EMA

[creamegg]

Went there tonight to watch the aircraft and most of them ended up delayed,maybe due to weather?, first of all went to aeropark, which was a bit disappointing as you couldnt actually see the runway because of the grassy hill! Then went to the park at the end of the runway where someone had suggested and although no good for seeing planes land it was fascinating seeing them go overhead.

I did notice that the different planes all started at different points of the runway, some would start right at the end, some only half way, is this just to do with the ability of the plane and how quickly it can take off? I presumed all flights started and used the whole runway.

[Notso Fantastic]

If you can take off shorter than the end, you may taxi full length if for some reason you won't be allowed to take off immediately (ATC slot time, queue, special weather). Sometimes your take-off performance calculations tables are missing for intersection take-offs and you can only go full length. Sometimes pilots will only use full length if available out of personal preference. The longer the take-off run available, the lower the power you can use increasing engine life. Nowadays heavy engine maintenance is very often done 'on condition' which means leave it there on the wing until something goes wrong, so nursing the engines can increase lifespan. If you are running late, sometimes you want to get airborne ASAP, so a shorter take-off is preferable. It's largely down to the pilot on the day.

[creamegg]

oh right, okay thankyou for that xxx