Boeing 747-100/SP/200B Procedures

The information provided in this document is to be used during simulated flight only
and is not intended to be used in real life. Attention VA's - you may post this file on your site for
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Compiled by Matt Zagoren

THROTTLE TECHNIQUE
The use of the proper technique for throttle operation can do much to prolong engine serviceability
and reduce parts replacement. Slow and steady movement of the throttle levers is recommended.
The same technique should be used when moving the reverse levers. The rate at which thrust is
applied has a direct relationship to the EGT reached when applying takeoff thrust.

Engine response to throttle movement at high altitude is very slow. Although normal engine
acceleration from idle to takeoff thrust is approximately 8 seconds at low altitude, normal
acceleration from idle to cruise thrust at high altitudes requires 20 to 30 seconds. When low
indicated airspeed is combined with maximum bleed air extraction, the acceleration time may be
as high as 60 seconds.

Throttle operation is especially critical at the top-of-descent due to the small stall margin provided
during this phase of flight. During this phase, throttle movement should be especially slow and
steady.
BEFORE TAKEOFF

Engine Start
The normal procedure for engine start is to use air from the APU to start all four engines. The
normal start sequence is 1, 4, 3, 2. Normally, engine No.1 and 4 are started for taxi of airplanes
with gross weights of approximately 600,000 pounds or less (615,000 lbs or less under ideal
conditions). Three or four engines may be used for taxiing at higher gross weights (3 engine taxi
when gross weight is under 650,000 lbs) or under unusual conditions. The remaining engines are
started prior to arrival at the runway.

Note: If a -7R4G2 has been shut down for more than 2 hours, it should not be operated at higher
than taxi thrust for 10 minutes. The captain should consider starting all engines at the blocks to
comply with this restriction. It is not necessary to delay takeoff for this warmup.

Do not start more than 1 engine at a time.

Taxi Out
The minimum pavement required to turn the 747 is 142 feet (-SP 134 feet). Body gear steering is
provided to assist in making short radius turns. This makes it possible to initiate a 90° turn when
the nose wheel is only slightly (approx 12 feet) beyond the extended centerline of the intended
taxiway. Normal clearance of the inboard engine pods is only 4 feet. The outboard pod clearance
is only 5½ feet when operating at maximum weight.

The use of the INS generated ground speed is recommended to monitor taxi speed. All turns should
be made at a slow speed and with as large a radius as possible to avoid excessive side loads on the
gear and tires. Maximum taxi speed is 25 knots.

Do not exceed 40% N1 on any engine within congested areas unless cleared by ground personnel.
The airplane can usually be taxied with idle thrust on all four engines. When necessary to further
reduce thrust, engines 2 and 3 may be shut down. If the decision is made to shut down engines 2
and/or 3 during taxi in, allow them to cool at forward idle thrust for at least three minutes prior to
shutdown.

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TAKEOFF
Airspeed Bugs
Set the airspeed buts to V1, Vr, V2 + 40 (Flaps 1 speed) and V2 + 65 (Flaps 0 speed). The Captain
should set the command airspeed bug, which is controlled with the autothrottle speed knob, on V2.

Noise Abatement Takeoff Procedure

• Advance the throttles slowly and smoothly to approximately 1.10 EPR and allow EGTs to
stabilize.

• Set takeoff thrust.

• Use rudder pedal steering to maintain directional control.

• Check engine acceleration and thrust alignment at initial setting, then advance throttles to
approximately .03 below desired takeoff EPR.

