High angle-of-attack in Jetliners

[Kartoffelsalatatatat]

Hey

This is something I've always been wondering. Whenever I'm flying a jetliner I always seem to have a relatively high AoA at lower speeds. For instance, when flying @ 220KTS IAS, -1000 F/min descent I find myself with a 5 to 10o nose-up attitude. Flaps don't seem to correct this problem.

Anyone know whether this in supposed to happen, or I am such a terrible pilot?

[DaveSims]

May just be the aircraft model you are using.  Typically a few notches of flap would get the nose down.

[beaky]

May just be the aircraft model you are using.  Typically a few notches of flap would get the nose down.

Read the OP... there's important info re: flaps.

The bottom line: FS9 is an approximation.

[Kartoffelsalatatatat]

Ok, so I did some other experimenting with flap settings, and I found out it actually does make a difference, but I wasn't using enough flap. At around 15o flap setting, the AoA is about 2.5o. However, I still can't get the nose to go below the horizon, which one would expect from a descending airliner. The way I'm doing my approach now seems like one long flare.

[Brett_Henderson]

Hey

This is something I've always been wondering. Whenever I'm flying a jetliner I always seem to have a relatively high AoA at lower speeds. For instance, when flying @ 220KTS IAS, -1000 F/min descent I find myself with a 5 to 10o nose-up attitude. Flaps don't seem to correct this problem.

Anyone know whether this in supposed to happen, or I am such a terrible pilot?

I don't fly the tubes very often.. so I just took the default 737 up for a test. First, we have to differentiate between pitch angle and AoA.. they aren't interchangable, even if the wing's angle of incidence is zero. Assuming that the wing has no incidence (wing's pitch = fuselage pitch), a wing

[C]

Just come back from a trip where I was going to have a look. Sadly, as one normally does when it actually came to the approach, other things were on my mind! What I can tell you is that during the whole stage between 250kts and down the approach, the highest the nose ever went was 4 to 5 degrees above the horizon, just before the final approach, level with gear down and t/o (20*) flap.

[Slotback]

Atleast you're not in an MD-11. At MTOW Slats retract at 270kots or so.  :-?

[C]

Atleast you're not in an MD-11. At MTOW Slats retract at 270kots or so.  :-?

At MTOW our slats are still coming in towards 250kts...

[Slotback]

[quote][quote]Atleast you're not in an MD-11. At MTOW Slats retract at 270kots or so.

[C]

Atleast you're not in an MD-11. At MTOW Slats retract at 270kots or so.  :-?

At MTOW our slats are still coming in towards 250kts...

DO you fly the MD-11?

Nope, and probably never will.