PlasticPilot.net

London City Airport is on the list of my aviation projects and dreams. I love this airport, because of its a time saver, because it has a unique implantation, and because of the unique scenery it offers. However, this is for me kind of a Forbidden Land, because of all the constraints.

No private pilot can land there. No single engine (even single engine turbine) can land there. No private traffic can use this airport. All pilots operating there need to go through a special training. As I don’t want a job as professional turbine pilot, the chances for me to land there otherwise than as an airline passengers are low, if not inexistant. By the way, if you’re working for BAA / CAA and can arrange an exception (even a single ILS approach with go-around will do), or for an operator and can arrange a jumpseat flight, you’re welcome.

Before someone makes it possible for me to go there, here are some pictures, found on airliners.net. Click on them to see the full size version on airliners.net.

On this first photo, taken on final 28 on the glide path - it seems high, but look at the PAPI - one can see the construction works left of threshold. Note that the only possible way for departing aircraft is to backtrack ruwnay, and this seriously reduces the airport capacity.

The second photo, taken in 2008, shows the reason for these works: a partial parallel taxiway has been built. It is still necessary to back-track, but two planes can depart rather quickly one behind the other, and that shortly after a landing, making the runway capacity higher.

Finally, a photo taken on final for runway 10. It was also taken before the construction of the floating taxiway. The approach angle is also impressive, but the departure (go-around) path is much clearer than on runway 28…

PS: simple visit of the tower would be fine as well

Flying light aircrafts in and out of large airports is much easier with some flexibility, on both controller and pilot side. The main problems are the distance needed between an airliner and a light aircraft because of the wake vortex, and runway occupancy time by the light aircraft, which usually taxies slowly.

One way light aircrafts pilots can help controllers is by flying high approaches followed by a long landing - closer to the taxiway. The first picture below has been taken while flying a normal approach to Geneva runway 23, aiming at the touch down zone.

On the left hand side, one can see to white and two red lights - the PAPI. This is an optical vertical guidance system. When flying too high, the four lights are white, slightly high results in three white and one red, on slope (like on the picture) gives two white and two red lights, slightly low is indicated by one white and three red, and way low gives four red lights.

The second picture has been taken (by luck) at the same distance, approaching to the same runway, but on a high-approach. To facilitate our integration in the approach sequence the controller asked me to land long and vacate the runway using the second taxiway to the right.

The goal was to vacate quicker, and allow for an earlier line-up of the airliner wating on the left side. As you can see, the PAPI lights are all white.

Just in case you wonder, the round thing in the axis is not a flying-saucer landing pad, but a radio-navigation beacon known as VOR (more precisely a Doppler VOR).

Flying high-approach, inner circuit with short final, high-speed approach, or other special variants helps to maintain a smooth flow of traffic. But there is a possible pitfall. Don’t accept to fly anything to please a controller. It’s much better to fly a couple more 360’s than crash-landing, and if you start something that later becomes uncomfortable, I’ve two words for you: go around !