B737 Undifferentiated or Other Model
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Distraction; Situational Awareness
Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe
Flight Crew Overcame Equipment Problem; General Declared Emergency
Aircraft; Human Factors
On descent we heard a load blaring noise that couldn't be identified or silenced that continued all the way into the gate until maintenance eventually identified the sound as the bathroom smoke detector alarm; no other associated sounds; smells or warning signs were observed by the flight crew relating to this sound.Through the descent; approach and landing we were experiencing a slowness to respond from the #2 engine relating to thrust lever position (both forward and back) and in comparison to the #1 engine; at times we had as much as a 3 inch split or more at the top of the thrust levers between engine #1 and engine #2 after we were be able to get the N1s equal and stable. While being vectored for the approach we began to configure for landing; first flaps 1; then flaps 5 followed by flaps 10. While we were configuring we were still having a problem with the #2 engines response and noticed I was having an increased problem in controlling the airplane. I noticed that we had a higher than usual pitch attitude for our speed and configuration as well as sluggish responses from the controls including rolling issues and I caught in my scan that we were showing an asymmetric flap problem with the left indicating flaps 5 and the right indicating flaps 10. We declared an emergency and asked for vectors to work on the problem. At one point during this event the autopilot had switched from command to Control Wheel Steering while in a vectored turn and the auto throttles had disengaged completely. We worked through the problem via the QRH and ultimately landed the aircraft on runway 27L with flaps 5 and without further incident. Multiple simultaneous aircraft equipment failures.One suggestion would be to include an actual bathroom smoke detector alarm sound in the training environment. This was the first time in my career hearing this sound and my crew and I were completely unfamiliar with this sound.
B737 pilot reported multiple seemingly unrelated aircraft equipment anomalies; complicated by a bathroom smoke detector blaring that continued to the gate.