Thanks for taking the time on this one folks. Does clear quite a few things up.
About the speed on final, of late we have been getting requests from BA 737's for "170 kts till 4 miles" which 9 times out of 10 we can accommodate (if it is requested with the Intermediate Director, not the Final Dir. Nothing worse than turning something onto final and being told "We are goning to be quick inside 4 DME"!) Some drivers do give us a heads up of "Were going to be fast inside 4 miles" which can really help (going back to the 777 behind a 757 or B146). And 230kts from the stacks is no problem at all, or even 190kts base leg. I'll definately be keeping in mind the 170kts on final approach, but it nice to know what can be asked of you guys in certain situations (Point Seven - BITE ME! *wink*) without making things uncomfortable.
And Rev Doug, about the speed thing, if for whatever reason you have been assigned 220kts/180kts, and you would like a little faster, feel free to ask (As I said, if possible with the Int Dir, loads going on on Fin). But on final approach, if assigned 160kts for what ever reason, an unexpected 170kts can make a difference. I know it's only 10kts difference, but especially with certain wind gradients, it can make a difference in really tight spacing situations. But it's nice to now know what's happening your side of things.
The next point of discussion could be "What happens when A380's start blatting about"?
Thanks again folks.