Narrowbody Jet (A320-class)
The narrowbody jet: fast, heavy and the longest final you will fly.
The Narrowbody Jet approximates the most common short-haul airliner. Swept wings, underwing engines and a high landing speed make it the aircraft where speed, height and distance have to be planned together.
At cruise altitude it is smooth and quick, and a mission that takes the trainer all evening is an easy hop. The real work is the descent and the approach, which start far from the airport.
The approach is the skill that matters. Plan the descent before you start it, set the speed and flaps in steps, and keep one picture in your head: where the runway is, how high you are and how fast you are going.
Key Numbers
- Role: narrowbody jet airliner
- Approximates: A320
- Unlocks at: level 9
- Maximum takeoff mass: 78,000 kg
- Stall, landing configuration: 115 kt
- Stall, clean: 156 kt
- Flaps may be used below: 177 kt
- Normal operating limit: 330 kt
- Never exceed: 350 kt
- Rotate at about: 185 kt
- Approach at about: 150 kt
Speeds are indicated airspeed in knots as the simulator models them; the real type is only the thing this aircraft approximates.
How It Flies
- Start the descent early: a good rule is three nautical miles for every thousand feet you have to lose.
- Flaps and speed go together. Slow below each flap limit before you select the next stage.
- The landing is long: touch down in the first third of the runway and keep the brakes smooth.
- Power sets the descent and the pitch holds the speed. Use the throttle to control the path down and the nose to control the speed.
- Trim after each change of configuration: set the speed, then the flaps, then trim, so the aircraft holds its own speed while you look outside.
What To Practise
- Descend from 20,000 feet to a stabilised approach at 1,500 feet with the speed under control the whole way.
- Fly a full mission: takeoff, climb, cruise, descent, approach and landing without touching the autopilot.
- Land in a crosswind and keep the centerline all the way through the rollout.
- Fly a climb to 10,000 feet at a steady speed, then level off and note how the speed changes.