Sorry boys, didn't mean to be a beeyatch last night, but when I read,
"The problem is thus: A Boeing 777-300 at max landing weight ( which is what we often arrive at ) has a min clean speed of 229 knots; flaps 5 speed of 189 knots; and flaps 15/20 speed of 169 knots."
I just kinda lost it... U can imagine all us controllers this morning by the water cooler (we can actually afford one of those) saying "Awww poor guy had to take out landing gear". But know this, we (ATC) do kinda understand what you guys have to go thru, and MOST of us, try to give reasonable clearances, with the expectation that if you can't do it, you'll tell us.
I came from YVR, where we had 170 to 4 miles, and it worked like a peach, but it was at an airport that was designed to handle more then 3 jets and a helicopter at any given time. Coming here was definitely my version of S&M. DXB is not able to handle any moderate levels of traffic right now, when it gets busy, we have to bring everything to a grinding halt, we have no choice.
When it's busy, and we should be getting more expeditious, all our procedures handcuff us. If someone up in mgmtville said something like "no departures for the next 60 minutes" we could then open up director, and pack arrivals in 3 - 4 miles apart and completely eliminate the need for UAE to hold most of u guys. But the second you make the tower have to blend in the 8 guys taxiing for departure, that's it, it becomes a gong show... and it happens every night, all night.
The worst part of it all, is when you try to be expeditious, if you have any sort of screw up, you're given a minimum 6 day "Walk in Zabeel Park" (a.k.a "Retraining"). TPilot, Imagine u do 169 kts instead of 160 and when u park your 777-300 there's someone with a clipboard waiting, who has been watching u, and he escorts u for your 60 lashings in front of all your friends.
Yup, there are so many different people here with good, valid, workable ideas, but it makes no difference...
So what can I personally do? I will try to give 9 miles, for u 777 boys, to do 170 to 4, but know that there will be times where I can't. I successfully gave a hold at the SHJ VOR to a GXA until the weather in SHJ cleared this morning, and he almost did it, so I now believe I can do anything in this world... even land my 777 at DXB on Simulator 95, while ling ling and Zsa Zsa ask me where I got that crazy captians hat...
See ya!