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Two Easy Rules of Thumb For Calculating a Three Degree Glide Slope

September 18, 2017

Peter Singhatey Flying, Just love flying, sport Flying, Just love flying, Madox Air Sports, peter singhateh, Peter Singhatey Leave a comment

Source: Two Easy Rules-of-Thumb For Calculating a Three-Degree Glide Slope | Boldmethod (Thanks to boldmethod for sharing and keeping us safe)

Two Easy Rules-of-Thumb For Calculating a Three-Degree Glide Slope

Have you ever found yourself chasing the glideslope on an ILS approach? There’s an easier way to do it.Groundspeed has a significant effect on descent rate, and there’s a formula you can use to ballpark your feet per minute (FPM) descent, even before you get on glideslope.

One of the most important parts of instrument flying is getting ahead of the airplane. The following formulas are a great way to do just that. In many glass cockpit aircraft, wind vectors and ground track diamonds mean you’ll have a easily visible references to use. GPS groundspeed will make the following equations extremely easy to use…

Boldmethod

Option 1: Multiply Your Groundspeed By 5

If you’re flying your aircraft on a roughly 3 degree glideslope, try multiplying your groundspeed by 5 to estimate your descent rate. The result will be a FPM value for descent that you should target. As you capture the glideslope, make adjustments as necessary.

Option 2: Divide Ground speed In Half, Add “0”

Divide your ground speed in half, add a zero to the end, and you’ll have an approximate FPM of descent. This is another easy way to target an initial descent rate for a 3-degree precision approach, or even a VFR descent into an airport.

Both formulas leave you with the same result. Choosing which formula to use comes down to which mental math you’re more comfortable with.

How Wind Affects Descent Rate

A tailwind on final will result in a higher groundspeed, thus requiring a higher descent rate to maintain glideslope. The opposite is true for headwinds. Let’s take a look at a few examples:

Example 1: Headwind of 25 Knots, Final Approach Speed of 100 Knots Indicated Airspeed.

Example 2: Tailwind of 25 Knots, Final Approach Speed of 100 Knots.

Useful For More Than Just ILS Approaches

Looking for a good way to plan out your 3 degree glideslope? These formulas are great references for LPV approaches, LNAV+V, or even long VFR straight in approaches.

gc232

Have you used these formulas before? Tell us how you use them in the comments below.

Why Do Your Wings Have Dihedral? | Boldmethod

May 19, 2017

Peter Singhatey Aviation, Flying, Microlight Aircraft, sport "feel the freedom" gambia, Just love flying, Madox Airsports Gambia Ltd., peter singhateh, Peter Singhatey Leave a comment

Why Do Your Wings Have Dihedral? – Bothmethod

If you look closely at the wings on most aircraft, they’re tilted up slightly. Why would they ever do that? It’s not because you pulled too many Gs on your last flight. It’s because of a design feature called dihedral.
primary
First Off, What’s Dihedral?
Dihedral sounds like one of those words you cringed at in math class, but it’s actually pretty simple. Dihedral is the upward angle your aircraft’s wings. Here’s a great example of wing dihedral on a Boeing 777:

Why Do You Need Dihedral?

It all comes down to stability. If you didn’t have dihedral, you’d spend more time keeping your wings level. Here’s why:

dihedral-stability
When you bank an airplane, the lift vector tilts in the same direction as the bank. And when that happens, your airplane starts slipping in the same direction, in this case, to the right.

The problem is, if you have a straight-wing aircraft, there’s no force that will bring the airplane back to wings-level flight without you intervening. And while that may be good for an aerobatic aircraft or fighter jet, it’s not something you want in your general aviation aircraft or airliner.
How Dihedral Fixes The Problem

When you add dihedral, you add lateral stability when your aircraft rolls left or right. Here’s how it works: let’s say you’re flying along and you accidentally bump your controls, rolling your plane to the right. When your wings have dihedral, two things happen:

1) First, your airplane starts slipping to the right. That means the relative wind is no longer approaching directly head-on to the aircraft, and instead is approaching slightly from the right. This means that there is a component of the relative wind that is acting inboard against the right wing.
dihedral-overhead
2) Second, because the relative wind has the inboard component, and because the wings are tilted up slightly, a portion of the the relative wind strikes the underside of the low wing, pushing it back up toward wings level. What’s really happening here is the low wing is flying at a higher AOA, and producing slightly more lift.
dihedral-slip-rear
The more dihedral your aircraft has, the more pronounced the effect becomes. But for most aircraft, they only have a few degrees of dihedral, which is just enough to return your wings to level during small disturbances, like turbulence, or bumping your flight controls in the cockpit.
It’s Not All Good News: Dihedral Comes At A Cost

Dihedral isn’t always good, and like almost every design factor, it comes with a cost. In this case, there are two costs: increased drag, and decreased roll rate….

