PMDG 737 0.00.35
INTRODUCTION
For Simulator Use Only DO NOT DUPLICATE NOVEMBER 2022
Speed Brake (In)Effictiveness:
You will probably find the speed brake to be very ineffective. Despite
Boeing’s "The aircraft has a powerful speedbrake installed" (quote from
the FCTM) this is not quite so.
The speed brake, especially at speeds slower than 250kt, is more of a
massage of your back than an actual aid to slow down and expedite the
descend.
At the minimum clean speed it adds as little as 300fpm to your rate of
descend. Therefore careful energy management is required in order to
get your 737 down.
If you really need to get down: Don't increase speed, but reduce it and get
your flaps out. Those will greatly help with the descend.
Recommended settings to be used are:
- 220kt, Flaps 5, full speed brake
- 180kt, Flaps 10, full speed brake
NOTE: Flaps 10 can greatly help the rate of descend because it fully
extends the leading edge flaps. However: This setting only makes sense
when NOT flying a short field performance aircraft!
The Short Field Performance package will make the leading edge flaps
extend fully only with landing flap settings and therefore SFP aircraft are
much harder to slow down.
Trouble keeping your speed in VNAV? Try a DCT:
The 737's VNAV path is very dependant on correct wind entry.
Since forecast winds in the flightplan (and even in automated uplinks) in
real life as well as in the simulator are rarely exactly what you'll actually
see in the descend, there will necessarily be a mismatch between the
VNAV calculated energy management and the actual energy the aircraft
has at a certain point.
However there's a feature in the 737 FMC that can help you out:
To Next Page
Loading...