DC-10/MD-11 Climbout Question

[CopilotDoug]

Does this plane have a pretty fast rate of climb? Anytime I see one taking off out of O'Hare, it looks like it's standing on its proverbial tail. Is it a pretty high deck angle, or just an optical illusion?

 

[timetoquit]

It's probably empty or lightly loaded, in which case it climbs lika bat of out hell (4000+ fpm)!

 

[FDXer]

MD-11 is anywhere from 18-22 degrees up and DC-10 about 16 degrees.

 

[CopilotDoug]

MD-11 is anywhere from 18-22 degrees up and DC-10 about 16 degrees.

Is it overpowered, per say?

What are the deck angles for a max performance climbout?

 

[dojetdriver]

How about when it seem to be around 1000-1500 agl? From behind it almost looks like the plane stops climbing all together and starts to sink.

 

[CopilotDoug]

How about when it seem to be around 1000-1500 agl? From behind it almost looks like the plane stops climbing all together and starts to sink.

Does it look the same way with the DC-9s to you too?

 

[MD11Drvr]

How about when it seem to be around 1000-1500 agl? From behind it almost looks like the plane stops climbing all together and starts to sink.

That may be how it appears at OCH when the airplane goes to 1000 fpm rate to accelerate to the clean config climb.

 

[stupidpilot]

How about when it seem to be around 1000-1500 agl? From behind it almost looks like the plane stops climbing all together and starts to sink.

That's when we transition form takeoff power to climb power. If the aircraft is very light there isn't much of a power change, but if its heavy it's much more noticeable.

 

[dojetdriver]

That's when we transition form takeoff power to climb power. If the aircraft is very light there isn't much of a power change, but if its heavy it's much more noticeable.

Thanks.....

 

[metrodriver]

an empty DC10 at 300.000 lbs (with fuel for a 1 hr flight and some ballast fuel) will climb at 6000fpm @250kts. A 572.000lb DC10 gets around 1500 fpm on a good day doing 290 kts and struggles the last few thousand feet to go to its optimal cruise altitude of FL290. It will take about 30 mins to get there.

So the big question is: where is it going with what on board

 

[Huck]

I had a flight at brand G from MIA to Quito in the MD11. They had just hung a "loaner" engine from Alitalia on there that looked like a boneyard special - leaks, stains, rust, big sharpie pen circles all over the fan blades, fan blades "blended" to extreme.

Quito is at 9200' MSL and so I decided to do a max power t/o even though all we had was 50k ballast fuel onboard + ~3 hours worth to get down there. If she's gonna sh!t the bed I'd rather do it empty in MIA than full of flowers in Quito. The mechanics all ran for their cameras.

Clearance was runway heading to 3000'. I rotated and limited pitch to 30 deg, don't know what rate-of-climb was but when I levelled at 3 I looked down and I was still over the runway......!!!!

 

[Fedora]

I just had a short flight from Mumbai to Bangledesh with a light MD-11 (390,000).
Climbing to FL410, the climb rate was 3900FPM passing 370! Wow!

 

[PURPLEHAZE21]

Recently departed STL at 220,000 lbs in a DC 10...Let's just say "Raped Ape". V speeds were less than those on a heavy Beech 1900. Very easy to get "In trouble".