Favourite take-offs and landings

[samh004]

I'd say ZQN too...

I'd tried to upload this photo the other day but had issues. I think it accurately shows how a landing at ZQN could be exciting.




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[travelislife]

I have enjoyed the old hong kong airport, queenstown and my most recent favourite is into and out of Paro, Bhutan. Down through the valley looking out into the rehistoric farming homes, bank over the ridge and drop down fast on to the runway and pull up quickly before the next ridge right in front!

 

[Sprucegoose]

I have enjoyed the old hong kong airport, queenstown and my most recent favourite is into and out of Paro, Bhutan. Down through the valley looking out into the rehistoric farming homes, bank over the ridge and drop down fast on to the runway and pull up quickly before the next ridge right in front!

I sat next to a CX Captains wife once, she mentioned Colombo was a airport that required special training.

anyone know if this is the case?

 

[NM]

Favourite takeoff - BNE on the flight deck of QF 744 heading to AKL (managed this a few times)

Favourite landings - LAX on the flight deck of QF 744 sitting behind the lenegdary Sandy Howard, LHR on the flight deck of a BA 777, and a special memory into MEL on QF767 sitting directly behond JB747.

Alas none of these experiences will be repeated.

 

[docjames]

Into SYD from the flight deck of an A300 was pretty good (and on the east-west runway iirc).

 

[Groundfeeder]

Had the priviledge of jump seat over the reef and into Cairns on QF B734 some time back.

CNS RWY15 departures always a thrill for the left turn at 500'.

 

[Stephen65]

My father flew Twin Otters in PNG when I was a child and I sometimes got to accompany him in the jumpseat. There were some spectacular landings on tiny strips in the mountains.

 

[wilco]

My own!!!!

 

[straitman]

My favourite takeoff was one of my own also.

I was taking off from Flounder platform in Bass Strait in a very heavy S76 Helicopter. As we went over the edge of the helideck I looked down and saw an extremely large humpback whale rubbing up against one of the platform legs.

This still sticks in my mind many years later.

 

[jb747]

Any take off that ends uneventfully is always good.

Kai Tak was always fun. It was actually quite simple, as long as you'd had a think about it beforehand. Most of the better bits of video portray aircraft that have been landed after an approach on which they were allowed to go downwind of the runway during the turn. Basically, the IGS approach ended at about 675'. At that point you had just over two miles to run, and 47 degrees to turn. Continue straight ahead until you crossed the first lighting cross bar (on the ground), at which point you started a 15 degree angle of bank turn, whilst ensuring the sink rate stayed exactly the same. You should roll out at about 200 feet, nicely in the slot. (The numbers might not be quite right, but they're close, and it was quite a while ago).

If there was a crosswind from the left (rare), then nobody had any problems. But, if it was from the other side, and the technique described above was used, then you'd end up well downwind, with neither height nor distance available to fix it.

Basically, with the crosswind (from the right) you turned at the normal spot, but simply used more bank. And you had to remember NOT to stop the turn when you were pointing at the runway, but to continue until you were on a heading that correctly laid off the drift. Normally took a percent or two more power as well, but you'd end up in that same 200' spot.

The most common errors that I recall seeing were:
a) not continuing the turn until the track was correct
b) not using an appropriate angle of bank
c) turning too EARLY
d) not keeping the rate of descent constant in the turn...generally placing the aircraft high
d) not being a man and giving up if you'd gotten it wrong.

 

[Sprucegoose]

JB,

did you ever abort at Kai Tak?

I lived there for five years and always loved flying back into the place.

 

[jb747]

did you ever abort at Kai Tak?

Abort? That's a take off event...only abort I've ever done was in Darwin.

Go around...not from Kai Tak, but I've been around from the new place a couple of times. If anything, it's worse than KT.

 

[bossreggie]

I still LOVE landing at LHR. It is an emotional thing to me and it always will be.

I remember my first visit as a "grown up". I was 18 and I flew SYD - MEL - PER Ansett. PER - KUL - DXB - CDG - LHR Malaysian. It was my first trip to Europe alone. I was in Y and at the time it seemed OK.

When we flew over the White Cliffs of Dover I had tears well up in my eyes. Upon landing at LHR when the CSM said "Ladies and Gentlemen welcome to London Heathrow" I did actually cry.

Still to this day. EVERY time I land at Heathrow I remember that day. It brings me to a place in my life in which everything seemed perfect.

Nowadays my travel has become a lot more frequent and most take offs and landings I don't even look out the window.

I do also like the landing at the London Heliport at Battersea. It makes the journey into the city a lot more bearable than sitting in traffic.

 

[Happy Trails]

Maybe not a favourite but the most unusual for me was in a flying boat at Varanus Island, back when it was operated by Bond Petroleum. It landed in the water then lowered the wheels to ascend a ramp on the beach.
It was a strange sensation to have water lapping up against the cabin windows.

 

[JohnK]

My favourite take-off is one that starts my holiday and my favourite landing is one at my holiday destination.

Some of the interesting take-offs and landings I have experienced are at WLG and ZQN.

My favourite though is still SYD, I don't know what it is but the Harbour City can provide some great views on both take-off and landing, and not too far behind are ATH, SIN, BKK and HKG. All of the above have some great scenery surrounding the airport(s) which I thoroughly enjoy everytime I visit.

 

[Tortuga]

Las Palmas in the Gran Canaries, flown there a few times now.. Very very windy approach always, if it wasn't obvious in the plane you only have to look out the window and see multiple wind turbines.. The cool thing about the approach is I get to see the vessel I work on from above, then I get depressed again when I realise I am going back to work :evil::evil:

 

[Sprucegoose]

Abort? That's a take off event...only abort I've ever done was in Darwin.

Go around...not from Kai Tak, but I've been around from the new place a couple of times. If anything, it's worse than KT.

There was a fear, during construction that it attracts windshear. Has that been your experience?

 

[jb747]

There was a fear, during construction that it attracts windshear. Has that been your experience?

If the wind is from the wrong direction, there can be very bad shear, even with quite light winds.

 

[Balwyn3103]

Las Palmas in the Gran Canaries, flown there a few times now.. Very very windy approach always, if it wasn't obvious in the plane you only have to look out the window and see multiple wind turbines.. The cool thing about the approach is I get to see the vessel I work on from above, then I get depressed again when I realise I am going back to work :evil::evil:

Same at Terceira in the Azores, a bit further out into the Atlantic. The winds can be powerful. One time the plane returned to Lisbon (don't know why it didn't hop over to San Miguel-guess the winds were as bad there) because a landing was impossible