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Source: Why Do Your Wings Have Dihedral? | Boldmethod

The 7 Hardest Parts About Becoming A Private Pilot

February 12, 2017

Peter Singhatey Aviation, Flying, Just love flying, Microlight Aircraft, sport Gambia, Just love flying, Madox Airsports, madox microlights, peter singhateh, Peter Singhatey, Pilot 3 Comments

Everyone knows that crosswind landings are usually challenging for student pilots. But beyond landings (and money!), there’s a lot about learning to fly that can be pretty tough. Here’s what you should be ready for.

The 7 Hardest Parts About Becoming A Private Pilot

By Swayne Martin

1) Aircraft Systems
One of the toughest topics for private pilot students is aircraft systems. As less and less people grow up working on cars or around machinery, there’s diminishing knowledge behind what makes that engine turn.Want to know more about the systems and equipment in your aircraft? Dig into your POH and read section 7. Better yet, find a local A&P at your airport and have them walk you through a few systems with the cowling off. Getting hands-on with the equipment behind closed panels is a great way to learn how your airplane flies.

2) The National Airspace System
It’s more than identifying lines of airspace on a sectional chart. You’ll need to know what weather minimums exist at different altitudes (day and night), what your equipment requirements are, and what your communication requirements are.
We can help – give our National Airspace System course a try.

3) Learning Regulations
There are hundreds of FAA Regulations that govern how, where, and when you can fly. Some of them can be pretty confusing. As a student pilot, you’re just as responsible for adhering to the FARs as any fully certificated pilot. Keep yourself out of trouble and learn those regs!

4) Aerodynamics
A huge part of learning to fly is understanding the physics behind how it all works. But how can a strong foundation of aerodynamics save your life? One simple example is the lift to drag ratio for your airplane. At L/D max, or the best lift to drag ratio, you’ll find an approximate best glide speed.

5) Decoding Textual Weather
Whether it’s a METAR or PIREP, it’s your responsibility as a pilot to maintain your skills for decoding textual weather.
Need a refresher? Give our Aviation Weather Products course a try.

6) “Radio Talk”
Learning how to actively listen for your callsign in busy airspace with dozens of airplanes on-frequency is tough. Adding that to learning the correct verbiage provides quite the task for brand new student pilots. Here are some things you shouldn’t say over the radio.

7) Getting Into “School Mode”
First and foremost, getting your brain into a “school mode” can be tough, especially if you haven’t sat in a formal classroom setting in years. Learning to fly is undoubtedly fun, but there’s also a lot of work outside the cockpit.

Source: The 7 Hardest Parts About Becoming A Private Pilot | Boldmethod

Sunshine and proposals at finishing line on record day – Independent.ie

November 1, 2016

Peter Singhatey Health, sport Dublin Marathon, Gambia, Ireland, Love Running, People & Society, peter singhateh, Peter Singhatey Leave a comment

A view of the start of the Dublin Marathon A view of the Dublin Marathon as runners make there way down Fitzwilliam Street Upper

A view of the Dublin Marathon as runners make there way down Fitzwilliam Street Upper

Peter Joseph Singhatey, from Dublin, gets some help at the end. Photos: Damien Eagers

Under glorious blue skies, 19,500 runners took advantage of Ireland’s Indian summer yesterday to compete in the Dublin City Marathon.

Now the fourth largest marathon in Europe, a record number of runners wound their way through the capital, with approximately 17,000 crossing the finishing line at Merrion Square.

Exhausted runners were given a hero’s welcome by family, friends and supporters at the finish line and were presented with a special medal commemorating the centenary of the 1916 Rising and the 37th annual run.

Among the competitors, aged between 18 and 86, it was a triumvirate of Ethiopians who crossed the finish line in record time.

Watch: See any familiar faces? Thousands hit capital for Dublin City Marathon

Source: Sunshine and proposals at finishing line on record day – Independent.ie