• Allow engine acceleration to stabilize with throttle setting and then adjust throttles as
necessary to obtain desired takeoff EPR by 80 knots. A slight decrease in EPR (.01 to .03) is
normal as airspeed increases above 80 knots. Performance data and operating gross weights
are computed to accommodate this decrease. Throttles should not be adjusted to
compensate for the decrease.
• At Vr, rotate smoothly to climbing attitude. Early, rapid or excessive rotation may cause
actuation of the stick shaker and fuselage contact with the runway. Depending upon flap
position and gross weight, the pitch attitude to maintain V2 + 10 knots, in the standard
airplane, is approximately 15° ANU. This attitude may be exceeded to maintain V2 + 10
knots. However, the pitch should be limited to 18° for passenger comfort.
• When it becomes necessary to turn, limit the bank angle to 15° when airspeed is below V2 +
10 knots.

• At 1000 feet AGL, reduce the pitch angle by not more than 1/2 of that required for V2 + 10
(maintain 500 - 1000 fpm climb).
• Retract flaps to 5 and then 1 on schedule.

• Set climb thrust when Flaps 1 is selected.

• Retract the remaining flaps on schedule. If you are using the maneuvering speed retraction
schedule, lead speeds by 10 knots.
• Maintain clean maneuvering speed (V2 + 80) to 3000 feet.
• At 3000 feet AGL, accelerate to 250 KIAS.

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747 Noise Abatement Takeoff

Engine Failure on Takeoff

When an engine fails, the climbout profile will be flown straight ahead to 1000 feet AGL prior to
cleanup. If special procedures or operational factors dictate, a 15° bank turn may be started prior
to 1000 feet AGL at V2.

If an engine fails after V1 while on the runway, apply rudder to maintain directional control. Do
not rotate early or rapidly. At Vr, smoothly rotate to a climb attitude and accelerate to V2. The
attitude after liftoff to maintain V2 will be approximately 2° less than the four-engine climbout
attitude. Maintain V2 to flap retraction altitude. If the engine failure occurs above V2 but less
than V2 + 10, maintain the speed reached at the time of failure. If an engine fails at V2 + 10,
maintain V2 + 10. If an engine fails at a speed greater than V2 + 10, increase pitch to maintain V2
+ 10.

In flight, the correct rudder input will center the control wheel. If the control wheel is not
centered, flight spoilers will be deployed, causing undesirable drag. At 1000 AGL, level off and
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retract flaps on schedule. After flap retraction, reduce power to climb setting and continue the
climb.

747 Engine Failure, Takeoff

Rejected Takeoff
Rapidly and simultaneously move the throttles to IDLE and:
• -100 and SP - Apply maximum braking.

• -200B - DO NOT apply braking as this will disarm the autobrakes. If the autobrakes were
used for takeoff, maximum braking will be applied in the event of a rejected takeoff if the
airspeed is above 80 knots and symmetrical reverse levers are moved to the reverse
interlock position.

• Manually position the speed brake lever to up if the lever does not start rearward movement
immediately after reversing engines.

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CLIMB
Turn off the landing lights when passing through 18,000 feet. When takeoff is made during hours of
darkness, turn off the logo lights at 18,000 feet. Following the initial setting of climb EPR, check
and adjust as necessary at 5,000 foot intervals between 10,000 feet and FL200. Above FL200,
check climb EPR at 2,000 foot intervals.

The standard climb speed schedule of 250/300/.82M (100); 250/300/.84M (SP); and 250/330/.84M
(200B) was selected to provide optimum climb performance and fuel economy for an average
takeoff gross weight. The flight planning tables and computer flight plans are based on this
standard climb schedule. However, optional, minimum trip fuel climb speed schedules are shown
in the Limitations section showing optimum climb speeds as a function of airplane weight.
Utilization of these climb speeds is recommended to minimize fuel costs.

CRUISE
Compute a new cruise EPR after each 20,000 pounds of fuel burnoff throughout the flight.
APPROACH DESCENT
The standard descent speed schedule of .84/280/250 (100); .85/280/250 (SP & 200B) was selected
to meet ATC speed requirements and for conservation of fuel. The flight planning tables and
computer flight plans are based on this standard schedule. Specific speeds for applicable gross
weights are shown in the Limitations section. Above 10,000 feet, ATC approval must be obtained
for all descent speeds below 280 KIAS.
To achieve the maximum descent rate below 10,000 feet, descend with the gear down, throttles at
idle and the flaps at no more than position 20.

