New Landings Save Airplane Fuel
Airlines try "continuous descent" to save on fuel costs
Reader Comments
Space Hotels
There is a time coming when there will be Space-Hotels where the space flights dock, then wait for the earth's rotation below the Space-Hotel and then these Space-Craft will then land at an airfield of its choice. Makes no sense to burn jet fuel for hours just to get from point A to point B. Welcome to the common sense world of traveling.
none
this is some bull
Who pays?
> Meanwhile, Congress and the airlines are still bickering about who will foot the bill for the new system, expected to cost perhaps as much as $20 billion to implement.
The airlines just need to accept the cost, which they're going to pass along to passengers anyway. Why should the general public pay for it, since they're not the ones flying? Add a (grrrrr) "GPS infrastructure fee" to the cost of every ticket.
Continuous descent
I understand that Continuous Descents come to replace Tear Drops and Parallel Entry. This will be a very good decision!
Please tell if I am wrong.
New Landing Concept
Congratulations to the FAA for "allowing" the trial of a landing concept (continuous glide slope) that's been around (but unused) for 30 or so years, as has another approach/landing concept developed by Boeing in the early OPEC days that lies unused because of industry apathy. Continuously modulated approach/landing flap extension, as contrasted to 2 or 3 discrete settings, was tried on the 727-200 as a noise abatement and fuel reducer when OPEC launched the world into fuel cost awareness in 1973. It would have to be automated to make it workable, but it's there for anyone willing to use it. (It should be noted that minimizing approach and landing fuel use, while not to be sneered at, is kind of the tail wagging the dog because it's a minor contributor to trip fuel.
Nothing New
The capability to provide 'pilot discretionary descents' following an optimum glide path is nothing new. The potential reduction in noise and savings on fuel and air pollution are a 'win, win, win' for the public, airlines and the FAA. This concept can be done very easily in the somewhat pure arrival and departure scenarios that occurs at overnight air freight hubs where arrival and departure traffic is usually during off peak hours can be metered to pre-established descent gates for uninterupted descents. Attempts to do this have been fraught with FAA stonewalling and bureacratic 'can't do' attitudes.
Thank You.
In the second "click to view" picture frame, I'm glad to see Pan American World Airways is still remembered- even if only by the Europeans.
Shame on the US government for allowing our American companies to die and disappear- and the American companies are still today either closing or moving overseas. SHAME! SHAME!!
New Landings?
Not hardly a new concept. That always has been the desired descent/approach profile, but air traffic congestion complicates the matter.
