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MY FS FLIGHTS
Flight Score
Shorten the long landing
Ground effect becomes significant below about one wingspan of height. A Cessna 172, with a 36 ft span, enters ground effect at flare height - the float it feels in the hold-off is ground effect arriving on cue. An A320, with a span around 117 ft, has been in ground effect since before the threshold and there is no sudden cushion to feel, only a gradual reduction in induced drag that lengthens any float you allow.
Read more in Flare TimingStart to finish · 20 stages, 18 scored
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The threshold, the flare and the hold-off. The approach that led to it is the stabilisation gates below.
One stabilised approach gate: five checks where the approach path is 500 ft above the runway. The 1,000 ft gate was not assessed, because the approach did not join final that far out.
Side view — the last 5,000 ft of the approach.
Plan view — the first 5,000 ft of the 7,571 ft runway, to the same scale as the side view.
Touched down 3,300 ft past the threshold — beyond the full-score zone. The arrival was smooth.
The rest of the report
The flight began with the aircraft, a Cessna CJ4 Citation, taxiing from the parking area to the runway at Toronto Lester B. Pearson International Airport, taking approximately 1 minute and covering less than 1 nautical mile. The departure roll took place on runway 06L, with a takeoff distance of 539 meters, which accounted for 19% of the runway. The aircraft lifted off at a speed of 128 knots.
As the aircraft departed, it encountered local weather conditions of 3°C temperature and a wind of 13 knots at 33 degrees. The crosswind was 3 knots, while the headwind was 13 knots. The enroute climb started approximately 1 mile northwest of Eringate-Centennial-West Deane, Ontario, Canada, where the aircraft climbed from 1,560 feet above sea level to 3,185 feet above sea level, an increase of 1,625 feet in 2 minutes, covering a distance of 7 nautical miles.
The enroute level cruise began 1 mile south of Clanton Park, Ontario, Canada, and lasted for 49 minutes, covering a distance of 44 nautical miles. The aircraft then encountered another enroute climb, this time overhead Niagara Falls International Airport in New York, United States, where it climbed from 2,015 feet above sea level to 2,601 feet above sea level, an increase of 586 feet in 2 minutes, covering a distance of 1 nautical mile.
The enroute level cruise resumed 1 mile southwest of Niagara Falls International Airport and lasted for 13 minutes, covering a distance of 17 nautical miles. The enroute descent started 2 miles west of Lackawanna, New York, United States, where the aircraft descended from 3,127 feet above sea level to 2,123 feet above sea level, a decrease of 1,004 feet in 2 minutes, covering a distance of 6 nautical miles.
The final approach to runway 05 at Buffalo Niagara International Airport was made from the southwest, heading 27.0 degrees at 3 nautical miles and 1,426 feet above ground level. The landing took place on runway 05, which had a length of 2,308 meters. The threshold height was excessively over target, while the threshold speed was excessively high.
The touchdown point was very long, using more than 50% of the available runway. The touchdown speed was 110 knots, which was too fast, and the touchdown rate was very hard at -564 feet per minute. The runway touchdown position was excessively misaligned by 80.0 meters from the centreline. The local weather conditions at the time of landing were 3°C temperature and a wind of 9 knots at 19 degrees, with a crosswind of 4 knots and a headwind of 9 knots.
The total landing distance was 1,371 meters, which accounted for 59% of the runway. The runway rollout alignment was excessively misaligned by 64.1 meters from the centreline. The taxiing to the parking area from the runway took approximately 10 minutes and covered less than 1 nautical mile.
The total flight distance was 80 nautical miles, taking a total of 81 minutes, and the aircraft used 521 kilograms of fuel during the flight.
The Cessna CJ4 Citation aircraft has landed at KBUF Buffalo Niagara International Airport, but the landing was not without its issues. The final approach was conducted from the southwest, heading 27.0° at 3 nautical miles and 1,426 feet above ground level (agl). The aircraft touched down on runway 05, which has a length of 2,308 meters.
However, the landing was not executed perfectly. The threshold height at 118 feet agl was excessively over target, indicating that the aircraft was higher than it should have been at the point of touchdown. Additionally, the threshold speed was excessively high at 146 knots, which is faster than the recommended speed for landing. This excessive speed likely contributed to the hard touchdown rate.
The touchdown point was also very long, using more than 50% of the available runway. This suggests that the aircraft was not aligned properly with the runway centerline, and the pilot may have been struggling to maintain control during the landing. The touchdown speed of 110 knots was also too fast, which further exacerbated the hard touchdown rate of -564 feet per minute (fpm).
Furthermore, the runway touchdown position was excessively misaligned by 80 meters from the centerline, indicating a significant deviation from the intended path. This misalignment likely contributed to the long touchdown point and the hard touchdown rate. The local weather conditions at the time of the landing were not particularly challenging, with a temperature of 3°C and a wind of 9 knots at 19°.
The total landing distance was 1,371 meters, which is 59% of the available runway. This is a relatively long landing distance, indicating that the aircraft was not able to stop within the available runway length. The runway rollout alignment was also excessively misaligned by 64.1 meters from the centerline, further highlighting the issues with the landing.
Overall, the landing of the Cessna CJ4 Citation at KBUF Buffalo Niagara International Airport was not executed perfectly, with issues related to threshold height, threshold speed, touchdown speed, touchdown rate, and runway alignment. These issues likely contributed to a hard landing and a long landing distance.
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