Really?
You want us to add drag every time the fms says so eh?
Swa 73 expert
Please teach us more. What other messages do we need to pay special attention to?
As a matter of fact, I am typed in the 737 and have flown the aircraft.
To stay in VNAV Path, you have to stay within rate of decent parameters and speed parameters. If you are not going to do so, you have to change something. The FMS alerts you to do this. If you don't want to add drag, another option is to change speed - unless of course you are speed constrained by the aircraft configuration, the arrival, the FARs or ATC.
The other common mistake I've seen SWA pilots do when trying to change speed to stay in VNAV Path is to do so by using speed intervention and then wonder why it goes to VNAV Speed mode. Unless you are in the approach phase within the FMS logic, you need to change the speed within the FMS and not set a manually selected speed. Any other time speed intervention automatically takes it out of VNAV Path.
It also always amazes me when I sit in a SWA cockpit, hear them brief a VNAV approach and then watch them start using vertical speed modes continuously.
From what I've seen from many, many times in a SWA jumpseat since you started using VNAV a few years ago, whoever it is at SWA that sets your procedures and training does not understand VNAV.
Sorry if my opinion offends you but it is based on frequent personal observation. We went through the same misunderstanding problems at Hawaiian when we started using VNAV and it took us a couple of years to figure it out. But we never artificially limited ourselves like you guys do with speed brakes.
