Wake vortices... a sterile danger?

fwiw, make that turn request upwind if you can.

"Ramapriya" wrote in message

.... a string of aircraft took off
virtually tailing one another. Most of them were A330s, and the rest
were 747s and A340s, with the odd A320 and 737.

Makes me ask you folk this... are wake vortex caveats for real?

Very real. But, when you say "tailing one another", how tight do you mean?
What was your estimate of the separation? 1 minute? 2 minutes? 30
seconds? 10 seconds? There is no hard wingtip or flap edge vortex until
the wing starts to generate substantial lift, and these vortices tend to
sink at about 500 fpm quite promptly. So a lot of similar performance
aircraft with 1 minute separation will mostly be climbing out above the
vortices from the craft in front.

John Gaquin wrote:

when you say "tailing one another", how tight do you mean?
What was your estimate of the separation? 1 minute? 2 minutes? 30
seconds? 10 seconds? There is no hard wingtip or flap edge vortex until

1 minute.

Makes me ask you folk this... are wake vortex caveats for real? How do
you manage when in a queue of big jets?

If you're talking about programming a 777, I have no idea. I suspect
it's not as big a deal for them, as you observed.

If you're talking about flying a Spam Can *behind* a 777, then wake
vortex danger is VERY real. I've only run into it (literally!) once,
when I landed too close behind a C-130 in Albuquerque, and ended up in
a 60 degree bank on short final -- but that experience was enough of a
shock to make me very cautious behind big stuff.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

On 19 Dec 2005 12:29:17 -0800, "Jay Honeck" wrote
in .com::

If you're talking about flying a Spam Can *behind* a 777, then wake
vortex danger is VERY real.

http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/GenPDF.asp?...98FA210&rpt=fa

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message

....danger is VERY real. ......ended up in
a 60 degree bank on short final -- but that experience was enough of a
shock to make me very cautious behind big stuff.

You bet. This is one of those things that everyone talks about, and is
true. Just about everyone has hit a wake or knows someone who has. My
education came on a beautiful spring day about 25 years ago when I was on
final on a visual to 9 at BOS behind a DC9. I abruptly rolled right to
about 120 degrees of bank, and about as abruptly rolled back left to
approximately level. I forget what I told the pax.

"John Gaquin" wrote in message
. ..

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message

....danger is VERY real. ......ended up in
a 60 degree bank on short final -- but that experience was enough of a
shock to make me very cautious behind big stuff.

You bet. This is one of those things that everyone talks about, and is
true. Just about everyone has hit a wake or knows someone who has. My
education came on a beautiful spring day about 25 years ago when I was on
final on a visual to 9 at BOS behind a DC9. I abruptly rolled right to
about 120 degrees of bank, and about as abruptly rolled back left to
approximately level. I forget what I told the pax.


You probably told them that the smell in the cabin was from a nearby
rendering plant.

For what it's worth, always land long behind heavy iron, and take off
well short of where they rotated.

"Ramapriya" wrote in message
oups.com...
I was at a place today from where I had a nice, clear view of the Dubai
Airport runway all day long. For about 3 hours in the morning, and
another 2-hour period in the afternoon, a string of aircraft took off
virtually tailing one another. Most of them were A330s, and the rest
were 747s and A340s, with the odd A320 and 737.

Makes me ask you folk this... are wake vortex caveats for real? How do
you manage when in a queue of big jets?

Ramapriya
ayirpamarATgmailDOTcom

Wake vortices are very real and they can ruin your whole day if you let 'em.

I was standing right under the approach path at Lakeland Linder (during the
Sun N Fun fly-in) when a DC-9 landed. 20 seconds or so later, after the jet
noise faded, you could hear the vortices it left behind. It sounded like
someone was tearing apart a bedsheet the size of a football field. Then, the
vortices descended to ground level and whipped up twin horizontal tornados
of the fine grey sand they have down there. Tents flapped and towels shook
in the wind, and after a few more seconds it all faded away.

It was kind of spooky, but very impressive.

KB

I was standing right under the approach path at Lakeland Linder (during
the Sun N Fun fly-in) when a DC-9 landed. 20 seconds or so later, after
the jet noise faded, you could hear the vortices it left behind. It
sounded like someone was tearing apart a bedsheet the size of a football
field. Then, the vortices descended to ground level and whipped up twin
horizontal tornados of the fine grey sand they have down there. Tents
flapped and towels shook in the wind, and after a few more seconds it all
faded away.

We used to watch airliners land at Milwaukee's Mitchell Field (now Mitchell
International). When the wind was right, you could park right beneath the
approach path, and they'd go right over our heads, maybe 100 feet off the
ground.

The ripping sound made by their wingtip vortices was really amazing, just as
you describe. They would swirl all around you, long after the plane was
gone.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"