User Profile

[kent olsen]

I'm one of those old guys who probably flew into Kai Tak 50 times before they moved to the Island where I also flew into many times. Usually by the second trip into Kai Take you figure out the tricks. Descent rate established on the ILS then just turn over the center line strobe lights and maintain your descent rate. When there was a right crosswind it just required a earlier turn to final to give you a chance to find the correction needed.

The best time killer, besides shopping, was to go sit on the checkerboard and watch the arrivals.

[kent olsen]

Well rudders are a flight control just like ailerons and elevators. If you are in a position where you need max deflection on any one, you shouldn't be there. When i started flying jets I was told you don't need the rudders.

Here's another one: when transitioning into the Hawker 1000 we had to do some landings in the a/c. The instructor told us to trim the nose down on final so that in the event of a go-around you wouldn't have to trim as the flaps retracted to 20 deg. 'Distraction' boom! ground contact. don't believe everything you hear....

[kent olsen]

Well try this on for size. Teaching in the DC-8 and 747, IOE, Initial Operating Experience. Both a/c are very susceptible to sucking up things with the outboard engines while reversing on landing, especially the DC-8 so you need to land in the middle of the runway. So the way I taught landings and especially Xwind landings was to line up on final, keep the wings level with the ailerons and use the rudders to crab into the wind. Making small crab angles allowed you to stay on the centerline. Especially on the 747 you could stay lined up and move 10-15 ft and when you eased off on the rudder it would stop right there. If you tried banking to move 10-15ft you had so much inertia it would continue moving left or right. Now you have been working the rudders on final and at the flare you can feel just how much rudder to remove the crab for the landing.