center isolation valve open. Why
are there left and right isolation valves then, if they are always kept open?
Thats because in case any form of bleed air leak were to develop in the left or right sides of the manifold, it may be
isolated from the rest of the system to prevent the remaining air being lost from the duct. Obviously the user systems
attached to the failed side of the bleed air duct would stop receiving a bleed air supply if the respective isolation valve
is closed.

Script Document
Air Systems Bleed Air
Script Writer: Roshan P. Bhojwani

Even though the pneumatic manifold ducts are very heavily insulated, leaks can develop. It is fairly easy to detect a
bleed air leak, because the structure and components surrounding most parts of the pneumatic manifold are at
normal temperatures, sometimes a bit colder. Whenever these start to show excessive temperature readings, it is
most likely because bleed air is leaking from the ducts into these other aircraft parts.
The pneumatic ducts pressure varies as a function of aircraft altitude. Normal duct pressures are the following:
-

40psi when altitude is lesser than 27,000ft.

Decreasing value between 40psi and 32.5psi when altitude is more than 27,000ft but less than or equal to
43,000ft.
32.5psi when altitude is greater than 43,000ft.

This normal duct pressure suffers momentary variations as demand for bleed air changes. For example, the values are
biased whenever the cabin temperature controller requests more bleed air, up to a maximum of 6psi. In the case of an
engine cross-bleed start, duct pressure may vary up to 9psi.
Engine cross-bleed starts are an interesting topic covered in FlightWork, but essentially have to do with one running
engine supplying the necessary pneumatic pressure to start the other engine. In this case obviously, all three isolation
valves must remain open, so that the air is allowed to travel through the ducts into the other side, as well as a few
other considerations youll see during FlightWork.
Duct pressure transmitters relay the duct pressure in psi to the indications in the cockpit. Slight differences between
right and left duct pressures are permissible, so long as there is sufficient air for cabin pressurization.
Certain limitations govern the minimum duct pressure required to start an engine on ground. Remember that the
required pressure may be provided by either the APU, ground air or an engine cross-bleed start. The minimums are:
-

15psi for an APU start,

25psi for a Ground start, or a cross-bleed start.

Now that we know about bleed air and the pneumatic duct that transport it, lets dig deeper into the different sources
of bleed air. Starting with the primary source, obviously, the engines.

Engine Bleed Air Supply

Engines on the 777 supply regulated bleed air into the pneumatic manifold for use by the different aircraft systems.
Even though the 777 engines are extensively discussed in the 777 Groundwork Engines lesson, we are going to
quickly summarize their operation so you can understand where bleed air is actually bled from. Keep in mind this
explanation is only a generalization.
Ram air is sucked into the engines and is split into two types: primary air, which enters the engine core and passes
through a series of low and high pressure compressors, turbines and a combustion process. Secondary air, which is
about 80% of the total air, bypasses the engine core and is ducted around it. Given the shape of the engine cowling

Script Document
Air Systems Bleed Air
Script Writer: Roshan P. Bhojwani

and fan ducts, bypassed air is enormously accelerated and rushed out of the engine tailcone, producing a great deal of
thrust.
Lets focus on primary air. Once it enters the engine core, it passes through a low pressure compressor, then the high
pressure compressor after which it is mixed with fuel and ignited to generate energy in the form of heat. This energy
is transformed to mechanical energy and is used to turn low and high pressure turbines and thus the engine fan.
After the air has passed through several stages of compression, its pressure, density and temperature are greatly
higher than their initial values, so that the air is adequately prepared for the combustion process. This air is also
adequate enough to be used as bleed air, so bleed air is extracted from the high pressure compressor stages of the
engine.
Obviously this extraction of air would take away part of the total air that is used to generate thrust, however there is
always a trade-off when a benefit is meant to be achieved.
And the benefit, in this case, is of course the pneumatic power available to allow aircraft systems to function.
Now, the high pressure compressor has several stages of compression. Air is extracted from either the 4th, or the 9th
stages, constituting low and high stage air respectively.
In cruise and under normal conditions, low-stage air is sufficiently capable of supplying the aircrafts pneumatic
demand. During descent, and especially in low power settings, low-stage air becomes insufficient and thus a highstage valve opens, and high-stage air, which is further compressed than low-stage air, starts to flow into the manifold.
Look at the diagram of the engine bleed system. Were going to explain a few of the components here.
Firstly we can see the low-stage and high-stage ducts. Notice there is a check valve in the low stage duct. A check valve
controls the flow of air from the low-stage duct into the pneumatic duct and prevents air in the high-stage manifold
from entering the 4th stage source.
Moving on, if you follow the high-stage line, youll find a high pressure shutoff valve. Further downstream, is a bleed
air pressure regulating and shutoff valve. The HPSOV and PRSOV are the same, they control the flow and direction of
bleed air from the source into the pneumatic manifold. These valves modulate between their fully open and fully
closed position to adjust the amount of bleed air flowing from the engine into the duct, according to demand of the
user systems.
The HPSOV and PRSOV valve positions are governed between open and closed by Air Supply Cabin Pressure
Controllers. This control is based upon the selection of engines as a bleed source, and the demand for pneumatic
power by the aircraft systems that need it, like the anti-ice system for example.
To select engines as a bleed source, the respective ENG bleed switch in the overhead panel must be pushed. The
switch has two positions:

Script Document
Air Systems Bleed Air
Script Writer: Roshan P. Bhojwani

ON: engine PRSOV and HPSOV are armed and operate whenever there is an adequate pressure of bleed air
coming from the engine high-pressure compressors.
OFF (ON not visible): both bleed valves in the related engine are commanded closed.

