VNAV, Descend Via and Embray'ers

You're way ahead of me. I'm studying all this stuff, kinda. 'Cause for me, normally, all of the above just ends up being reduced to FAST FAST FAST FAST FWAAAAAUUGHHHHH SQUEAK FWAAAAUGH BWAAAAAANNN NRRRRRRP TAXI BWAAAAAANNN NRRRRRRP SZZ FLLLLLLLLLP PSHEEWWWW.
You know if you delve into the depths of the Chelton system you can do quite a bit of VNAV stuff. Don't they teach that at that shop anymore?
 
You know if you delve into the depths of the Chelton system you can do quite a bit of VNAV stuff. Don't they teach that at that shop anymore?
Chelton makes things unportably easy. Also, I didn't say I'd never heard of VNAV, but doing VNAV from one wpt to another, from 1000' to 500', isn't the same thing as descending on a STAR, trying to hit altitude and speed restrictions in a JETT
 
Chelton makes things unportably easy. Also, I didn't say I'd never heard of VNAV, but doing VNAV from one wpt to another, from 1000' to 500', isn't the same thing as descending on a STAR, trying to hit altitude and speed restrictions in a JETT
Yeah, but if you're doing ODPs and full procedure approaches with it in something a little less draggy than a caravan you still learn some of the principles...oh wait. ;)
 
You're way ahead of me. I'm studying all this stuff, kinda. 'Cause for me, normally, all of the above just ends up being reduced to FAST FAST FAST FAST FWAAAAAUUGHHHHH SQUEAK FWAAAAUGH BWAAAAAANNN NRRRRRRP TAXI BWAAAAAANNN NRRRRRRP SZZ FLLLLLLLLLP PSHEEWWWW.
Or -chime- and "Can It, Will It, and Should I," followed by dogs watching television.
 
Derg said:
So when you're back on path, the 'technique' is to re-cruise by re-inserting your cost-index or re-inserting some of the data on your approach flight phase page on your MCDU because until you do that, where the aircraft is still convinced you're descending as it planned previous to your departure from the managed (VNAV) path, even though you've been droning around in a different mode.

I just put the next altitude restriction back in the box.

Eg. Williamsport3 into EWR, unpublished but usually get SLT at FL310. Then Hayed at 18000 or 19000. So once we level at FL310 and pass SLT, I'll drop in /18000 on the right side of Hayed.

A couple guys here got in trouble when the descent phase didn't engage and they tried to re-cruise by entering the current altitude they descended to as a the new cruise altitude. Problem with that (into DCA) is that a certain arrival has a bajillion restrictions and if any of those restrictions were for at or above your current newly inserted cruise altitude, it's going to drop it out altogether. This crew then subsequently got left high on at least one (maybe two) restrictions as they realized their problem too late.

Another technique a CA showed me that I didn't know was recycling Flaps 3* and Flaps Full* on the perf page. 2 button bush back/forth and it forces the computer to re-think and calculates the new descent profile.

I didn't know about re-inserting cost index. So if you put in the CI on the init page, it will calculate the new profile?
 
Sometimes I'll just clear the current restriction in the FMC as the ALT is capturing on the FMA. It'll reset the next hockey stick.
 
Smoother than VS? Hmm I'd say it's a toss up at best.

So you'll just roll in -1.0 and take whatever vertical speed you get? What if you're only doing 300kts ground speed and it's only five hundred feet per minute down? Or you have a monster tailwind and now it's doing a much higher rate down? You don't check what your VS is once you set your FPA rate? Just cut out that step and use VS bro!!!!

Nerd rant/over.
I'm a firm believer in FPA. At TOD it's great to have 3.3-3.5 in VNAV and then in the terminal area I can shallow to 2.5 to let the aeroplane slow down and once I'm under the glide slope a 2.7 down helps the airplane slowdown, get configured and then intercept the GS. All without leveling off every 5 minutes where you're going from idle thrust to 65% N1 back to idle etc...

With FPA you know what you're going to get and more importantly where you're going to end up (it's all about thinking ahead). I feel like VS can be very reactionary based on winds and speeds. I hate reacting.

Now if the anti-ice is on, everything goes out the window. FLCH all the time because the new idle thrust is around 42% and that sucks.
 
I'm definitely one of the "good guys" I'm also super "laid back." Wanna do some more "coupled" approaches with me?
120816_ryan_a_ap_605_605.jpg
 
Is it bad that I make "cheat fixes" 3 nm prior to all my constraints to give the vnav some breathing room? Saves my ass on the LAX arrivals every time. This has nothing to do with all this airbus jargon, I just wanted to be a cool kid too. I actually just make coffee and/or fill out a plotting chart 90% of the time.
 
Is it bad that I make "cheat fixes" 3 nm prior to all my constraints to give the vnav some breathing room? Saves my ass on the LAX arrivals every time. This has nothing to do with all this airbus jargon, I just wanted to be a cool kid too. I actually just make coffee and/or fill out a plotting chart 90% of the time.
I cant wait to get paid to make airplane coffee. :)
 
Is it bad that I make "cheat fixes" 3 nm prior to all my constraints to give the vnav some breathing room? Saves my ass on the LAX arrivals every time. This has nothing to do with all this airbus jargon, I just wanted to be a cool kid too. I actually just make coffee and/or fill out a plotting chart 90% of the time.
It can burn you due to turn anticipation ("where ya goin'?"), actually, but if it's a straight line that you're flying, shouldn't matter much.
 
