T-38 Ride

Fantastic! Thanks for sharing, I don't believe I have seen such a complete telling of a media ride to date.
 
Saw a F-104 land the other day... think I remember hearing average full flap approach speed worked out to be ~190 knots... and no flap was around 230 knots.
 
F-117 was about 190, weight dependant. F-104 about the same. Normal ops son. Approach Category E!
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I cant imagine approaching to land at 190 knots. Alitte over shoot and you would be down the runway in a hurry.
 
Inverted25 said:
I cant imagine approaching to land at 190 knots. Alitte over shoot and you would be down the runway in a hurry.
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This is exactly what the T-38 is designed to teach students...and the reason so many T-38 students feel a gigantic kick in the nads transitioning into the airplane.

FWIW, Supa is overstating things just a little in the video. Although 180 is a typical basic speed while flying the final turn of an overhead pattern, the basic speed on straight-in final is 160 (the speed in the downwind-to-base-to-final turn is 20 knots above final approach speed). If you put it in terms of a "Vref" speed, it's actually more like 155, but it's padded because UPT students are morons and many of them have been killed in the T-38 for getting too slow in the pattern.

The speed varies based on fuel weight, and every pattern students have to mentally re-calculate the final turn and approach speeds for that particular pattern. It changes by one knot for every 100 pounds of fuel or stores. Since a typical closed pattern burns about 100#, this means new math and a new speed every time a student configures the airplane.

So, it's certainly possible to have an approach speed of 180 across the fence, that translates to having 3,000# of fuel on board, which is damn near full. As instructors, we see that landing weight regularly for training purposes (when students take off and immediately return for a heavyweight approach), but it's not the "normal" speed where students will perform most of their practice approaches/landings.
 
Heh, you can fly the caravan on the ILS at 170 pretty easy...but that big fat wing slows to a docile 70Kts or less at touchdown, I can't really imagine what a Vref of 155 would be like. Probably more than my slow moving situational-awareness impaired brain could even handle. Probably just give up and nose it over into the numbers at max power just to get it over with. ;)
 
That is cray, landing that fast. The T-45C lands at a much slower speed for obvious reasons. We do no flap, no slat and no board landings as well and on speed is around 165-170KIAS and it's uncomfortable for me.
 
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