B757 Rules of thumb
 

As a pilot new to the 757 I was wondering if there are any "Rules of Thumb" around regarding the type. Also, any other tips are welcome !
Thanx, :) :) :)
SF.

Don't crash it.

Not really a rule of thumb, but a recommendation
When cross wind landing, avoid excessive and rough aileron application, roll spoilers will start deploying and you will induce yaw/rolling motions that will screw your ldg up.
I guess it applies to most modern planes, but I´ve noticed the 757 is preety sensitive to aileron and it gets especially crazy during x-w ldg.
Hope it helps.

[ 26 December 2001: Message edited by: Hollow Blade ]</p>

When landing don't flair early. If you have automatic height callout wait until after the 20ft call (15ft) then close the thrust levers and give a very slight pullback (little more that holding the back pressure). The aircraft will land smoothly without excessive nose up attitude. Rounding out closer to 30ft gives a nose high landing attitude; when the spoilers come out the nose then goes higher still.

It's all in the Training Manual.

You will need speedbrakes often. When extended, they make very little noise, until after the first one or two flap settings. With engine anti-ice on, or with slats/flaps extended, the engine idle speed increases automatically.

If the autothrottles are slow going up to climb power (or it does anything unusual!), disconnect the autopilot and re-engage one of them.

Regarding Crosswinds...
Used to do IOE on the 757/767, and always looked for a crosswind landing or two before sign off (very little emphasis in the sim program). One must be fairly aggressive with the controls during crosswind operations. The vertical stab is disproportionately large for the airframe (as it is on all of the heavy twins with wing mounted engines) to help keep the aircraft stabilized with loss of engine at low speed. That characteristic transfers into a rather sporty arrival in a stiff crosswind. The control forces are similar to those in a small/light aircraft in a crosswind.
Aggressive use of cross control on takeoff (up to roll spoiler deployment) is recommended. Great, great airplane, but it is quite the weathervane

Ref. the above, keep the stick firmly forward during the take-off roll especially in crosswinds. It gives the nosewheel more "bight" and counteracts the large fin area. It also works in the Sim on V1 cuts.

During descent, keep the map updated to give as 'true' a track miles to go as possible and use PROGRESS page to monitor height/mileage. Keep a mental cross-check going of the VNAV profile; ie. passing 25000'(FL250) drop the zeros and multiply by 3, ie 25x3=75. That gives you a requirement for 75nm to achieve a 3 degree slope, then allow for speed reduction; 1nm for every 10kts to lose. Some people just do 3xheight+10 which also 'get's you in the ballpark'. What you are trying to achieve is thrust levers closed at TOD and only spooling up on finals.

Have fun, it's a top piece of kit!

PP

Being new to type I would suggest being very careful following SKY9's landing technique just yet......you are liable to drive the maingear into the tarmac by not flaring enough!

When I started I was instructed to 'think' flare at 30' and be in it at 20' whilst retarding the thrust levers so they close just as the mainwheels touch. Easily said I know. Speed is critical, just above bug speed and you will float, just below and it drops on pretty firmly.

The correct visual picture is also crucial to good landings. An old hand talked me through it after a 'firmer arrival than required';

From 200' down to 50' get the touch down point fixed in the windscreen (but don't neglect the instrument scan). When you hear the 50' callout lift your gaze to the end of the runway, when you hear 30' start the flare (nose up to 5 degrees), to be in the flare at 20' using your peripheral vision to judge the nose attitude and the 'sink' on to the runway as the trust levers come back to idle.

PP

Haven't done so..... yet Pete <img src="wink.gif" border="0"> & I haven't scrapped the tail either.

Sky9

Wasn't implying that you shouldn't do it!! Just that Sir-Fly-a-lot may find it tricky if he is just starting out on the 75 (does depend on his previous experience obviously).

Ditto, I haven't scraped or scapped(!) a tail yet!

PP

Be careful about putting excess forward pressure on the stick during take-off roll,(on any aircraft), especially on a performance limiting runway.
It creates artificial 'weight' by holding the nose down thus increasing the takeoff roll. <img src="smile.gif" border="0">
(as explained by Boeing pilots).

you may wish to consider getting up to date with an Airbus rating..... <img src="rolleyes.gif" border="0">

Boeing or Airbus, the laws of aerodynamics remain pretty much the same, hold the stick neutral, (or a little forward if you have runway to spare), but don't put a lot of forward pressure on. <img src="smile.gif" border="0">
(Better still, follow the Flight Manual and your instructors teachings!).

Oi agrees with Pilot Pete and am bloody jealous 'cos our toys got taken away before Christmas! Erm, just watch out for descent characteristics with Engine anti-ice on if you are flying an E4, she nolikagodown, and you can end up red faced on finals especially if ATC clear you direct as opposed to the STAR.
Dont know if you get to taxi it Sir Fly a lot, but beware the brakes at first! Cabin Crew at the back can end up on the cieling with any harsh brake application(like wot I did..sorry)

Dunno about the 757 (guess its the same), but on the 767 in eng out crz, double the fuel flow and that equals the amount of rudder trim needed to fly wings level.
As mentioned before, the speed brakes are a primary control, unlike on the 747 where they are secondary.
The 757/767 has phenominal power to weight ratio, and you can get some pretty high nose att on t/o. On the 767 if you subtract the first two numbers of you weight off 30, it gives you a pretty accurate nose angle to maintain to hold V2+10/15 eg
weight 160 t
t/o angle = 30 - 16 = 14 degrees.
However that said our domestic ops can get into the 20 degrees + att which is screaming.
Enjoy it, the 757/767 are great planes to fly, very responsive and are truely the sports car of the sky :) <img src="wink.gif" border="0">

[ 01 January 2002: Message edited by: Vapour Trail ]</p>

I was told...The 757/767 cockpit DV windows can be cranked opened and closed below 210 kts if the pilot requires it in a non normal situation.

After the smoke drill has been completed,opening the DV window on final approach will remove any persistent smoke in the cockpit (plus your lose maps and paperwork!) that is causing outside visibility problems and the design leaves an area of still air just outside of the forward frame to enable the pilot to see the runway through this area of still air, if doing a manual landing.

Also if a DV window is not locked on the takeoff run it will slowly roll back open as the speed increases.
This once caused a high speed abort, due the increasing noise and lack of other warnings confusing the pilot.
Aborting for this was thought incorrect as it should have been cranked and locked close below 210 kts airborne.
However eight new main tyres,and a 24 hour delay was the result in this DV window case.
I wonder if anyone has also been told the above DV window operating limitations?

[ 02 January 2002: Message edited by: scanscanscan ]</p>

On the 757 after landing watch out for the tendency for the nosewheel to slam down. Several times after a nice touchdown I made the mistake of paying less attention than I should have, and was rewarded with a thump as the nosewheel touched.

Just remember to leave the mixtures in auto-lean during the approach, cause they will spit and pop and create quite a rucus while you slam it on and then the engines might not rev evenly when you transition to reverse thrust.

Happy new year all!!!!!!!

Thanks Everyone !