Originally Posted by
excrab
Why not just select VS and use your brain and the DME to achieve a smooth intercept of glide slope at the same time as the localiser? Just extend the centreline from the glideslipe intercept so the go around will be available in LNAV.
Or is there a good reason to be head down messing with the FMC at 4000 ft / 15 miles from touch down that I've somehow
missed in the last thirty years?
Knew it was a matter of time before I get a policing comment such as this. The problem here isn't that I am looking for an alternative on how to descend without using my FMC but merely trying to understand my aircraft's FMC system more profoundly. And I see nothing wrong with that. There is something I am curious to know, couldn't find a reference to, therefore I asked. The FMC is there to serve a reason and is used to help, and not replace, the pilot; and for it to do so, I need to understand it fully. Again, nothing wrong with that. If you have any input that would help me do so, I'd be eternally grateful.
And to alleviate any worry you might have, I do know how to use the V/S/LVL CHG and DME to adjust my profile during descent. But again, that was not what I was asking.