View Single Post
Old 11-15-2010 | 05:22 PM
  #15  
trent890's Avatar
trent890
Don't need that HUD!
10M Airline Miles
15 Years
On Reserve
40 Countries Visited
 
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 321
Likes: 2
From: B787 FO
Default

Originally Posted by Ewfflyer
Remember, to continue to land, you need the runway environment/lights to continue an additional 100', and then you must have the runway itself to descend the remaining distance to the runway to land.
Not completely correct. You can continue and land if: you are in a position to land, you have the required flight visibility, and one of the elements of the runway environment are in sight.

The only time that continuing an "additional 100 feet" comes into play is when using the approach lighting system as the only reference for the runway environment. If this is the case, then you are allowed to make a descent to 100 feet above TDZE. If you are shooting a standard Cat I ILS with mins of 200-1/2, then continuing an additional 100 feet below DA puts you at the same altitude as 100 feet above TDZE; but we can also use this part of the regulation for approaches other than an ILS.

My real life example goes like this: Rwy TDZE is 100 feet MSL, Wx is 200 OVC/1SM in FG, in the dark of night, lowest approach mins are 400-1 for a straight-in LOC. We configure for landing, and slow to Vref+5 as the aircraft descends down to the LOC MDA of 500 MSL (400 AGL). We level off at 500 feet, and drive towards the runway on the LOC at Vref+5. About 30 seconds later the FO reports the moving glow of the SFL in the clouds below and ahead of us. Now, using only the approach lights as a reference I can descend 300 more feet (not 100 feet) down to 200 MSL which is also equivalent to 100 feet above the TDZE. At 200 MSL, we're now below the cloud deck, the threshold lights are identified (not the runway itself), and I can legally land as long as we're still in a position to land and we have the required flight visibility.
Reply