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MY FS FLIGHTS
Flight Score
Work on the flare
Arrive slow and the sink rate at the threshold is already above schedule, the flare is short because there is no energy to extend it, and the touchdown is hard in a way that feels exactly like a late flare. Diagnosing a slow arrival as a late flare is the catastrophic misread: you respond by flaring earlier, which bleeds more speed, which makes the next one worse. The tiebreaker is threshold speed against VRef, not feel. Never diagnose a flare without it.
Read more in Flare TimingStart to finish · 13 stages, 12 scored
Events
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Events
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 4,977 ft of the approach.
Plan view — the full 4,977 ft runway, to the same scale as the side view.
The 605 ft touchdown sits inside the full-score zone. The arrival was smooth.
The rest of the report
The flight began with a departure roll from runway 34L at Van Nuys Airport (KVNY), where the CL415 Firefighting aircraft took off with a takeoff distance of 1,607 feet, which is 24% of the runway. The liftoff speed was 99 knots. At the time of departure, the local weather conditions were characterized by a temperature of 68°F and winds of 18 knots at 44 degrees, resulting in a crosswind of 14 knots and a headwind of 12 knots.
As the aircraft climbed, it started its enroute climb overhead North Hills, California, and ascended from 1,847 feet above sea level to 2,616 feet above sea level, an increase of 769 feet in just 2 minutes, covering a distance of 1 nautical mile. The enroute level cruise then began 1 mile northeast of Northridge, California, and lasted for 2 minutes, covering a distance of 2 nautical miles.
The enroute descent started 1 mile southwest of Northridge, California, and the aircraft descended from 3,154 feet above sea level to just 5 feet above ground level, a decrease of 3,149 feet in 5 minutes, covering a distance of 11 nautical miles. The aircraft then performed a go-around on runway 03 at Santa Monica Municipal Airport (KSMO) at an altitude of 0 feet above ground level.
The final approach to runway 03 at KSMO was made from the southwest, heading 45.0 degrees at 1 nautical mile and 378 feet above ground level. The landing on runway 03 was successful, with a touchdown distance of 545 feet, which is considered good. The touchdown speed was a little fast at 73 knots, but the touchdown rate was excellent at -80 feet per minute. The runway touchdown alignment was perfect, and the runway rollout alignment was very good.
The local weather conditions at the time of landing were characterized by a temperature of 59°F and winds of 11 knots at 152 degrees, resulting in a crosswind of 10 knots and a tailwind of 3 knots. The total landing distance was 1,772 feet, which is 36% of the runway. The total flight distance was 21 nautical miles, and the flight duration was 12 minutes, during which the aircraft used 1 pound of fuel.
The CL415 Firefighting aircraft successfully landed at KSMO Santa Monica Municipal Airport, achieving an overall score of 88.8%. The final approach to runway 03 was initiated from the southwest, heading 45.0° at 1 nautical mile and 378 feet above ground level (agl). The aircraft demonstrated good control and precision during its descent, ultimately landing safely on the 4,977-foot runway.
One notable aspect of the landing was the threshold height, which was reported as good. However, the threshold speed was excessively high at 79 knots, indicating that the pilot may have been able to slow down more aggressively during the final approach. Despite this, the touchdown distance was good at 545 feet, and the touchdown speed of 73 knots was only slightly fast.
The aircraft's touchdown rate was an impressive -80 feet per minute (fpm), demonstrating excellent control and precision during the landing. The runway touchdown alignment was also perfect, indicating that the pilot had successfully aligned the aircraft with the runway centerline.
The local weather conditions at the time of the landing were characterized by a temperature of 59°F and winds of 11 knots at 152°. The crosswind component was 10 knots, while the tailwind component was 3 knots. These conditions presented a moderate challenge for the pilot, but the aircraft's performance was not significantly impacted.
The total landing distance was 1,772 feet, which accounted for 36% of the runway length. This is a relatively short landing distance, indicating that the pilot had successfully managed the aircraft's speed and descent rate to achieve a safe and controlled touchdown. The runway rollout alignment was also very good, demonstrating that the pilot had maintained control of the aircraft during the post-landing phase.
Overall, the CL415 Firefighting aircraft demonstrated excellent performance and control during its landing at KSMO Santa Monica Municipal Airport, achieving a high score of 88.8%.
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