HUD view of Shuttle landing

[P-Dawg_QX]

I wonder if the Commander puts his hand on the gear lever over Texas just to piss off the Pilot.

Hehe..."You did call for gear, right?"

 

[minitour]

I wonder if the Commander puts his hand on the gear lever over Texas just to piss off the Pilot.

ROFL

....God, I hate that.

-mini

 

[mzaharis]

I believe it can be done both manually and automatically.

Although a manual capability exists, the approaches are usually flown automatically, except for landing gear deployment. They are even looking at automating that, so if they want to use the ISS as a lifeboat, they can "roll the dice" and try to return the Orbiter unmanned if they leave the crew in the ISS, for a return on another orbiter flight (I read that one a few weeks ago, in Aviation Week, IIRC).

Here's a somewhat dated, but very detailed, description of how they manage their energy so that they can start an unpowered descent half a planet away, and cross the threshold with the exact right amount of energy every time (assuming that the craft maintains structural integrity).

http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/technology/sts-newsref/mission_profile.html#mission_profile

 

[Instinct]

http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/technology/sts-newsref/mission_profile.html#mission_profile

That's fascinating, thanks for the link!

 

[ultrarunner]

You can DL all kinds of good video here:

http://www.nasa.gov/returntoflight/main/index.html

 

[canyonblue737]

Dumb question:

Do they hand fly it, or is it like a cat III ils?

Hand flown starting from 100-75,000 ft on down is the average average. They never use the autopilot capablity lower anymore since the 1st - 3rd shuttle flights which tested it but it only did a so, so job and the pilots proved better. The autopilot does fly the entry profile to 100k at least in general.

 

[frog_flyer]

haven't yall seen that journey to the center of the earth knockoff movie?

the chick from million dollar baby? she landed the shuttle under a LAX freeway... thats skill

 

[Bob Sacamano]

I thought carrier quals were tough!

Copied from:
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/space/preparingtravel/rtf_week5_sta.html

Prior to a Shuttle mission, a commander has to complete 1,000 STA landings.

 

[SLFLYHI]

Hand flown starting from 100-75,000 ft on down is the average average. They never use the autopilot capablity lower anymore since the 1st - 3rd shuttle flights which tested it but it only did a so, so job and the pilots proved better. The autopilot does fly the entry profile to 100k at least in general.

Did Hoot tell you this?....

 

[dseagrav]

Of course, Aerojet is smarter than pretty much any other autopilot, and runs on 4 computers at once...

 

[captainv]

http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/...ission_profile

according to this site, it's on autoland below 10,000.

The approach and landing trajectory capture phase begins at the TAEM interface and continues to guidance lock-on to the steep outer glide slope. The approach and landing phase begins at about 10,000 feet altitude at an equivalent airspeed of 290, plus or minus 12, knots 6.9 nautical miles (7.9 statute miles) from touchdown. Autoland guidance is initiated at this point to guide the orbiter to the minus 19- to 17-degree glide slope (which is over seven times that of a commercial airliner's approach) aimed at a target 0.86 nautical mile (1 statute mile) in front of the runway. The spacecraft's speed brake is positioned to hold the proper velocity. The descent rate in the later portion of TAEM and approach and landing is greater than 10,000 feet per minute (a rate of descent approximately 20 times higher than a commercial airliner's standard 3-degree instrument approach angle).

 

[Be 23]

Hand flown starting from 100-75,000 ft on down is the average average. They never use the autopilot capablity lower anymore since the 1st - 3rd shuttle flights which tested it but it only did a so, so job and the pilots proved better. The autopilot does fly the entry profile to 100k at least in general.

Believe it or not, the current flight rules have the commander take over at < mach 1 (not by altitude). The pilot gets a few seconds of stick time after that if everthing is OK. The autoland feature is not certified for nominal, non-emergency use.

The profile puts the shuttle on a 7 mile final at 10,000 ft. Touchdown at about 200kts, about 2000' down the runway.

 

[Trogdor]

Some of these approach numbers are crazy:
(taken from http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/technology/sts-newsref/mission_profile.html#mission_profile)

...at approximately 83,000 feet altitude, 2,500 feet per second, Mach 2.5 and 52 nautical miles from the landing runway...

...49,000 feet altitude, about 22 nautical miles from the landing site.

The approach and landing phase begins at about 10,000 feet altitude at an equivalent airspeed of 290, plus or minus 12, knots 6.9 nautical miles from touchdown.

 

[Sampson]

from what I saw the approach was hand flown. He was using the FPV or the bird as its called in Airbus aircraft, it seemed to be very squirrly as he was making his turn to final and then broke out of the clouds.

Very cool stuff, I actually used my FPV today just to emulate the landing, HA.

 

[chignutsak]

I am sure it must be practiced in the sim over and over, no chance for a go around!

You think?