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MY FS FLIGHTS
Flight Score
Avoid steep turns at low altitude
Below a thousand feet the aeroplane is slow, heavy and close to the ground. A steep turn loses lift, raises the stall speed and flattens the climb just when the gradient matters most. A normal turn on course is a rate one — fifteen degrees or so, twenty-five at the outside, this penalty is to acknowledge when a turn has stopped being a turn and become a manoeuvre.
Read more in Improve Your Take-OffsStart to finish · 18 stages, 16 scored
Events
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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 1,780 m of the approach.
Plan view — the first 1,780 m of the 2,495 m runway, to the same scale as the side view.
The 336 m touchdown sits inside the full-score zone. The arrival was smooth.
The rest of the report
The flight began with a taxiing period from the parking area to the runway, which took 9 minutes and covered a distance of 2 nautical miles. The aircraft, a Boeing 737-800, then departed from runway 24 at Shannon Airport (EINN), located in Munster, Ireland. The takeoff distance was 1,344 meters, which accounted for 44% of the runway. The liftoff speed was 159 knots, and the local weather conditions at the time of departure were characterized by a temperature of 13 degrees Celsius, a wind speed of 16 knots at 160 degrees, with a crosswind of 15 knots and a headwind of 5 knots.
As the aircraft climbed away from Shannon Airport, it began its enroute climb, which started overhead the airport. The climb took 20 minutes to reach a height of 37,086 feet above sea level, an increase of 35,971 feet from the initial altitude of 1,115 feet. During this period, the aircraft covered a distance of 115 nautical miles. The enroute climb phase was followed by a level cruise, which began 40 miles south of Kilmore Quay in Leinster, Ireland. This phase lasted for 16 minutes and covered a distance of 117 nautical miles.
As the aircraft approached its destination, it began its enroute descent, which started 1 mile north of Exeter in Devon, England. The descent took 32 minutes to reduce the altitude from 36,489 feet to 1,511 feet, a decrease of 34,977 feet. During this period, the aircraft covered a distance of 133 nautical miles. The final approach to runway 26L at London Gatwick Airport (EGKK) was made from the east, with a heading of 258.0 degrees at an altitude of 1,303 feet above ground level and 4 nautical miles from the runway.
The landing on runway 26L was successful, with a touchdown distance of 338 meters, which was 68% of the runway length. The threshold speed was good at 147 knots, but the touchdown speed was a little fast at 144 knots. The touchdown rate was fair at -252 feet per minute. However, the runway touchdown position was slightly misaligned by 5.2 meters from the centerline. The local weather conditions at the time of landing were characterized by a temperature of 5 degrees Celsius, a wind speed of 3 knots at 160 degrees, with a crosswind of 3 knots and a headwind of 0 knots.
After landing, the aircraft taxied to the parking area, which took 8 minutes and covered a distance of 1 nautical mile. The total flight distance was 375 nautical miles, and the flight duration was 85 minutes. The aircraft used a total of 3,111 kilograms of fuel during the flight.
The Boeing 737-800 aircraft successfully landed at London Gatwick Airport's runway 26L, achieving a high score of 98.7%. The final approach was conducted from the east, heading 258.0° at a distance of 4 nautical miles and an altitude of 1,303 feet above ground level (agl). The aircraft's approach was well-executed, with a good threshold height and a threshold speed of 147 knots, which is within the acceptable range.
Upon touchdown, the aircraft's performance was satisfactory, with a touchdown distance of 338 meters, which is within the expected range. However, the touchdown speed of 144 knots was slightly faster than desired, indicating that the pilots may have needed to apply more braking force to slow down the aircraft. The touchdown rate of -252 feet per minute (fpm) was fair, suggesting that the aircraft's descent was not excessively steep.
One notable aspect of the landing was the slight misalignment of the runway touchdown position, which was 5.2 meters off the centerline. This may have been due to a slight deviation in the aircraft's approach path or a minor error in the pilots' alignment with the runway. Despite this, the runway rollout alignment was very good, indicating that the pilots were able to maintain control of the aircraft and align it with the runway centerline during the rollout phase.
The local weather conditions at the time of the landing were relatively calm, with a temperature of 5°C and a wind speed of 3 knots from 160°. The crosswind component was 3 knots, while the headwind component was negligible. The total landing distance of 1,703 meters was 68% of the runway length, which is a reasonable distance considering the aircraft's size and the runway's length. Overall, the landing was a successful one, with the aircraft touching down safely and the pilots demonstrating good control and handling skills.
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