AIRCRAFT SKEW DETECTION SYSTEM AND METHOD OF OPERATING THE SAME

There is disclosed a method of operating a skew detection system for detecting skew in a control surface of one of wings of an aircraft. The method includes receiving an inboard signal from an inboard sensor and receiving an outboard signal from an outboard sensor. The inboard and outboard sensors having lines of sight intersecting toothed surfaces of gears of the inboard and outboard gears. An inboard distance and an outboard distance travelled by the inboard and the outboard tracks respectively are determined using the inboard and outboard signals from the inboard and the outboard sensors. One of the inboard and the outboard distances is compared with a reference value. An alert indicative of an adverse situation is emitted if the one of the inboard and the outboard distances is different than the reference value.