I just put the next altitude restriction back in the box.

Eg. Williamsport3 into EWR, unpublished but usually get SLT at FL310. Then Hayed at 18000 or 19000. So once we level at FL310 and pass SLT, I'll drop in /18000 on the right side of Hayed.

A couple guys here got in trouble when the descent phase didn't engage and they tried to re-cruise by entering the current altitude they descended to as a the new cruise altitude. Problem with that (into DCA) is that a certain arrival has a bajillion restrictions and if any of those restrictions were for at or above your current newly inserted cruise altitude, it's going to drop it out altogether. This crew then subsequently got left high on at least one (maybe two) restrictions as they realized their problem too late.

Another technique a CA showed me that I didn't know was recycling Flaps 3* and Flaps Full* on the perf page. 2 button bush back/forth and it forces the computer to re-think and calculates the new descent profile.

I didn't know about re-inserting cost index. So if you put in the CI on the init page, it will calculate the new profile?

Darn near anything you do on the perf page is going to make it recalculate, even if it's the same data. I'll generally just re-insert the temperature or altimeter for a recalc.

Setting a new cruise altitude is something that generally only should be done in the cruise phase I think.

Now the Pegasus box on the Boeing… aww, nah, I'm just going to muddy it up.
 
Darn near anything you do on the perf page is going to make it recalculate, even if it's the same data. I'll generally just re-insert the temperature or altimeter for a recalc.

Setting a new cruise altitude is something that generally only should be done in the cruise phase I think.

Now the Pegasus box on the Boeing… aww, nah, I'm just going to muddy it up.

Many ways to skin a cat, it would seem.

My only *grrrrrrrrr* moment is when guys start teaching/preaching how their way is superior and that the company doesn't know what they're doing and blah blah blah.
 
Many ways to skin a cat, it would seem.

My only *grrrrrrrrr* moment is when guys start teaching/preaching how their way is superior and that the company doesn't know what they're doing and blah blah blah.

Main reason I didn't bid the bus this last time through... even though I could have held CLT.
 
Many ways to skin a cat, it would seem.

My only *grrrrrrrrr* moment is when guys start teaching/preaching how their way is superior and that the company doesn't know what they're doing and blah blah blah.

A hand over each ear and murmur "blarg blarg blarg".

I had a lot of those "No one knows what they're doing, but amma expert!" types on the 330. You just put down the Sudoku, make eye contact, let your eyes focus to infinity and when they stop talking, back to Sudoku.
 
@Seggy
@Derg
@PeanuckleCRJ

Do you guys do the Tip Toe visual into 28L at SFO?

Part of it is going to the OAK radial at 14 DME. On can obviously build that using place/bearing/distance, eg, OAK/151/14.

But in our box, there's already a pre-made fix called "D331N" which is the typical format for fixes especially when you do an arc in Mexico. In this case, it's the DME off OAK, the 331 reciprocal of 151, and N for 14 DME.

Flew with my first kernel. The guy obviously doesn't like it. He asks how do you know it's the same point? So I showed by using the OAK/151/14 and it falls, obviously, on the same fix as the D331N. Instead of just accepting it (because it IS correct), he goes, "would you do this with a fed in the jumpseat?" I thought about it some, and then said yes I would. But I get the feeling obviously he's not comfortable so I just take out the D331N and put in the PBD01 pilot-built fix of OAK/151/14. Then he's apparently happy. He says he has no way of identifying that D331N fix, no lat long. [inside head thought] Well, Sir genius, you don't have a way of identifying the PBD01 we just built either. Bottom line, both ways are correct, but if you wanna be a kernel about it, go ahead. /inside head thought

I'm all about keeping the other guy as comfortable as possible so once I saw the resistance, I just did what made him for comfortable/happy.

More grrrrrrrrrr moments when on my leg I call flaps full at 165 knots (and slowing) at 1,500 AGL and he does, but then says I'm fast, and PULLS the spoilers to half detent. wtf? We would have been totally fine. 500 more feet to go for 1,000 and we would have definitely made it. Plus, at 1,000 we need full config and going for speed latest by 500.

And a few more items like that, I have to say inside I let slide. Were they dangerous or un-safe? Not really, control of aircraft was never in question. But don't pull the freakin spoilers on a guy without discussing it first.


The worst part was, you would think that at least he's good enough himself, but no. Several times I caught things he missed and twice he made the comment that he had been ashamed as CA and would commit seppeku (japanese knife to gut). A joke obviously, but I wonder if this set him up to mentally try and "get me" whenever he could? I suppose I should have said something. But being a small base of 53 guys and this being the first time, I guess I didn't want the bad rep right off the bat. But now that we have flown, next time he pulls this crap, I'll say something.
 
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