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Aerodynamics of the 737-300

Contributed by Nick Duros
Saturday, 21 January 2006
Page 9 of 10 17. Hydroplaning Aircraft landing on a wet surface have to be concerned about the possibility of hydroplaning. Dynamic hydroplaning creates an upward pressure force, when the aircraft is at a certain speed, which lifts the tires of the surface of the runway. The Boeing 737-300 has a tire pressure of 181 PSI. The 737 will have total dynamic hydroplaning at 121 knots. Vh = 9 * Sqrt(P) Tp = 181 psi The total dynamic hydroplaning (V h) = 121 knots. Pilot Reports: The Boeing 737-300 I fly has two CFM 56 high bypass jet engines that produce 20,000 pound of thrust. The 737 can seat 150+ plus passengers, depending on the seating configuration. There is a 737-300LR model (long range) which adds a few more thousand pounds of fuel, which will give it about a six hour flying range. The longest segment I flew was from Charlotte North Carolina to Seattle, Washington. Maximum cruising altitude is 37,000 feet with a recommended max cruising mach speed of .770. You can control the 737 during taxi by use of a tiller wheel on the Captains side panel or the rudder pedals. At the start of the take off roll you push the thrust levers forward just a bit to let the engines stabilize, then a auto throttle button, located near the power levers, is pressed and will automatically increase the levers to the desired thrust. As the airplane accelerates the rudders pedals will become quite effective early on in the take off roll due to its large rudder. Depending on the weight of the aircraft, it will lift off at about 130 knots of speed, 4500 feet down the runway. The speed and runway length I am using are just and average to give you an example of a normal take off. At Vr speed you rotate at a recommended 3 degrees pitch per second to 15 degrees of pitch up attitude. Like any other airplanes you follow up all the recommended control inputs using the seat of your pants, if you rotate too soon ,the airplane will feel like a ton of bricks, experience in the airplane will let you know when it is ready to create lift not just the indicated speed. At 1000 feet, you retract the flaps, usually 5 degrees, and reduce power to recommended climb thrust. The auto-pilot is recommend after the initial climb out, but lets say we decided to hand fly to altitude to get the feel of the airplane in different phases of flight. Compared to lets say a Cessna 172, the hydraulic controls on a 737 make it very responsive. Just a little bit of control movement is needed and rudder movement is almost never required except for take off and landings. The powerful engines can give you a rapid climb rate, so you have to plan level offs way ahead of time especially at the lower altitudes. At the higher cruise altitudes, the airplane is less responsive due to the thinner air and you have to stay ahead of it to remain level. During all phases of flight the airplane handles turbulence quite well with the help of the yaw dampener, although the flight attendant in the back will get the worse ride and I have seen many new ones look a little pale after a bumpy flight. << Start < Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next > End >>