A first - autoland kicks out crosswinds

[Tabs 2,790]

Something for you all to look forward to:I just performed a CATIII autoland in the latest beta with a 17 knot crosswind and watched in utter amazement as the 744 AP kicked the rudder before touchdown to remove the crab angle. I do not believe I've seen this in an FS addon before.

[Guest Robin.B]

Oh My God! That is certainly something to look forward to, since I have never seen this in any add-on either!The Queen seems to be full of surprises :)

[744pilot 0]

I don't beleve it. I need some screenshots before I beleve it. :(It sounds great, that's for sure.

[Guest Babubhai]

Yes we require proof :)

[Guest wesl]

Actually, the freeware VC10 by David Maltby accomplishes this. I am sure that it is just as impressive in the soon to be released 744.Wes

[Guest A32X]

Very cool at what altitude did the PMDG744 "kick out?"During LAND3 shouldn't the autopilot be constantly working the rudder in crosswinds?A video would be very cool especially if release is not imminent.

[lefteris 70]

Dear "A32X",would you please read our forum rules? They very clearly state that you should sign with your real name.Thanks,

[Guest A32X]

My name is Paul

[Guest pierre974]

You shouldn't have told us that...Now I'm craving for it:-bla AWESOME:-yellow1

[Guest teeloo]

As far as I know, on manual landings, pilots tend to wait the "rudder kick" untill touchdown. As you then pivot on the concreet instead of floating over the runway.Is the 744 catIII A/L feature suppose to kick that soon?...?Teeloo

[StevenHPerry 20]

>As far as I know, on manual landings, pilots tend to wait the>"rudder kick" untill touchdown. As you then pivot on the>concreet instead of floating over the runway.>TeelooPerhaps it's all different for multi-million dollar airliners that may have crosswind landing gear (like them B52s!!) but us smaller guys go to great lengths to AVOID touching down without flying dead straight down the runway with zero crab. Landing gear can take all sorts of vertical loads but can snap like a twig under side loads.And it's a lot more comfortable to fly the last 5 seconds with a wing low than it is to be thrown to your left or right when the wheels stick to the runway and veer the plane off to one side.Steve Perry

[Guest wesl]

In most jets, especially larger jets, touchdown in a crab is what is taught. The aircraft will turn and track correctly. Most modern autoland systems will land with a 5 degree crab.From personal experience, it doesn't work well with a Cessna.Wes

[CF104 0]

>In most jets, especially larger jets, touchdown in a crab is>what is taught. The aircraft will turn and track correctly.>Most modern autoland systems will land with a 5 degree crab.>>From personal experience, it doesn't work well with a Cessna.>WesHi Wes,Actually most properly trained airline pilots are trained to do what is called a 'De-Crab During Flare' landing. This landing entails the following--------------------------------------------------------------De-Crab During FlareThe objective of this technique is to maintain wings level throughout theapproach, flare, and touchdown. On final approach, a crab angle is establishedwith wings level to maintain the desired track. Just prior to touchdown whileflaring the airplane, downwind rudder is applied to eliminate the crab and alignthe airplane with the runway centerline.As rudder is applied, the upwind wing sweeps forward developing roll. Holdwings level with simultaneous application of aileron control into the wind. Thetouchdown is made with cross controls and both gear touching downsimultaneously. Throughout the touchdown phase upwind aileron application isutilized to keep the wings level.---------------------------------------------------------------Landing in the crab is very uncomfortable for the passengers, hard on the aircraft and a very lazy procedure. As for autoland systems, during a Cat IIIa,b,c approach, you take what you can get from the AP as long as it's within the max crosswind tolerance. During a Cat I or CatII, the pilot should do the de-crab during flare procedure instead of touching down with crab.This being said, I was recently on a Lufthansa A300 flight into Frankfurt in VFR weather and the PIC landed in the crab with very uncomfortable results. Not exactly a professional landing to say the least.Cheers,JohnBoeing 727/737 & Lockheed C-130/L-100 Mechanichttp://www.precisionmanuals.com/images/forum/ng_driver.jpg