Biggles learns to...What, exactly?

[Autolycus]

I live around 4-5 miles north of East Midlands Airport.

On most days, a 737, Ryanair flight RYR100T, circles for hours on end at around 2000ft and 150 - 200 kts, usually clockwise.

What are they doing? Training? If so who, to do what, and why always on the same circuit?

[peter tdci]

Looks like EI-SEV is doing touch and goes at the moment (and all morning as well).

New pilot training - or pilots who haven't flown for a while refreshing the currency on their licences?

[ecsrobin]

Autolycus said:

I live around 4-5 miles north of East Midlands Airport.

On most days, a 737, Ryanair flight RYR100T, circles for hours on end at around 2000ft and 150 - 200 kts, usually clockwise.

What are they doing? Training? If so who, to do what, and why always on the same circuit?

Pilot training, they have hundreds of pilots so it could be new pilots or could be for currency.

The circuit at an airfield is always directed by ATC. For East Mids it’s “as directed GA normally South” (GA - General Aviation) there are also avoids in the circuit “ Diseworth, Castle Donington, Kegworth. ESPECIALLY DURING VFR CIRCUITS”

So you probably end up with quite a limited area to do circuits which is why it always feels the same.

[peter tdci]

ecsrobin said:

Pilot training, they have hundreds of pilots so it could be new pilots or could be for currency.

The circuit at an airfield is always directed by ATC. For East Mids it’s “as directed GA normally South” (GA - General Aviation) there are also avoids in the circuit “ Diseworth, Castle Donington, Kegworth. ESPECIALLY DURING VFR CIRCUITS”

So you probably end up with quite a limited area to do circuits which is why it always feels the same.

I've just dug a bit deeper into FR24. This particular aircraft has been doing circuits at East Mids or Shannon most weekdays since at least last November - it's quite a workhorse! Have Ryanair got a maintenance base at EMA?

Some of the EMA flights were a mixture of left and right circuits.

[Boatbuoy]

EI-SEV is Ryanair's corporate jet. A more luxurious 2+2 seat plan with 48 inch seat pitch. It's available for business/sports team charter, and gets used for ferrying staff to various places. I guess when it's not earning it's keep it's used for pilot training (as discussed above).

Aircraft info here:

https://simpleflying.com/ryanair-boeing-737-corpor...

[ecsrobin]

peter tdci said:

I've just dug a bit deeper into FR24. This particular aircraft has been doing circuits at East Mids or Shannon most weekdays since at least last November - it's quite a workhorse! Have Ryanair got a maintenance base at EMA?

Some of the EMA flights were a mixture of left and right circuits.

Und direction changes circuit direction.

[toastyhamster]

I've seen the same 737, usually when bombing down the A453, we're a little bit too far away for that circuit, but we're directly under the flightpath when they're landing in a Westerly direction. FR24 has a very neat "point your mobile at the plane and it'll tell you it's data" mobile feature, which the kids think I'm Mr Boring by being fascinated by. Ah it's 4:30pm, that'll be the Cincinnati freight then :-D

[RobbyJ]

toastyhamster said:

I've seen the same 737, usually when bombing down the A453, we're a little bit too far away for that circuit, but we're directly under the flightpath when they're landing in a Westerly direction. FR24 has a very neat "point your mobile at the plane and it'll tell you it's data" mobile feature, which the kids think I'm Mr Boring by being fascinated by. Ah it's 4:30pm, that'll be the Cincinnati freight then :-D

A true nerd who bores his children to death (like me) would just know. FR24 should only be used to confirm what you already know

[peter tdci]

ecsrobin said:

peter tdci said:

I've just dug a bit deeper into FR24. This particular aircraft has been doing circuits at East Mids or Shannon most weekdays since at least last November - it's quite a workhorse! Have Ryanair got a maintenance base at EMA?

Some of the EMA flights were a mixture of left and right circuits.

Und direction changes circuit direction.

Yes, but I meant that individual flights showed both left and right circuits. And my random sample of half a dozen replays all showed landings on runway 27.

[Autolycus]

Thanks for the explanations and background info. Surely each pilot doesn't have to refresh his knowledge of every airport he might fly to? Don't they have to be able to land at any airfield they may be be diverted to. Presumably they have notes on these other places? Is there a shortage of simulators?

The wretched thing flew damn-near overhead of me today - had they heard about this thread and wanted to flush the bog at the right moment?

Anyway - isn't it parking they had trouble with in the case in the case of this little chappy?

[peter tdci]

Autolycus said:

Thanks for the explanations and background info. Surely each pilot doesn't have to refresh his knowledge of every airport he might fly to? Don't they have to be able to land at any airfield they may be be diverted to. Presumably they have notes on these other places? Is there a shortage of simulators?

All the information needed to get from one airport to another will be stored in the aircraft's flight management systems - and around the airports, air traffic control will tell them where to go.

The pilots will probably use the autopilot to get to a point where they are lined up with the runway with a few miles to go at the right height and speed. It's this last bit that the pilots you've seen are working on. New pilots have to demonstrate that they can do it safely and experienced pilots need a certain number of landings and take offs in the last 90 (?) days. They can't do this in a simulator, it has to be in the real thing.