Further downstream, a precooler decreases bleed air temperature. Also known as a cross-flow heat exchanger, it does
so by taking bleed air, making it flow through a series of coils in the precooler, and exchanging its heat with cold air
from the engine fan. Fan air takes away some of the thermal energy in bleed air and lowers its temperature, making it
more suitable for use by the aircraft systems. A fan air modulating valve (FAMV) regulates the amount of fan air to be
used by the precooler.
Another series of coolers help in bringing down the bleed air temperature. These are known as controller air coolers,
or CACs, and are located before the PRSOV.
Bleed air temperature after it has passed through the precooler should be about 193C. In case the cabin temperature
controllers were to request lower bleed air temperature for air conditioning purposes, then temperature downstream
of the precooler is limited to 121C. If at any time the temperature exceeds 232C, the position of the PRSOV is
changed to limit the amount of bleed air allowed through the precooler.
In case of system logic failure where a bleed air overpressure condition should occur, a duct vent valve allows air to
be disposed overboard. This component is located downstream of the HPSOV, and activates at about 185psig. The
valve resets at 145psig. A bleed air overpressure condition could heavily damage the ducting system and increase the
risk of air leaks, resulting in a system failure.
Keep in mind that the engine bleed air valves will automatically close in any of the following conditions:
-

During engine start,

Loss of bleed source,
Bleed air temperature exceeding 254C, or pressure exceeding 242psig. These two conditions are also
known as trip-offs.
Any form of leaking in the duct,
Whenever an engine fire switch is pulled, to prevent propagation of fumes into the air conditioning
systems and to protect engine integrity.
Whenever a ground cart is supplying external air to pressurize the pneumatic duct. Well discuss ground
air later on in this lesson.

In an automatic closure of the engine bleed air valves, both the OFF and ON lights in the ENG bleed switch illuminate.
All our discussion about the engines and their bleed system assumes that the engines are up and running, however,
how do we receive bleed air to power the pneumatic system whenever either or both engines are turned off? The
answer lies in the Auxiliary Power Unit, or APU, and its pneumatic capabilities. Lets talk about these a bit now.

Script Document
Air Systems Bleed Air
Script Writer: Roshan P. Bhojwani

Auxiliary Power Unit Bleed Air Supply

The APU is deeply discussed in its respective GroundWork lesson, so today we are going to focus only on its capacity
as a source of pneumatic power.
Even though the APU is capable of starting and electrically powering the 777 all throughout its flight envelope, bleed
air from the APU can only be provided up to about 22,000ft. On ground, there is no limitation as to its pneumatic
capabilities.
APU bleed air feeds into the aircrafts pneumatic manifold, and powers the following user systems:
-

Air conditioning and pressurization,

Air-driven hydraulic pumps,
Air pressure for engine starts,
A few other little items.

Engine bleed air supply is a direct function of thrust lever position, however, the APU normally runs at a constant
speed.
Therefore, the supply of APU bleed air is controlled with an auxiliary power unit controller, or APUC. The APUC
controls the angular position of a series of vanes to allow for an increase or reduction of airflow. These vanes are
called inlet guide vanes, and there are twenty-eight of them.
Similarly to the case of the engines, the APU has a check valve that prevents reverse flow of air from the pneumatic
duct back into the APU system. Remember that the APU feeds bleed air into the center-left side of the pneumatic
manifold.
Now, the APUC controls the position of the inlet guide vanes based on one of the following logics:
-

Idle,
Duct pressurization,
Main engine start,
Air-Driven pump.
ECS
ADP/ECS.

The APUC selects the idle mode when there is no pneumatic system demand. The IGVs are fully closed. Idle mode is
also selected whenever the aircraft is above 22,000ft.
Duct pressurization mode is selected when the APU bleed air valve is open, but there is still no pneumatic system
demand. The IGVs are commanded only open enough to pressurize the pneumatic ducts.
During a main engine start, the APUC operates the main engine start mode. The IGVs open enough to meet the high
pneumatic demand of an engine start, especially because this mode has priority over all other modes.

