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MY FS FLIGHTS
Flight Score
Shorten the long landing
Ground effect becomes significant below about one wingspan of height. A Cessna 172, with a 36 ft span, enters ground effect at flare height - the float it feels in the hold-off is ground effect arriving on cue. An A320, with a span around 117 ft, has been in ground effect since before the threshold and there is no sudden cushion to feel, only a gradual reduction in induced drag that lengthens any float you allow.
Read more in Flare TimingStart to finish · 24 stages, 22 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 1,996 m runway, to the same scale as the side view.
Touched down 986 m past the threshold — beyond 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 less than 1 nautical mile. The aircraft, a TBM 850, then departed from runway 36 at KLEB Lebanon Municipal Airport. The takeoff distance was 568 meters, which accounted for 36% of the runway. The liftoff speed was 98 knots.
As the aircraft climbed to a higher altitude, it encountered local weather conditions of 16°C temperature and a 1-knot wind at 269°. The crosswind was 1 knot, and the headwind was 0 knots. The enroute climb started overhead White River Junction in Vermont, where the aircraft climbed from 1,174 feet above sea level to 4,907 feet, an increase of 3,732 feet in 4 minutes and covering 11 nautical miles.
The aircraft then entered a level cruise, starting 2 miles west of Windsor, Vermont, and lasted for 2 minutes, covering 6 nautical miles. Another enroute climb started 1 mile east of KVSF Hartness State Airport in North Springfield, Vermont, where the aircraft climbed from 5,161 feet to 5,902 feet, an increase of 741 feet in 2 minutes and covering 7 nautical miles.
The aircraft then entered another level cruise, starting 2 miles northwest of Rockingham, Vermont, and lasted for 12 minutes, covering 97 nautical miles. The enroute descent started 2 miles north of Watertown, Connecticut, where the aircraft descended from 5,707 feet to 3,897 feet, a decrease of 1,810 feet in 2 minutes and covering 11 nautical miles.
The aircraft then entered another level cruise, starting overhead KOXC Waterbury Oxford Airport in Oxford, Connecticut, and lasted for 9 minutes, covering 29 nautical miles. The enroute descent started 2 miles southwest of North Stamford, Connecticut, where the aircraft descended from 3,876 feet to 887 feet, a decrease of 2,988 feet in 3 minutes and covering 9 nautical miles.
The aircraft then entered another climb, starting 1 mile southwest of Rye Brook, New York, where the aircraft climbed from 877 feet to 2,454 feet, an increase of 1,576 feet in 2 minutes and covering 4 nautical miles. The aircraft then entered another level cruise, starting overhead White Plains, New York, and lasted for 12 minutes, covering 6 nautical miles.
The final approach to runway 34 at KHPN Westchester County Airport was from the southeast, heading 330.0° at 4 nautical miles and 1,246 feet above ground level. The landing on runway 34 was successful, with the touchdown point being very long, using more than 50% of the available runway. The touchdown speed was 64 knots, which was good, and the touchdown rate was excellent at -53 feet per minute.
The runway touchdown position was misaligned by 13.3 meters from the centerline, and the runway rollout alignment was slightly misaligned by 12.8 meters from the centerline. The total landing distance was 1,107 meters, which accounted for 55% of the runway. The taxiing to the parking from the runway took less than 1 minute and covered less than 1 nautical mile.
The total flight distance was 186 nautical miles, taking 55 minutes, and the aircraft used 197 kilograms of fuel.
The TBM 850 aircraft successfully landed at KHPN Westchester County Airport, but the landing was not without some notable issues. The final approach was made from the southeast, heading 330.0° at 4 nautical miles and 1,246 feet above ground level (agl). The aircraft touched down on runway 34, which has a length of 1,996 meters.
One of the main concerns during the landing was the threshold height, which was well above the target height at 75 feet agl. This indicates that the aircraft was higher than desired when approaching the runway threshold. Additionally, the threshold speed was also well above the target at 74 knots, suggesting that the aircraft was traveling faster than necessary when reaching the threshold.
The touchdown point was particularly concerning, as it was very long, using more than 50% of the available runway. This indicates that the aircraft was not properly aligned with the runway centerline, resulting in a longer than necessary landing distance. The touchdown speed of 64 knots was good, but the touchdown rate of -53 feet per minute (fpm) was excellent, indicating a smooth and controlled descent.
The local weather conditions at the time of the landing were relatively calm, with a temperature of 15°C and a wind speed of 1 knot from 270°. This resulted in a negligible crosswind and headwind, making the landing conditions relatively straightforward.
However, despite the calm weather, the aircraft's runway touchdown position was misaligned by 13.3 meters from the centerline, and the runway rollout alignment was slightly misaligned by 12.8 meters from the centerline. This suggests that the pilot may have had some difficulty maintaining a straight course during the landing.
Overall, the TBM 850 aircraft scored 79.3% on this landing, indicating a good but not perfect performance. While the touchdown speed and rate were excellent, the long touchdown point and misaligned runway touchdown and rollout positions suggest that the pilot could benefit from some additional training or practice to improve their landing skills.
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