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lisper · 2016-07-17 19:37:34+00:00

Some runways in mountainous areas are built this way out of necessity. The best known is this one:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Courchevel_Altiport

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Courchevel+Alti...

It makes for some really dramatic landings. Upon touchdown you have to apply full power, or you might not make it to the top of the runway. Also, there is no go-around. You either land successfully, or you crash. There is no third option.

The take-off is quite a ride too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6Wr3ilAWpo

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0898 | karma 1224 | avg karma 3.33 · | 2017-07-11 08:35:43+00:00

The runway is where you do want to land.

carapace | karma 9859 | avg karma 1.41 · | 2016-07-17 19:11:13+00:00

Kind of a non sequitur, but I once found a flyer on the sidewalk in Boulder CO that advocated for inclining airplane runways by, I forget, 5% or so.

The idea was that departing flights would take off in the downward-sloping direction, gaining boost to momentum from gravity, while incoming flights would land uphill making it easier to brake.

I have no idea if this would actually work, but the idea has stuck with me.

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scotty79 | karma 14043 | avg karma 1.62 · | 2021-04-28 09:28:02+00:00

But is it the runway for the purposes of taking off or landing in less crashy manner? ;-)

t43562 | karma 1477 | avg karma 2.94 · | 2023-07-17 08:44:09

The article is about landing on roads, not landing vertically.

moffkalast | karma 7759 | avg karma 1.88 · | 2023-07-17 07:27:02

I assume OP means because it's a VTOL? It doesn't need a runway, just a large enough flat spot.

htwillie | karma 39 | avg karma 2.17 · | 2017-04-22 04:29:20+00:00

For any given approach, with a circular runway there's exactly one point tangent to the runway to land. Landing short or long isn't an option.

Things are conventional because they tend to work well. And part of working well is being resilient to errors and non-optimal situations.

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nilsbunger | karma 2671 | avg karma 6.31 · | 2023-06-29 15:04:28

This is a pretty standard maneuver - it's similar to a "soft field landing" (eg grass runway). Assuming you have a long runway, you avoid braking since that would slam the nose down, and use more and more elevator to keep the nose up to as slow a speed as possible.

Kye | karma 8088 | avg karma 2.06 · | 2023-07-08 15:42:10

All this is cool analysis, but does anything other than equally fictional Quinjets actually land on it? They probably only need any runway at all when they're too heavily loaded for a complete vertical takeoff.

kijin | karma 10374 | avg karma 2.8 · | 2014-05-23 07:27:30

Not a problem because the end of the runway is always down.

gabereiser | karma 5056 | avg karma 3.27 · | 2023-02-04 13:00:04

The runway is for takeoff, not landing. When you run out of runway you crash. If you’re still talking about runway, you haven’t taken off yet.

imeron | karma 179 | avg karma 1.77 · | 2018-03-13 09:30:13

Landing/takeoff with a regular aircraft is quite risky and requires lots of space. I think this is a good compromise.

Shrezzing | karma 792 | avg karma 5.08 · | 2023-07-17 05:58:40

Vertical landing drops staight in from the sky, and comes to an immediate halt. These planes just need a strip of concrete wider & longer than the plane itself. Realistically you could comfortably put one down on a motorway service station carpark, and then lay a short portable runway along its off-ramp for takeoff.

nradov | karma 36463 | avg karma 2.08 · | 2013-06-22 18:50:53+00:00

That's not practical for landing due to safety concerns. But Airbus has a related proposal for making take offs more efficient with an electric launching sled. http://www.airbus.com/innovation/future-by-airbus/smarter-sk...

londons_explore | karma 35497 | avg karma 2.72 · | 2021-07-07 20:38:44+00:00

I wonder how often someone mistakenly or deliberately turns down the runway...?

It isn't like they can really have a kerb or a fence stopping you...

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skykooler | karma 3359 | avg karma 2.59 · | 2021-04-26 02:54:39+00:00

Yeah, the only real possibilities for landing on a runway are insanely long runways (dozens of miles!) or high-speed arrestor cables, like souped-up versions of those used on carriers. And even then, the super-wide maneuvering radius means flaring without stalling is practically impossible - you'd need to clear a long area in front of the runway so you can basically come in almost flat.

InclinedPlane | karma 30955 | avg karma 3.47 · | 2016-05-06 14:52:42

If it's such a good idea, why don't all airlines use it for airplane landings?

ajmurmann | karma 10380 | avg karma 2.92 · | 2024-03-28 22:08:12

Don't you need a large flat area to land safely?

bouchard | karma 129 | avg karma 2.87 · | 2024-02-27 19:09:01

Which can be a bit of a challenge when trying to land, especially for aerodynamically efficient aircraft.

jtokoph | karma 1963 | avg karma 4.54 · | 2024-01-11 20:04:24

I think some combinations of aircraft and runways leads to landing pilots not having a good view of the end of the runway