Flight Training Central
JANUARY 10, 2025
Descent planning is a critical yet often overlooked aspect of managing your flight. And if not planned properly, a poorly executed descent can present challenges and unnecessary risks when transitioning to an approach or the traffic pattern. Finally, you can enable messages to alert you as to when to begin the descent.
AV Web
MAY 22, 2024
Presumably, the pilot was flying on an instrument flight plan, as the flight maintained a cruise altitude of 7,000 feet (and ADS-B groundspeed of 125 to 130 knots) until about 12:53 p.m. Radar contact was lost some 3,500 feet lower, airspeed and rate of descent not known, but presumably at a significant increase.
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Air Facts
APRIL 29, 2024
At the current groundspeed, I believed it shouldn’t be of much concern unless the cell began producing lightning. I requested a descent from 6,000’ down to 4,000’ and was denied due to traffic. I was soon cleared to descend to 4,000’ and entered IMC during the descent while I located the approach chart to brief.
AV Web
MAY 22, 2024
Presumably, the pilot was flying on an instrument flight plan, as the flight maintained a cruise altitude of 7,000 feet (and ADS-B groundspeed of 125 to 130 knots) until about 12:53 pm local time, roughly three hours into the flight. The pilot’s adult twin son and daughter were on board and also died in the tragic crash.
Air Facts
MAY 10, 2024
Perhaps just prior to the start of descent could be the optimum time–certainly completed no later than commencement of approach. Recall that we must remain at or above MDA until we are in a normal position to perform a normal rate of descent to landing. Will the vertical speed necessary comply with required descent criteria?
Plane and Pilot
SEPTEMBER 4, 2024
The pilot flew into a gap between ridgelines and performed a series of rapid climbs, turns, and descents. Three reversals were recorded, with climb and descent rates of over 10,000 feet per minute. The last ADS-B flight data point has the airplane at about 2,519 feet msl with a groundspeed of only 48 knots.
Plane and Pilot
NOVEMBER 27, 2024
Flight idle and nose down, which normally produced a 2,000-3,000-feet descent rate, resulted in a 2,000-feet-per-minute climb. We continued our descent into Great Falls, leaving “the wave” behind and above. I said to my first officer, “Ask for lower. We don’t want to be caught in those.” Horizon 253 descend, maintain one two thousand.”
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