Jumbo in Male??

[Taildragger67]

Hello chaps/chapettes,

Just wondering - could a 747 (of any type other than an SP) get into/out of Male (Maldives) fully loaded?

I think it's got about 9000' of tar but could it handle the weight? Are the turnarounds big enough? (I guess VS manage at ANU!!) Are there suitable facilities eg. stairs & tug?

Thanks

[VIKING9]

MLE can handle a B747. The PCN is sufficient for a full load but I'm not sure of the range limitations. There are covered stairs and suitable tugs for towing, although the ramp is generally a self-manoeuvring area. The terminal facilities are also sufficient to handle this aircraft. B777's and A340's are often in MLE.

[Taildragger67]

Thanks people

Yes I've been in/out in A330s and am aware that Sri Lankan operate an A340 direct LHR; SQ operate 777s to/from SIN (although they wouldn't be full for such a short run).

Cheers

[seacue]

Not Male, but doesn't someone run 747s nonstop from Sint Maarten SXM to Europe. The runway length at SXM is about 7500' with a thousand-foot hill about one-runway-length straight ahead. Everyone does a 90-deg turn out over the sea just after takeoff.

There is water at both ends of the SXM runway - remember the many famous landing pictures.
http://www.airliners.net/open.file/156430/M/
And better, the whole runway and hill beyond it...
http://www.airliners.net/open.file/131683/M/

[edited to fix URLs]

[international hog driver]

MAS used to have cargo 747s use MLE as a tech stop.

SQ sent 747s when the 310's went tech or they had overbookings from the Japanese market.

I have seen the JSDF B744 pop in and out a couple times.

So no problems really. Taking off south bound nothing to hit until antarctica. North bound you had to dodgeClub Med & Full Moon when turning right and Bandos when going left.

AHHH those were the days:ok:

[Taildragger67]

Seacue -

Good find on the SXP D10 flight deck shot.

Reminded me of St Thomas, US Virgin Islands. I will now always be a fan of the person who designed the 767's brakes. That's one diddy strip.

Bit butterflies-in-stomach on departure as well - short strip with a dirty great hill at the end.

http://www.airliners.net/open.file/023696/M/

[Taildragger67]

Actually this pretty well answers the question:

http://www.airliners.net/open.file/282980/M/

Good ol' Airliners.net!!

[robinmcg1]

Yes, Male can handle B747's but it is not a place I liked to go operationally (back in the late 1980's), especially when tankering fuel in to max landing weight.
Black hole night approach with cross winds and showers do not make for a comfortable operation at heavy weights. Hot brakes were common and delays for cooling not infrequent.
The biggest worry was how they would cope with a major accident. There are no medical or other adequate emergency facilities on the island - the nearest is the capital Male itself which is a boat ride away: as are all resorts and facilities. Imagine transferring hundreds of injured people by small boats to hospital. Having said that, it certainly is a great place to relax.