Originally Posted by
CW247
The US understanding of visual approaches speeding up arrivals is a bit flawed. Lining up a stream of visual traffic is no different to lining up a stream of ILS traffic if done properly. This is simply ATC being lazy and passing the buck.
Also, US controllers don't understand that pilots arriving from Europe are doing their approaches in survival mode with very little room for acrobatics. A night visual is not a healthy way to land a widebody given awake times of 16-18 hours.
With the runway spacing at SFO doing visuals increases the arrival capacity substantially. Even at other airports visuals increase arrival rate as it allows for reduced spacing. As far as the SFO approach it’s a charted visual to intercept the ILS. The entire approach can be done on autopilot and is basically exactly the same as flying the instrument version. There is one difference. You have to report the traffic to the parallel runway in sight. If LH feels that difference is unacceptable then they need to evaluate their service to SFO.