It's probably about time for someone to bring up the Aspen approach =
again.
Be a little high and/or fast there, and you won't get down in time to =
land.
---JRC---

"Ray Andraka" wrote in message =
...
Do restrict your altitude to the MEAs enroute too? The stepdowns =
depict the
minimum altitudes for each segment of the approach. There is nothing =
regulatory
about flying at those minimums. What you are advocating is what =
others have
called 'dive and drive', ie decending quickly at each crossing then =
leveling at
the mda for that segment until hitting the next stepdown fix. This =
certainly
does increase the workload (you have less time to react to the =
altitude if it is
decreasing at 1000 fpm instead of 3-500 fpm), as well as the =
consequences for
being a little bit behind the airplane. It also gives you fewer =
options
(altitude) should the engine start coughing. Just from the ergonomics
standpoint, it is more stressful to you and your passengers, not to =
mention to
the engine (shock cooling) and airframe. Most of the time, you've got =
plenty of
room between the fixes to do a gentle descent and still get you at the =
final MDA
in plenty of time to find the airport.
--
--Ray Andraka, P.E.