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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 · 17 stages, 15 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.
The approach, gate by gate
Side view — the last 1,524 m of the approach.
Plan view — the first 1,524 m of the 2,190 m runway, to the same scale as the side view.
The 92 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 to the runway, which took 5 minutes and covered a distance of 1 nautical mile. The aircraft, a Boeing 737-700, then departed from runway 31C at Chicago Midway International Airport. The takeoff distance was 1,290 meters, which was 79% of the runway length. The liftoff speed was 147 knots.
As the aircraft took off, it encountered local weather conditions with a temperature of 30 degrees Celsius and a wind speed of 10 knots at 290 degrees. The crosswind was 4 knots, and the headwind was 9 knots. After departing from the airport, the aircraft began its enroute climb, starting 1 mile east of Summit, Illinois. The climb took 16 minutes and covered a distance of 144 nautical miles, with the aircraft ascending from 1,606 feet above sea level to 38,283 feet above sea level, an increase of 36,677 feet.
Following the climb, the aircraft entered a level cruise phase, which started 1 mile east of the Sanders Gyroport Airport in Cloverdale, Indiana. This phase lasted for 14 minutes and covered a distance of 335 nautical miles. The aircraft then began its enroute descent, starting 3 miles north of the Singleton Airport in Warm Springs, Virginia. The descent took 21 minutes and covered a distance of 131 nautical miles, with the aircraft descending from 38,453 feet above sea level to 206 feet above sea level, a decrease of 38,247 feet.
As the aircraft approached its destination, it began its final approach to runway 19 at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport from the north. The aircraft was heading at 180.0 degrees at 1 nautical mile and 185 feet above ground level. However, the aircraft was forced to execute a go-around at 33 feet above ground level. The aircraft then landed on runway 19, with a runway length of 2,190 meters. The threshold height was good, and the threshold speed was also good at 130 knots.
The touchdown distance was good at 91 meters, but the touchdown speed was a little fast at 129 knots. The touchdown rate was firm at -339 feet per minute. The runway touchdown position was slightly misaligned by 4.4 meters from the centerline. The local weather conditions at the time of landing were a temperature of 32 degrees Celsius and a wind speed of 16 knots at 170 degrees, with a crosswind of 2 knots and a headwind of 16 knots.
After landing, the aircraft taxied to the parking area, which took 2 minutes and covered a distance of less than 1 nautical mile. The total flight distance was 613 nautical miles, and the flight duration was 68 minutes. The aircraft used 4,696 kilograms of fuel during the flight.
The Boeing 737-700 aircraft successfully landed at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (KDCA) on runway 19, achieving a score of 96.3%. The final approach was conducted from the north, heading 180.0° at 1 nautical mile and 185 feet above ground level (agl). The aircraft maintained a good threshold height, which is a critical aspect of a safe landing.
Upon touchdown, the threshold speed was within the acceptable range at 130 knots. However, the touchdown speed of 129 knots was slightly faster than desired, which may have contributed to a firm touchdown rate of -339 feet per minute (fpm). Despite this, the touchdown distance of 91 meters was considered good.
The runway touchdown position was slightly misaligned by 4.4 meters from the centerline, which may have been due to factors such as wind or pilot error. However, the local weather conditions were favorable, with a temperature of 32°C and a headwind of 16 knots at 170°. The crosswind was minimal at 2 knots, which reduced the impact of any wind-related issues.
The total landing distance of 1,095 meters was 50% of the runway length, indicating a relatively short landing distance. The runway rollout alignment was very good, suggesting that the aircraft was well-controlled during the landing phase. Overall, the landing was considered successful, with the aircraft achieving a high score despite some minor issues with touchdown speed and runway alignment.
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