How fast can a plane descend?

Airliners can descend over 8,000 feet per minutes if needed. A descent from 35,000 feet at that rate would have you down to 11,000 feet in 3 minutes or less. John Cox is a retired airline captain with US Airways and runs his own aviation safety consulting company, Safety Operating Systems.



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Using a time equation is just as easy, and it actually makes more sense when you're flying faster airplanes. A good rule of thumb is to allow yourself two minutes for each 1,000 feet of altitude you need to lose.

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If the plane doesn't crash, the descent rate generally can't hurt you. If the plane crashes, the horizontal deceleration is likely to do far more harm than the vertical deceleration. That said, 18,000 feet per minute is pretty fast, like 180 knots, so unpressurized it could cause possibly ear & sinus damage.

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In aviation, the rule of three or 3:1 rule of descent is a rule of thumb that 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) of travel should be allowed for every 1,000 feet (300 m) of descent. For example, a descent from flight level 350 would require approximately 35x3=105 nautical miles.

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You might be wondering, is turbulence strong enough to cause a plane to crash? The answer is: it's extremely rare. Modern aircraft are designed to withstand turbulence and continue flying safely.

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During a belly landing, there is normally extensive damage to the airplane. Belly landings carry the risk that the aircraft may flip over, disintegrate, or catch fire if it lands too fast or too hard.

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The first indication to passengers that a plane is descending is the reduction in engine power, but that might not mean the aircraft is slowing. The most comfortable and quiet way for pilots to reduce the speed of a plane during the stages of descent is to level off briefly.

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In modern aircraft with modern avionics, the descent profile is automatically calculated by the computers. When prevailing winds are entered the flight management system can accurately determine the top of descent and the rate of descent that is required.

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Planes are *optimized* to fly at certain heights to maximize the efficiency of their engines and their fuel consumption. So jet planes can fly a lot higher than propeller planes, so they do. They fly between 20,000 feet and 40,000 feet because they are designed and optimized to do just that.

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35 x 3=105. This means you should begin your descent 105 nautical miles from your destination, maintaining a speed of 250 KIAS (about 45 percent N1) and a descent rate of 1,500 to 2,000 feet per minute, with thrust set at idle.

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Therefore, Boeing decided to make the 737 as low to the ground as possible. This allowed baggage handlers to load luggage without requiring much ground support equipment, and to climb into the cargo hold to load, organize and retrieve the bags.

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What vertical speed do pilots use on a 737? Most jets climb at 250 knots up to 10,000 feet due to FAA regulations. Above 10,000 feet, 280 to 300 knots with a transition to Mach . 7 around 24,000 feet are average for the 737.

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Airplanes are designed to withstand rough conditions and it is rare for aircraft to incur structural damage because of turbulence. But turbulence can toss passengers and crew members around, potentially causing grave injuries.

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For nervous flyers, turbulence can be frightening, especially when it's severe. Some might even think that these strong forces would be enough to break the aircraft. In reality, airplanes, especially large airliners, are built with enough strength to withstand almost all naturally occurring turbulence.

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When an aircraft experiences turbulence, the plane can drop or change altitude suddenly. This is why pilots always caution passengers to buckle up and stay seated when they are experiencing flight turbulence. The sudden movements put passengers at risk.

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Turbulence is a sudden and sometimes violent shift in airflow. Those irregular motions in the atmosphere create air currents that can cause passengers on an airplane to experience annoying bumps during a flight, or it can be severe enough to throw an airplane out of control. (The pilots) aren't scared at all.

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While no aircraft can avoid turbulence, passengers may feel less turbulence in widebody aircrafts, as they're larger and heavier airplanes.

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Sometimes it's unavoidable to fly through light and moderate turbulence, but rest assured your pilots are working to find smooth air. If they encounter severe or extreme turbulence not forecasted, pilots will quickly climb or descend to a safe and smooth altitude.”

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That's why pilots are taught the 1 in 60 rule, which states that after 60 miles, a one-degree error in heading will result in straying off course by one mile. Which means the lake you planned to fly over could turn out to be a mountain.

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