Originally Posted by
Swedish Blender
Everyone's picking on the GPS portion. You complained about screaming down and going too fast at the IAP. How about a procedure turn? You can get away 1.5k high and fast in a prop most of the time, but probably not meet any stabilized approach criteria. You're starting off learning the wrong way to do things. IMHO
True. It was all stabalized and completely within regs. The only thing was we were fast. Very fast and I had never been put in a situation where I had to slow something that powerful down in that short of time. The rapid descent was not on the approach phase. It was within a close milage to it which was why the descent was made. We then leveled out around 240kts. Then the decisions came on the best way to slow it down more. The debate between us was if it would have been better to maintain altitude with lowe power to bleed off, dump flaps at 210kts then gear at 176kts(which would have taken time at while going so fast we would have eaten up valuable milage) or to simply nose her over. From the point i was given the odd clearance to the point I was on the ground it was practice. To do something I had never done in a machine I had never done it in while someone very knowledgeable oversaw the exercise. Several times we could have taken an easier route but I had never been in those situations and it would be a shame not to take advantage of them. One day I might be forced in one. He asked how I'd rather get down. I said I wasn't sure. He said pick one. So I did and tried it out. Since all this happened I'm sure monday he'll force me to do a quick descent the other way so I can find the answer. There were no PAX or anything like that. Just us two. I found out a lot about what the aircraft is capable of. I wouldn't think you could simply nose one on over like that. I'm use to the kind that get shock cooled ect. That's an important thing. The approach was never in question. The questions were A)How to do the specific radial from a specifc location on the 530/430 and B)Why on earth I was given that really lame clearance then held at high altitude for song long.
Maybe I forgot to say this. The kicker is the control thought it was odd too. When I wrote it all down and replied I looked at bossman like wtf?? and the same instant I did that the control said "Hey it's strait from houston, not from me". We were still on with albuquerque. I know we were about to be handed off to Houston but that was for another 10 min or so and we were right ontop of the mexican border in the middle of the desert. Just thought it was all strange. Didn't see any UFO's though