Doors to Automatic, we flew into Leeds Bradford on Monday and I enjoyed it so much I wrote this little account :-
'I looked at the METARS for a few UK airfields this morning and felt pretty pleased that I wasn't flying in Scotland or the North of England today. Fortunately for me I was rostered for a night mail run to Liverpool, and the low was forecast to move away, and the wind drop by late evening.
Then ops rang with a change of plan, a 'go-now' charter. We were to position. .to Leeds Bradford and fly passengers to Glasgow, Edinburgh, and back to LBA.. .******.
Before top of descent for LBA the F.O. got the ATIS which was pretty much as forecast, with the wind from 250 degrees 29 gusting 43 knots, cloud just above circling MDA and the viz a few km in rain. The main Rwy 32 had ILS but our wet runway crosswind limit for landing is 30 kts so I decided I would take the short cross Rwy 27 if performance allowed. Our performance manual. .didn't have Rwy 27 data so I quickly consulted the Flight Crew Operating Manual and determined that our appropriately factored Landing Distance. .Required was within the Rwy 27 Landing Distance available - about 950m. I briefed for an approach to Rwy 32 to break right and circle to land Rwy 27, but then accepted ATC's better offer of an SRA to 27.
The approach was the roughest I've known and the gusts to forty odd knots, plus being in the lee of high ground, made it a bit of a challenge. As we got lower I had to make bigger and harsher control inputs to stay positioned as the turbulence and windshear got worse. I carried more speed over the threshold than I intended so she was inclined to float, not good on a short. .wet runway, and a gust caused us to yaw as we crossed the threshold. Both problems were cured by just flying her onto the ground, the yaw being wiped off as the mains bit into the wet tarmac and the CofG continued straight ahead. Such conditions are no time for finesse, you just have to treat her harshly and make sure she doesn't get away from you. We stopped very quickly. .in the headwind and were marshalled to park on stand into wind.
After getting performance data for a Rwy 27 departure faxed to us, and checking that the winds in Scotland had dropped as forecast, we set off for Glasgow. By the time we arrived the winds had dropped, but had left their mark - both NDB's and the glideslope were out of action after the storms.'
And as if the winds weren't bad enough, our handlers didn't think we'd get in so they didn't order us any crew meals . . <img src="eek.gif" border="0">
THAI TUN