Pilots train, study before flying to new airports
Question: How do pilots train for flying into airports where the airline has never flown?– George, Canada
Answer: Most airports are relatively standard. Before arriving at an airport, pilots check documents called approach plates. These are maps arranged in a standardized format. If there are features unique to a given airport, they’re noted on special pages in that facility’s approach plates. During descent, the pilots brief each other on the expected approach procedure.
Before an airport is added to a route system, it is evaluated by training pilots to ensure all necessary information is provided to the crews.
If an airport is in a tricky location, it may require that the pilots be accompanied by an instructor on their first flight there. This was the case when my airline opened service into Mexico City International Airport, which sits more than 7,000 feet above sea level.
On my first trip there, an instructor pilot was in the jumpseat to advise us of any special considerations and to evaluate our performance.
Q: I was on a flight this past September that left well over an hour late.
It was around 11:30 pm before we finally left, and there were very few planes taking off. Yet we took off from the absolute furthest runway possible, adding another 20 minutes of taxi time to our flight. The pilot knew we were late and that we were going to the furthest runway because he announced it to the passengers. Can pilots request a different takeoff runway when they think a different one will work better? – Scott Hidden, Raleigh, NC
A: Pilots routinely take off and land into the wind. If the runway most closely aligned with the wind direction is the most distant, the pilots will normally accept the additional taxi time.
Additionally, there can be noise consideration. Airports try to be good neighbors and reduce the noise as much as practicable. Late-night departures are sometimes routed to specific runways for noise-abatement reasons.
Pilots can request a different runway, but there usually needs to be an operational need in order for it to be granted. For example, if the noise-abatement runway is shorter, and the flight is heavily loaded, the pilots would have legitimate operational grounds for requesting the longer runway.
Requesting a different runway just to shorten taxi time is not considered sufficient need.