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If you remember a year or so ago, the crash of Jessica Dubroff, while taking off from a small airport in Wyoming,
One of the causes was the elevation and the weight of the airplane. This lesson will try and show you the effect elevation can have on the performance of a small plane.Under your 'go to
airport menu' select South America and the select La Paz Bolivia Kennedy Intl runway 9R. This is one of the most difficult airports in the world to takeoff from due to its base elevation of over 13,000 feet.
In fact we wouldn't even fly this airport in our cessna 182 becasue it's not pressurized and has a ceiling of about 13,500 feet. But this is FS so we can cheat a little. Runway 9R is over 13,000 feet long
which makes among the longest commercial runways in the world.. You'll need most of it to takeoff even in the cessna. A couple tips before you depart. Use as little flaps as possible, the less drag the more
speed you can obtain. Don't try and takeoff at less than 70 kts.. the plane will likely come back down.. At this altitude the engine will be gasping for oxygen and you'll see that you'll need almost all of
the runway to get to 70 kts. If you're lucky enough to get the plane in the air, don't be surprised if you have trouble gaining altitude. Most likely your speed will drop quickly and you'll be walking a fine
line between stalling the wings while trying to climb and just plain hitting the ground. If you're one of the lucky ones who can get the plane up, fly the traffic pattern around the airport.
in other words after departure turn to a heading of 8 degrees for a crosswind leg.. after a couple of miles turn to a heading of 288 for your downwind leg..This is a visual flight so look out your left
window for your position relative to the airport. After about 4 miles turn to heading 198 for your base leg. Keep looking out your left window and when you see the runway appearing make a turn to final at
heading 98. You've basically flown a big rectangle around the airport. If you're able to complete this little flight in the cessna you've done good. And you will have new respect for some of
the things pilots flying in mountainous areas must contend with. |
