The battle of butter vs grease has raged tirelessly here on the IFC for years. Many wars fought, many topics closed, and numerous friendships destroyed. With such high stakes, we must ask the question; what’s the difference between the two? This post is an in depth analysis of butter and grease, using the wonderful Citation X as a test dummy, and Juneau as our playing field. First, we will conduct a thorough analysis of butter to determine what the benefits and drawbacks may be.
The first step to achieving butter is to set up a smooth and calculated approach, as demonstrated.
As you approach short final, you want to ensure you are correctly lined up with your intended runway, and ensure you are maintaining a reasonable speed and rate of descent, as demonstrated in step two.
During step three, you will initiate a snall flare to ensure maximum butter. Make sure touchdown occurs at a speed of around 110-125kts. Congratulations, you have achieved butter!
What are the main takeaways from our analysis of butter?
While butter can be satisfying when conducted, it is often a slow and tedious process that requires lots of determination, focus, patience, and your favorite snack, depending on how many calories you burned. For those who are unwilling to put in the energy to reap the reward, there is another option.
Introducing Grease
Grease is an alternative method of touchdown. With a strong fan base, it has the support to survive, but do the in-flight benefits outweigh those of butter’s?
Step one is quite similar to that of butter’s, which is to set up your approach. Ensure you are at a reasonable altitude and speed, which will be essential to properly completing the following steps.
Step two is where grease begins to differ from butter. You’ll want to ensure you are lined up with the runway from a greater distance than you would be with butter. This may require a slight change in altitude.
As you approach short final, your speed will most likely be a little higher than the speed nessasary for butter. Expect around 300-400kts. Adjust allignment to the runway accordingly.
The final step to greasing your multi-million dollar jet is to get it on the ground. You’ll want to maintain a low rate of descent as your plane touches down to minimize the damage that may or may not occur. Congratulations, you have achieved grease!
What can we conclude?
After a professional and detailed analysis of both butter and grease, it’s clear that while butter is likely the more rewarding of the two landings, grease is perfect if you don’t have the time or energy to commit to butter.
