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Old 27th Nov 2014, 10:16
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Are you suggesting flying below the glideslope?
I think that's actually what he meant.

On an ILS you use the glideslope for vertical guidance. Easy but out of technical necessity the glideslope is a straight (sloped) line leading to a constant descent.

When you do a LOC/DME or VOR/DME approach it is perfectly feasible to have step down altitudes during the approach which let you descend earlier than what's technically possible on an ILS approach. For instance, a normal ILS requires you to be at 2000' AAL at 6 nm out. But a VOR/DME approach may consider it perfectly safe to descend to 1500' at that distance - obviously if terrain allows.

So with a LOC/DME or VOR/DME approach you may well be able to safely descend earlier, indeed below the ILS glidescope, and get into VMC earlier. Whether that really makes a practical difference, I don't know. Plus, ATC will probably assign you the ILS approach out of habit anyway, even if in this particular case a LOC/DME or VOR/DME would be more convenient for you.
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