The throttles should be retarded to produce 1.25 EPR and the engines allowed to stabilize for 30
seconds before bringing them to the idle stops or to the 60% N1 point in -200B aircraft. This
technique increases the stall margin which reduces the number of engine stalls and increases
engine longevity.

APPROACH PREPARATION
The recommended autobrake deceleration settings and the corresponding runway conditions are as
follows:
• MIN - Routine braking on runways that are 8,000 feet and longer.
• MED - Wet or slippery runways and for runways that are less than 8,000 feet in length.
• MAX - For emergency use only or when braking action is reported as nil.

Turn on the landing lights at 18,000 feet. When the approach or landing is made during hours of
darkness, turn on the logo lights at 18,000 feet. Set airspeed and EPR bugs to the appropriate
numbers.

HOLDING
The recommended holding configuration is clean. When holding below 15,000 feet maintain an
airspeed of Vref + 80. When above 15,000 feet, holding should be at minimum drag airspeed (see
performance section). If conditions require a slower speed, Flaps 1 or 5 may be used below 20,000
feet.

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APPROACHES
General
It is good practice to consider an approach as starting when leaving 18,000 feet. Flaps 25 is the
NORMAL landing flap configuration for the -100 and -200B. For the SP, Flaps 30 is the NORMAL
landing flap configuration. In IFR conditions, the airplane should be in final approach configuration
by 1000 feet AFE. In VFR conditions, and in the interest of fuel conservation and noise abatement,
the initial part of the approach may be flow with less than landing flaps. In this case, the aircraft
should be in final approach configuration by 500 feet AFE. On non-precision approaches where the
MDA is less than 500 feet AFE, the landing flaps should be selected prior to leaving the MDA.
Airspeed Bugs and Airspeeds
The airspeed bugs should be set prior to starting the approach. The recommended settings are the
minimum maneuvering speeds for Flaps 0, 5, 10, and 30. The final setting for the command
airspeed bug should be the target approach speed.
To reduce body angle and eliminate the need for reference to the landing data card, optional
maneuvering speeds for various flap configurations have been provided. It is recommended that
these speeds be used when transitioning from the descent phase to the approach phase of flight
and when relatively little maneuvering is expected in the terminal area.

Optional maneuvering speeds, as shown below, are computed to give a safe maneuvering margin on
all 747 models when operating at or below maximum structural landing weights.
Optional Maneuvering
KIAS
Speeds
Flaps Clean 240
Flaps 1 220
Flaps 5 200
Flaps 10 180
Flaps 20 160

It is recommended that Flaps 20 not be selected until near the final approach course due to
increased drag.

Visual Approaches
You can expect a 4° nose-up body angle when flying the 747 on a descent profile of 2½° to 3° at
approach speed with Flaps 25. The main gear touchdown should be planned to be no less than
1000 feet down the runway. To accomplish this requires a pilot aim point of 1500 feet down the
runway. Plan to cross the threshold at a radio altitude (wheel height) of about 50 feet.

Normal ILS
Prior to any ILS approach, the pilot should check the threshold crossing height (TCH) or GS height
above threshold. This height must be at least 42 feet in order to provide the desired main gear
height of 20 feet at the threshold. If the height is less than 42 feet, the glide slope should be
abandoned at no less than 200 feet above ground level and visual clues used for the remainder of
the approach.

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747 ILS Approach

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747 ILS Autoland

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747-200B Triple Autoland

Non-Precision Approaches
Gear should be extended prior to the final approach fix. Flaps should be extended to 25 and speed
reduced to target approach speed prior to starting the descent to the MDA. If a circling approach is
planned, Flaps 20 and a maneuvering speed of 160 knots should be used. Landing flaps should be
extended after visual contact is established.

