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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 · 24 stages, 23 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 6,336 ft of the approach.
Plan view — the first 6,336 ft of the 9,498 ft runway, to the same scale as the side view.
The 749 ft touchdown sits inside the full-score zone. The 2.47 G arrival is the firm side of smooth.
The rest of the report
The flight began with taxiing from the parking to the runway at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, taking 14 minutes and covering 3 nautical miles. The aircraft then departed from runway 36C, with a takeoff distance of 6,331 feet, which was 63% of the runway length. The liftoff speed was 158 knots.
As the aircraft climbed, it started at 1 mile north of the airport, rising from 1,661 feet above sea level to 30,065 feet, an increase of 28,404 feet in 26 minutes, covering 121 nautical miles. The local weather conditions were favorable, with a temperature of 51°F and no wind.
The enroute level cruise started 6 miles west of Wake Forest, North Carolina, and lasted 7 minutes, covering 39 nautical miles. The aircraft then began another climb 2 miles southwest of NC10 Nocarva Airport Macon, rising from 30,559 feet to 32,441 feet in 4 minutes, covering 29 nautical miles.
The aircraft continued its journey, with another level cruise starting 7 miles southeast of McKenney, Virginia, lasting 2 minutes and covering 14 nautical miles. A subsequent climb began 4 miles west of Templeton, Virginia, with the aircraft rising from 33,002 feet to 38,810 feet in 11 minutes, covering 94 nautical miles.
The enroute level cruise started overhead Saint Leonard, Maryland, and lasted 14 minutes, covering 118 nautical miles. As the aircraft approached its destination, it began its descent 1 mile north of N14 Flying W Lumberton, New Jersey, descending from 40,302 feet to 3,708 feet in 25 minutes, covering 130 nautical miles.
The aircraft continued its descent, starting overhead Plymouth, Connecticut, and lasting 18 minutes, covering 39 nautical miles. The final descent began overhead Wilbraham, Massachusetts, with the aircraft descending from 3,784 feet to 2,120 feet in 2 minutes, covering 5 nautical miles.
The aircraft then began its final approach to runway 24 at Bradley International Airport, flying from the northeast at a heading of 224.0° and 4 nautical miles from the runway. The landing was successful, with a touchdown distance of 740 feet and a touchdown speed of 143 knots, which was slightly above the target speed.
The total landing distance was 6,065 feet, which was 64% of the runway length. The runway touchdown alignment was very good, but the runway rollout alignment was misaligned by 58 feet from the centerline. The taxiing to the parking from the runway took 8 minutes and covered less than 1 nautical mile.
The total flight distance was 607 nautical miles, taking 130 minutes, and the aircraft used 33,200 pounds of fuel.
The aircraft, an Airbus A359, successfully landed at Bradley International Airport (KBDL) on runway 24. The final approach was initiated from the northeast, heading 224.0° at a distance of 4 nautical miles and an altitude of 1,318 feet above ground level (agl). The aircraft maintained a good threshold height, which is a crucial aspect of a safe landing.
Upon touchdown, the aircraft's threshold speed was slightly above the target speed of 143 knots, registering at 144 knots. However, the touchdown distance of 740 feet was considered good, indicating that the aircraft was able to maintain control and slow down effectively. The touchdown speed of 143 knots was a little fast, but not excessively so, and the touchdown rate of -692 feet per minute (fpm) was heavy, suggesting that the aircraft may have experienced a slight bounce or hard landing.
The runway touchdown alignment was very good, which is a positive aspect of the landing. The local weather conditions were favorable, with a temperature of 46°F and no wind, resulting in a crosswind and headwind of 0 knots. This made the landing even more challenging, as the aircraft had to rely solely on its autopilot system to maintain alignment and control.
The total landing distance of 6,065 feet was 64% of the runway length, which is a relatively short distance considering the aircraft's size and weight. However, the runway rollout alignment was misaligned by 58 feet from the centerline, which is a concern. This could be due to a variety of factors, including pilot error, system malfunction, or a combination of both.
Overall, the landing was considered successful, but there are areas for improvement, particularly with regards to touchdown speed and runway rollout alignment. The pilots and air traffic control team will need to review the flight data and footage to determine the cause of the misaligned rollout and take corrective action to prevent similar incidents in the future.
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