I used to land (mostly A359) all the time with full flaps deployed and a 138 - 140kt IAS landing speed.
Now I saw a video on YouTube where a real life Airbus pilot said, in dense populated city region airport approaches they are asked to use only flaps 3 and not full flaps, because it makes less noise and due to less drag also the engines are running at lower rpm reducing the noise level even more and last but not least also fuel consumption.
This pilot was giving special hints and tips for sim flyers and he continues, that this way, your speed is slightly higher, but as well the nose is pitched up more as well as the final flaring, which gives a much more realistic landing look and characteristics.
Which flap settings do you use for wide body aircraft landings?
This is normal when asked by ATC in order to sequence high flow of trafic in those aiports, they are asked to keep high speed approach above 145kts sometimes
So no need to land with less flaps unless you are still above MLW (Max Landing Weight) or for very windy conditions +20 kts
Here is a website which offers you Takeoff and Landing specifications for each aircraft, according to their airplane load. Has been my go-to for my flights for months now, this is extremely useful for realism.
Thank you, I know those by heart. There is even a little sign in the cockpit which I looked at the beginning often, until i learned them.
My initial post was about not to use full flaps above cities because they create quite some noise by wind turbulences and pilots are asked to use F3 instead. Also the drag is lower, so the engines are also less noisy .
Well, I’ve gathered this information from real-world pilots, so here it goes.
For the A330/A359:
1. Flaps 1 and Full extend at 205 knots (out 15 nautical miles from the TDZ).
2. Flaps 2 then gear down at 185 knots (upon receiving 2500-foot callout).
3. Sequentially select flaps 3 and then flaps full while reducing to Vapp.
Note: Flaps at “XXX” speed mean you should slow down to this speed before extending them. For example, beyond 15 nautical miles, you’d be between 220 and 240 knots. Simply slow down when you enter 15 nautical miles of the traffic control zone and continue until fully stabilised at or above 1500 feet.
Now for the B777/B787 Series:
1. Slow down to 220 knots and extend F1 (15 nautical miles/ on downwind).
2. Slow down to 180 knots and extend F5 (after F1/before entering BASE).
3. Gear down first, then flap 20 (upon hearing the 2500-foot callout).
4. Slow down to Vapp and select landing flap (25/30).
I hope this helps you and everyone else. While the approach energy for most flights is designed to minimize time, events congestion and the incredible pilots in IF often force us to slow down earlier than planned. You’d be surprised how many flights in real life are traveling at 240 knots or more just 18-25 nautical miles from the touchdown zone.
Yes, that’s the point. I know those airspeeds are the upper limits, but before I was always landing full flaps at 138kt. Now I feel F3 at 145kt is much better, unless I have MLW or it’s quite windy like mentioned by @Airborne971
I feel it when it gets shaky and unstable with too low flap settings.
I always use full flaps on airliners which is pretty much what I always use and I slow down to about 140 knots IAS or generally at the speed that the AoA is on a nice angle meaning that my aircraft doesn’t look like it’s nose diving or looks like it’s climbing but pretty much realistically, and where I can have a stable approach with no many inputs and throttle input changes being made
Simbrief or FlightSmart obviously always recommend full flaps, but as @Airborne971 mentions and also that real life Airbus pilot on YouTube (am I allowed to post the video link here although it’s not my video?) say, it is often recommended to not use full flaps, either for a faster approach and landing speed and to reduce noise over dense populated cities.
Sure, I cannot land an A359 with 40% load at 135kt and F3 setting. But that said, will increase my landing speed to 145kt IAS and it lands well, which I have tested. Nose is pitched up a little higher, my needed runway length is longer. That’s what obviously is also done in real life, so
Thank you.
often force us to slow down earlier than planned. You’d be surprised how many flights in real life are traveling at 240 knots or more just 18-25 nautical miles from the touchdown zone.