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747 Non-Precision Approach

Circling Approaches
Maneuver the airplane without exceeding 30° of bank. Maintain a flap setting of 20 and 160 KIAS.

Go-Around/Missed Approach
Advance the throttles to go-around EPRs, establish the go-around pitch attitude (approximately 10°
to 13° ANU) while simultaneously disengaging the autopilot and autothrottle. Select Flaps 20.
Select gear UP at positive rate of climb. Limit bank angle to 15° and pitch attitude to 18° ANU.

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747 Missed Approach

Approach and Landing Geometry

The main gear touchdown point should be a minimum of 1000 feet down the runway. If on an ILS,
do not duck under the glide path. On visual approaches, the eye level aim point should be 1500
feet from the runway threshold. Flying the center of the glide slope of a reasonably standard ILS
will give you the same visual aim point. If no flare is initiated, the main gear touchdown point will
be 500 feet from the threshold.

A moderate flare initiated after passing the runway threshold should extend the flight path of the
main wheels about 500 to 1000 feet resulting in a main gear touchdown between 1000 and 1500
feet from the threshold.
LANDINGS

General
The flare is normally initiated at approximately 30 feet above the runway surface. Body attitude
at touchdown is 5-6 degrees. Do not prolong the flare, but fly the airplane onto the runway.
Fuselage contact with the runway will occur at approximately 11 degrees pitch attitude.
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Fly the airplane onto the runway at the desired location while reducing the rate of descent and
moving the throttles to idle by touchdown. If installed, use autobrakes for all landings.

Crosswind Landings
If the airplane is allowed to touchdown in a crab as in an automatic landing, the pilot will need to
apply rudder promptly to establish a straight rollout and can expect to rollout downwind of the
runway centerline. The hand flown manual crosswind landing technique is as follows:
• The pilot should displace himself/herself toward the upwind side of the runway on final
approach so that the main gear will be tracking the extended centerline.

• Initiate the landing flare and remove the crab with rudder. This will cause the cockpit to
swing around to the runway centerline.
• Use lateral control to maintain wings level.

• If a downwind drift occurs before touchdown, dropping the upwind wing will stop the drift.
Touchdown will occur on the upwind gear first. Engine pod clearance does not become
critical until 7½° of bank is exceeded.

Landing Roll
Autobrakes will be used with every landing. With autobrake operation, deceleration should be felt
within 2 seconds after touchdown. When no longer required, a 15 to 20 pound pressure on either
or both pedals will trip the AUTOBRAKE selector to the DISARM position. Normally, the smoothes
transition to manual braking can be made at 60 knots.
Reverse thrust may be applied upon main gear touchdown and prior to nose gear touchdown. Do
not exceed takeoff EGT limit, go-around EPR limit or 85% N1 when using reverse thrust. Prior to 90
knots, begin thrust reduction smoothly. As a rule of thumb, N1 in percent should equal knots.
Continue thrust reduction to reach reverse idle by approximately 60 knots. When taxi speed is
reached (15 knots), ARM the body gear steering switch.
TAXI IN
Do not exceed 40% N1 on any engine when in congested areas unless cleared by qualified
personnel. Unless conditions dictate otherwise, shut down engines No. 2 and No. 3 to conserve
fuel. Maintain at least 61% N2 rpm on the operating engines to lessen susceptibility to compressor
stall. For the -200B, engine shutdown should be delayed for 5 minutes after touchdown or until
arrival at the gate, whichever occurs first. Set the stabilizer trim to 7 units to center the logo
lights on the vertical stabilizer logos.
FUEL CONSERVATION

Fueling
Carrying extra fuel adds extra weight and results in a higher fuel burn. The following items should
be considered when determining the fuel required:

• Can you delete or change your alternate to a closer airport?

• Is it possible to reduce or eliminate contingency fuel?

