747_400 Landing

cavok - ceiling and visibility OK ?????? 9999 meters of visibility????
Ok, doesn't matter, anyway the 747 has ILS (even most of c172 have it). I don't know about the runway...

... but dont big aircraft like that have auto landing...? If they didn't use Autolanding then cool... but Pilots are awesome anyways!!

Have Auto Pilot system, But no Auto-Landing.

im training to become a pilot. i plan to be an arobatic display pilot.

Some aircraft do have auto-land, not all, but some..

is soon to be invented

The Boeing 747-400 (which I fly) has both an autopilot, and an autoland function.

Autopilots have been around since the late 1920's by the way, and autoland is a British invention, having first been demonstrated on the Hawker Siddley Trident for BEA in 1963, and on the Vickers VC-10 for BOAC shortly thereafter.

Final approval for autoland in commercial operations was not gained until years of trials had been completed.

This was to category IIIb low weather miniums, too, even in 1963. Landings in category IIIc minimums, which are otherwise known as zero/zero, were also demonstrated back then, but it's not a practical proposition, as the visibility is so low that the pilots cannot see to taxy to the gate after landing, and have to be towed off the runway!

Having said that, however, the autoland function on any commercial jet could NOT be used on Runway 13 at the old Kai Tak airport in Hong Kong.

Firstly, autoland, as it presently stands can ONLY be used on straight in approaches to landing, and even then, only to a runway which is served by an approved ILS. Please remember that the Kai Tak Runway 13 approach had the infamous 47 degree late turn from final to line up with the runway. So, it was NOT straight in approach.

Secondly, for autoland to be performed, the ILS for that runway has to be approved and maintained in each specific case, anywhere all over the world.

And Kai Tak's Runway 13 was NOT autoland approved.

So, ALL landings on Runway 13 at Kai Tak were manual.

... and Madeira airport?

what do you know about it?

I learned on Cessnas myself, and you appear to have heard wrong. Congratulations on obtaining your PPL, but the big jets (especially the widebodies) are far more challenging to handle than the small ones you have flow so far.

Don't let that put you off, however, as the fact that many airline pilots started where you are is ample evidence that the progression up to the largest of aircraft can be made.

But your attitude is important - you have to aproiach each and every flight until the end of your career as an opportunity for learning.

But if you take the attitude that the hard part is over, and it is all going to be so much easier from now own as the bigger planes are "...more forgiving..", not only are you in for a rude awakening, but you are unlikely ever to progress to jobs where you will get to fly the 'big iron'.

I remember completing a

...judging by what you have written, it doesn't sound you have flown very much of anything at all.

I've flown very much actually. I may not have been flying a 763 for very long but aviation has been in my career for quite a long time. I have most of my hours on a Cessna 172SP and a Cessna 310, however after recieving my airline transport pilot rating I do miss those bush flying days :-(

From what you write, I just don't buy the claim of your being a 767 captain.

So what sort of plane is a 744?

is a 744

just like 733 is 737-300 and 752 is 757-200

its the old airport in hong kong - kai tak.... the take-off's and landings were always exiting, very good saftey record too.