Recently I saw a video of which a 737 landed in Moscow. In the video the pilots were flying on HPA which is flying on QNH if I'm not wrong, and they're LAND ALT was set to 600 feet. When they were on the ground the altimeter also read approximately 600 feet.

 

So my question is: Why is that? I thought that during QFE operations (like it is in Russia) the LAND ALT should be set to 0, and the altimeter would be set so that it would display 0 feet while on the ground?

Hi there,

 

I don't know which airline this was, but at least the Big Airline does not permit QFE operations (it is, amongst other things, incompatible with baro VNAV procedures which will always be coded in the FMS database as feet QNH).

 

As such, although clearances will be given by the controller in metres QFE, QNH will be set on the altimeter and the LIDO approach charts have conversion tables from metres QFE to feet QNH.

 

Incidentally, the use of hPa does not in itself imply QNH -- it is just a unit of pressure (vs inches of mercury which are used in the USA/North America).