Script Document
Air Systems Bleed Air
Script Writer: Roshan P. Bhojwani

Similarly, the ADP mode is selected whenever either ADP is operative. Likewise, the IGVs open to supply enough
airflow to operate the ADPs. This is also the same case for the other modes, where if either or both air conditioning
packs operate, the IGVs open to supply air to the airplane environmental control system.
Now that we understand how the APU provides bleed air, its important to know how do the pilots select it.
Sometimes in your simulator flights, APU supplied bleed air will be your only pneumatic source to get the engines
running and be able to fly away!
An APU bleed switch in the overhead panel is located between the two engine bleed switches we talked about earlier.
The switch has the following positions:
-

AUTO: the APU bleed air valve is opened when system logic senses positive bleed air availability.
OFF (AUTO not visible): the APU bleed air valve is commanded closed.

If during normal operation the OFF light illuminates in amber, the APU bleed air valve closes automatically due to:
-

A bleed air leak in the APU duct,

If the bleed valve is failing closed,
Or the APU fire switch has been pulled out.

We mentioned earlier that engine bleed air is extracted from the total air that enters the engine fan and is meant to
come out of the engine exhaust and that this has a nominal impact on thrust and performance. Runways in the world
are mostly long enough to accommodate for this loss of thrust and yet allow the aircraft to speed up and rotate with
an important safety margin.
However, there are certain cases such as during bad runway surface condition, smaller length runways, high outside
air temperature and high density altitude, that a bleeds-off takeoff may have to be performed. In this scenario, engines
are no longer used as a bleed source during the takeoff and initial climbout phases, so that the maximum thrust may
be obtained for a particular takeoff condition.
This also means that air conditioning packs, which are deeply discussed in the 777 Air Conditioning GroundWork
lesson, can either be used ON or OFF. If the takeoff is made with packs OFF, no form of cabin temperature control
would be necessarily achieved, however, these would have to be turned on during the initial climb and this is
normally done at thrust reduction altitude. If OAT is high enough that a packs ON takeoff is imperative, the APU may
supply the required bleed air to do so.
This is known as an APU-to-Pack takeoff. The exact procedures to perform either a bleeds-off or an APU-to-pack
takeoff is covered in Flightwork, however there are a few considerations you should keep in mind now:
In an APU-to-pack takeoff only the left pack operates. The left engine bleed valves are automatically commanded
closed, meaning the L ENG OFF light also illuminates. Because the system also closes the center isolation valve, the
APU only powers the left pack and the C1 ADP. Right engine bleed may be used to power the C2 ADP, but the right
pack valves are automatically commanded closed and the R PACK OFF light illuminates.

Script Document
Air Systems Bleed Air
Script Writer: Roshan P. Bhojwani

Were now going to move on to the final segment of this video, a short explanation of the third available source of
bleed air.

Ground Air Connection

If on ground, at a gate, your engines are off and you cant keep your APU running for a long period of time otherwise
your flight simulator airlines manager will complain about you wasting precious fuel, you may want to choose an
external ground air connection to pressurize the pneumatic system.
The high pressure ground connectors allow an external air source to feed pressurized air into the aircrafts pneumatic
manifold. These ground connectors are located in the under wing fuselage area, forward of the environmental control
system access door.
There are a few considerations about ground air though. These are not of direct significance to the pilots, but are
important to keep in mind anyways.
Ground air must not exceed 50psig of pressure and/or 232C of temperature. Not complying with this may result in
significant damage to the pneumatic ducting system, leading to a loss of insulation and the potential risk of bleed air
leaks. Another important point to note is that you must make sure that the aircraft is electrically energized before
actually allowing a ground air pneumatic supply. This is to prevent damage to the air conditioning system, and to
ensure that the packs can startup and shutdown according to their normal sequence.

Lesson Summary
To sum up this lesson, weve had a discussion about the 777s bleed air system. Firstly we explained the concepts
behind bleed air, pneumatics, the pneumatic manifold, and others. After which, the three sources of bleed air were
discussed in detail.
When it comes to the actual operation of the bleed air system, it is fairly simple, as it does not require constant pilot
input throughout the flight phases. However, the importance of pneumatics and the entire ducting system is such that
you should try and fully understand how everything works in it.
From our lesson, we can conclude that engines are evidently the more important producers of bleed air, but that this
has a nominal impact on engine and aircraft performance. Some aircraft, like the 777, counter this by significantly
optimizing the amount of air that is taken in and is processed in the engine with the of thrust management computers.
Other aircraft, like the modern B787 for example, eliminate the need for bleed air and only rely on electrical power
generation for their air conditioning, pressurization, and other systems.
To finish off, heres the list of aircraft items that depend on bleed air for their functions:
-

Air conditioning,
Pressurization and trim air,

Script Document
Air Systems Bleed Air
Script Writer: Roshan P. Bhojwani

Wing anti-ice,
Engine anti-ice,
Aft and bulk cargo compartment heat,
Air driven hydraulic pumps,
Hydraulic reservoir pressurization,
Potable water tank pressurization,
TAT probe aspiration,
Engine and APU start systems.

Stay tuned to the following lesson in the Air series. We will be talking about the Air Conditioning system as well as its
importance and operations that rely heavily on bleed air. Thanks again for watching and Throttle On!