Pedro,Thank you so much for this great contribution to our enjoyment of the flight this comming sunday. Your post reinforces my decision to select Madiera as the focal point of our first PIC flight of the fall season. Hopefully we will show up in force and give you a real show in return for your participation in the PIC Fourm.And to Stiff, Vulcan, Ian, Mark, and Kiek, thanks guys for adding so much value to the preps for the flight. I am really looking forward to this as it is exactly the type of thing that I am into Flight Simming for. "Grab the stick with both hands" -- ya gotta love it!

Hello Pedro!I am a fan of the approach myself (last year I went to madeira in a 757) It was a great airport and a grea approach. I've mastered the approach now in about any aircraft, but only without winds. with an onshore wind i am never able to judge the final turn right...What a fantastic scenery is that, Madeira 2002!!! When will it be released? and how much is it gonna cost?hope to be there ow and I forgot to mention:on www.flightsim.com there is a 'how to' article about landing at funchal. there are a couple of charts too (wich are very good)Groetjes, :-beerchugDiederik Krauwer - EHAM

BTW I am going to madeira again this fall. when is the new terminal ready?Groetjes, :-beerchugDiederik Krauwer - EHAM

Warming up the stick hands ;-)

Warming up stick hands as Pedro just cleared me direct FUNOR on Thursday 9/5 at 0050Z - hehe this should be fun.Ian.

Where the H&)) you been boy? Been looking for you on line for over a week. One more day and you get the return favor on the "Paging Mike Bevington" post.

bump

Hello, On the PSS forum, someone has asked me to make comments about the airport at Funchal Madiera. I am an Airbus type rated pilot so I would not even try to comment about the Boeing side of life at this airport! I regularly visit this place and it is to be treated with respectSuffice to state that the Portugese Authorities state that only qualified type rated CAPTAINs (not First Officers) are authorised to carry out the landing and take off from this airport such is the difficulties of operation from here. You frequently see mentioned in the profesional pilots chat net about horlics and landings that went wrong here! The most recent I recall was to an Airtours A321 which in landing on runway 05 at 50 ft over the threshold lost lift and ended up landing hard on its tail before slamming down onto its main undercarriage. I saw the resulting sad looking aircraft and the rear seats were all dislodged to some degree from their anchorage. Fortunatley no one hurt.This airport has been the subject of major works recently and the runway is now 05/23. It has been lengthened significantly to accomodate 757 and I think the 767 can now use it but not sure about that one. The 320 family can all use it. There is NO ILS at this airport - all approaches are visual beyond the "FUN" VOR or NDB and very strict rules apply. Indeed, if you exceed the limitations (airport and weather) then you, as the pilot, are banned from going there again and a second offence by that operator gets that operator banned permanently from that airport. During the re alignment of the runways, a hotel which infringed the approach path to runway 23 was spectacularly dynamited!My airline produces a separate brief for the pilot which lists all the comments that others have made using this airport and it is compulsory reading before the approach gets made. Type of info would be turbulence to be expected with the wind from a particular direction. On the way out to this airport from the UK or Germany the pilot would be picking up the VOLMET from LISBON early. Such is the importance of it that this VOLMET has powerful relay transmitters to ensure its clear reception. (126.4) On this volmet will be the information for Madiera and the nearby island of Porto Santo. The info will not just give the Madiera weather but also the separate winds for ROSARIO, threshold 05 and threshold 23. You would be amazed just how different these all can be just to add to the work load. Always carry spare fuel for Tenerife or any one of the Canary Islands because the nearby Porto Santo airport only has capacity for 6 aircraft and then it closes! If you need to divert for any reason and thats a much higher probality than normal then once Porto Santo bulks out you are on your way to the Canaries!If the wind is more than 15kts gusts 25 between 300 clockwise to 020 or 20kts gusts 30 between 200 anticlockwise to 120 then landings are prohibited on 05.Approaches by night are prohibited (for my airline - I think the national Portugese Airline TAP are allowed to do it). Gelo and Rosario are visual points that are easily seen. There is a curved lighting system lead in system to assist the approach into 05. Note that on the visual approach to 05, you will NOT fly lower than 1140ft QNH downwind outbound from the "FUN" VOR, 850 ft at GELO and 450 ft at ROSARIO.For the take off from either runway, use TOGA thrust only and BEFORE 100ft AGL you MUST start a turn away from land. Its no use relying on automatics here, its real pilot ##### so to speak! Not sure about Boeing but if your doing this in the Airbus think carefully about how you are going to set up your FCU and MCDU for the departures.During the landing, if you fail to get a touch down on the correct fixed distance markers or the speed is above Vapp + 5 then GO AROUND! This runway is just like an aircraft carrier and you will gracefully dissapear off the end into the sea - no Martin Baker let downs to help you here!There are many pitfalls to going here and its the guy who has planned and briefed this one carefully and is clear in his mind exactly what is required and when who will do it safely. Finally remember that ATC have NO jursidiction to stop you doing the approach, and landing the final decision and responsiblity lies with the Captain of the aircraft but they are instructed to report all violations of limits and instructions immediately.Have fun! and fly safely.RegardsPP

GREAT post Captain. Thank you for all of the additional real world information. We are sure to have a good time on sunday afternoon.

Hmmm... remember that feeling when you were just about to take your driving test ? ..... :-hah