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MY FS FLIGHTS
Flight Score
Maintain the centreline
A small uncorrected heading error at 40 knots becomes a metre of offset per second by 100 knots, noticed only at rotation, producing a crabbed liftoff. Root cause is nearly always eyes on the tape instead of the far end of the runway. Small heading changes displace a distant point visibly long before the nearby centreline stripes look wrong.
Read more in Improve Your Take-OffsStart to finish · 15 stages, 13 scored
Events
Events
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.
The approach, gate by gate
Side view — the last 1,360 m of the approach.
Plan view — the full 1,360 m runway, to the same scale as the side view.
The 252 m 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 25 at Mount St Helens Aero Ranch Airport, WN10. The aircraft, a DA42-VI, accelerated down the runway and lifted off at a speed of 76 kt, covering 62% of the runway's length. The local weather conditions at the time of takeoff were characterized by a temperature of 32 °C and a gentle wind of 4 kt from a direction of 319 °, resulting in a 3 kt crosswind and a 2 kt headwind.
As the aircraft climbed away from the airport, it began its enroute climb, ascending from an initial altitude of 807 ft above sea level to a cruising altitude of 9,727 ft, a vertical gain of 8,920 ft over a distance of 10 nm in just 8 minutes. The climb was initiated overhead the Mount St Helens Aero Ranch Airport, WN10, and continued until the aircraft reached its cruising altitude.
Following the climb, the aircraft entered a level cruise phase, maintaining its altitude of 9,727 ft for 7 minutes as it covered a distance of 10 nm. This cruise phase was initiated 9 miles north of the Mount St Helens Aero Ranch Airport, WN10.
As the aircraft approached its destination, it began its enroute descent, descending from 9,715 ft to 1,011 ft over a distance of 21 nm in 10 minutes. The descent was initiated 14 miles south of Mossyrock, Washington, and continued until the aircraft reached its final approach altitude.
Upon reaching the vicinity of the Ed Carlson Memorial Field South Lewis County Airport, KTDO, the aircraft entered a final level cruise phase, maintaining its altitude of 1,011 ft for 2 minutes as it covered a distance of 3 nm. This cruise phase was initiated overhead the airport.
The final approach to runway 24 at KTDO was made from the north east, with the aircraft heading 234.0 ° at an altitude of 887 ft above ground level and a distance of 1 nm from the runway threshold. The landing was made on the runway, which had a length of 1,360 m, and the aircraft touched down at a speed of 76 kt, which was slightly faster than the recommended threshold speed.
The touchdown distance was good, covering 251 m of the runway, and the touchdown rate was firm at -368 fpm. However, the runway touchdown position was slightly misaligned from the centreline by 4.6 m. The local weather conditions at the time of landing were similar to those at takeoff, with a temperature of 32 °C and a gentle wind of 4 kt from a direction of 320 °, resulting in a 4 kt crosswind and a 2 kt headwind.
Following the landing, the aircraft taxied to the parking area, taking just 1 minute to cover a distance of less than 1 nm. The total flight distance was 46 nm, and the flight duration was 30 minutes. The aircraft used a total of 20 kg of fuel during the flight.
The DA42-VI aircraft successfully landed at KTDO Ed Carlson Memorial Field South Lewis County Airport, achieving a score of 92.0%. The final approach was initiated from the north-east, heading 234.0° at 1 nm and 887 ft above ground level (agl). The aircraft successfully touched down on runway 24, which has a length of 1,360 meters.
The threshold height was good, indicating that the aircraft was at the correct height as it approached the runway. However, the threshold speed was too high at 89 kt, suggesting that the pilot may have been able to reduce the speed further before touchdown. The touchdown distance was good at 251 meters, indicating that the aircraft was able to maintain control and land smoothly.
Despite the good touchdown distance, the touchdown speed of 76 kt was faster than ideal, resulting in a firm touchdown rate of -368 fpm. This may have put additional stress on the aircraft's landing gear and could have been avoided with a slower touchdown speed. The runway touchdown position was slightly misaligned by 4.6 meters from the centerline, which may have been due to a slight deviation in the approach or a miscalculation of the landing distance.
The local weather conditions at the time of landing were characterized by a temperature of 32°C and a wind speed of 4 kt at 320°. The crosswind component was 4 kt, while the headwind component was 2 kt. These conditions may have affected the aircraft's approach and landing, but the pilot was able to successfully navigate them.
The total landing distance was 441 meters, which is 32% of the runway length. This is a relatively short landing distance, indicating that the pilot was able to maintain control and land smoothly. The runway rollout alignment was very good, suggesting that the pilot was able to maintain control and direction during the rollout phase of the landing.
Overall, the landing was successful, but there were some areas for improvement, including reducing the threshold speed and touchdown speed, and maintaining a more accurate alignment with the runway centerline.
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