VC10 flapless landing

[Jelle Hieminga]

Just posted on PPRUNE: http://www.pprune.org/aviation-history- ... 970-a.html

Anyone with thoughts on the questions in the post?

[Tonkenna]

Just posted on there:

Landed the VC10 a couple of times with the flaps up and the slats out (always because the hoses were stuck out on the tanker version and not because they were u/s) and it is no great problem. During the original flight trials the ac was flown flapless and slatless from Boscombe (as it had a long runway) whilst carrying out drag trials.

The flaps and slats can be selected separately and it would be unusual for both to be unavailable though there is advice in the aircrew manual and there is quite an addition to the basic VAT (45 kts) if both are bust! We certainly do not practice for a double failure though we practice flapless approaches and slatless approaches both in the sim and during the basic flying phase. A few years ago I tried to write a sim scenario to end up flapless and slatless and couldn't come up with something sensible...

As for Q2... not heard of that I am afraid???

Hope that helps...

Tonks

[harryl]

When the VC10 was introduced to RAF service, and for a few years after, flapless and slatless approaches were flown using a threshold speed 5 knots below the correct value - plus 20 knots rather than the correct +25, as I recall, though my ageing memory may be at fault here.

As a consequence, during such approaches the stall protection system was distinctly 'twitchy' in anything other than flat calm conditions, the slightest hint of turbulence often setting off the stick shakers. Although initially alarming, one soon got used to this nevertheless there was relief all round when the error was eventually corrected!

harryl

[ICM]

I missed this on Prune last year but, thanks to Harry L's post yesterday (Happy New Year, by the way) I've enjoyed it now. On the original Q2, I've no recollection of the perisextant mount (glass hatch??) being used with a vacuum hose on the RAF VC 10 but I can confirm that the poster who thought that had happened on the USAF's C-141 was quite correct. There was a hose stowed on the flight deck and it was routinely used before descent for a bit of pressure-differential assisted housekeeping. Of course, if you really want to get rid of every speck of dust in the awkward corners, I can recommend a rapid decompression at FL350 as the ideal method....with some less desirable side effects, of course!

[weasel pilot]

Ref Harryl's comment about flying SLOWER on a no flats/no flaps approach. Have NO background on the VC-10, but every airplane I've ever flown you added knots rather than subtracted them in this situation. For example, on the 757/767, you add 50 knots to the normal (flaps 30) landing speed. Would explain the stick shaker, tho...

Dave