VERTICAL NAVIGATION PLANNING

Included within certain STARs is information on vertical navigation planning. This information is provided to reduce the amount of low altitude flying time for high performance airplanes, like jets and turboprops. An expected altitude is given for a key fix along the route. By knowing an intermediate altitude in advance when flying a high performance airplane, you can plan the power or thrust settings and airplane configurations that result in the most efficient descent in terms of time and fuel requirements. Pilots of high performance airplanes use the vertical navigation planning information from the RAMMS FIVE ARRIVAL at Denver, Colorado, to plan their descents. [Figure 4-18]