Gliding approach Stockholm Arlanda

[togsdragracing]

Is it just SAS who make gliding approaches? I flew in to ARN today and during the flight read about the gliding approach, how good it is for the environment etc. Of course having read about it I then noticed just how quiet the final approach was although the plane (737 with winglets) seemed to be thrown around a lot in the last thirty seconds or so - probably coincidence.

A quick net search on SAS gliding aproaches would tend to indicate that SAS at least have been doing it for some years although today was the first time I had ever read about it and it's a moot point whether I would have noticed anything had I not read about it.

Is this common practice?

As an aside we were a bit late departing LHR because, I quote the Captain, "We have had a problem working out weights and balances". Again first time I have heard something like that, every seat was taken though so I don't know if that with accompanying full luggage load had anything to do with the 'problem'. My view on that was "Take all the time you need to do your sums". I know I couldn't do it, that's for sure.

[Crazy Voyager]

Glidning approaches (CDA, Continious Descent Approach) is a common practice today. It's done as much as practical and by everyone (more or less).

How ever there is always many ways to look at this, the official statistics define a CDA in a certain way (without having the numbers in front of me it's something along the lines of the aircraft being level for a max of 30 seconds below FL100). But the RNAV approaches into ESSA are sometimes referred to as "green approaches" since they do not utilise vectoring (at least not in theory) and would therefore allow for a more detailed descent planning.

So yes they are common, but how common they are depends a lot on your definition.

As always with my posts I'm just a wannabe, so if you want a professional to give their view you'll have to wait :p

[Avionker]

@ togsdragracing

Welcome to Sweden mate. Hope you are enjoying the weather. :ok:

Based on your username I'm taking a guess that you are heading to Tierp?

[togsdragracing]

Reporting live on the web from my seat in Race Control :)

Thanks Crazy Voyager for the answer and tack sa mycket Avionker.

[Groundloop]

"Gliding" approaches! What a terrible description.

Gliding would indicate no power ie engines off! Engines are still producing some power even at flight idle. Continuous Descent Approach (CDA) is the correct term. If SAS are describing it as "Gliding" then someone there has weird ideas.

Also CDA's only use idle power UNTIL on final approach. Once the flaps and gear are down power will need to be increased - well before the last thirty seconds.

[togsdragracing]

I see where you are coming from; I suspect that the use of the word "gliding" is either a loss in translation from the original Swedish article or a deliberate use to keep the concept simple for SLFs. I do a lot of writing myself and occasionally have to sacrifice 100% accuracy for the benefit of non-expert readers.

Either way it did make a pleasant change to find something interesting in an on-board magazine :)

[Crazy Voyager]

Yes good point there about the final approach groundloop.

I've read the SAS articles (I'm a Swede myself so I have the benefit of reading them in the original language) and I'd say it's a simplified version that's described there. But then again a simplified text in Swedish translated to English and you will end up with some weird langauge. I would say that "gliding approaches" is probably fairly close to what they describe in the article though, even though it was a while since I read it.