As a rule of thumb, during a four hour flight, you will burn approximately 15% of any extra fuel just
to carry that fuel.

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Taxi Out
Avoid APU starting as long as possible. The APU can use up to twenty times more fuel than some
GPUs. Taxiing out with less than four engines will save fuel. Shut down the APU as soon as
possible after engine start. Use cross-bleed to start the remaining engines prior to takeoff.

Takeoff
Takeoffs should be made with the lowest possible flap configuration so as to provide better
acceleration, higher climb rate and earlier flap retraction, thereby improving fuel economy by
reducing drag. Close adherence to the flap retraction schedule will save fuel.

Climb
If departure control needs distance before turning you on course, complete the noise abatement
procedure and accelerate to 250 KIAS. If departure control needs altitude, climb at clean
maneuvering speed. When cleared to turn, use 25° to 30° of bank. When heading toward your
destination, accelerate to normal climb speed.
Refer to the Limitations section for the optimum climb speeds for minimum trip fuel burnout. If
ATC stops you at an intermediate altitude, do not increase speed above the recommended climb
speed.

Cruise Control
The following cruising conditions result in higher fuel consumption as indicated:
• Altitude 4000 feet below optimum: 3 to 5 percent higher (2000 pounds/1000 feet/hour can
be used to calculate the additional burnout.)

• Speed .01 Mach fast: 3 to 5 percent higher.

• Headwind increase or tailwind decrease: 350 to 400 pounds for each minute late.
Select an altitude that will not require more than maximum cruise thrust to maintain the planned
cruise Mach number at the OAT and gross weight projected at that altitude. One also needs to
consider the high and low speed buffet margins when selecting an altitude. Optimum altitude
increases with decreasing airplane weight. Optimum altitudes specified in the Performance section
provide adequate buffet margins.
At the top-of-climb, set cruise EPR after reaching the desired Mach number. Balance engine thrust
using EPR. There is a large drag penalty associated with unbalanced thrust.

If you are using a constant Mach cruise schedule and .84 Mach is the planned cruise Mach number,
evaluate available nautical air miles (NAM) per 1000 pounds of fuel for .83 or .85 Mach for the
airplane gross weight and altitude. If .84 and .85 Mach NAM are the same, avoid flying slow. If .84
and .83 Mach NAM are the same, avoid flying fast.
If the SAT increases, airspeed, Mach number and EPR all decrease. Relatively aggressive addition
of thrust is required to return to the previous cruising state. The opposite occurs with a SAT
decrease.

Nautical miles per 1000 pounds of fuel burned is the measure of an airplane's fuel burn
performance. To determine the airplane's actual NAM performance using a Jeppesen computer,
divide the actual TAS by total fuel flow. Compare this value with the table value for the airplane

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gross weight and altitude. These values should be very close. The cause of poor NAM performance
should be investigated and corrected if possible.

To determine Nautical Ground Miles (NGM) per 1000 pounds performance, divide groundspeed by
total fuel flow. This actual NGM value is useful to compare with the worst NGM that can be
tolerated for a given fuel supply of over a given distance. It may also be used to determine the
break-even groundspeed at a new altitude when considering an altitude change (altitude/wind
trade).
At normal cruise speed at optimum altitude, the approximate pitch attitude for the SP is 2.7
degrees ANU. For the 100 and 200B, the approximate pitch attitude is 2.5 degrees ANU. For the
100, 1.41 EPR is the approximate thrust value required to maintain Mach .84 at optimum cruise
altitude. For the SP and 200B, the value is 1.39 EPR for a Mach .85 cruise at optimum altitude.

Descent
Descent tables are supplied in the Performance section to help in determining the correct descent
point. If the descent is started too late, too much time and fuel have been expended at cruising
fuel consumption. If the descent is started too early, too much time is spent at lower altitudes at
fuel flows above idle. If unable to reach a crossing altitude and position simultaneously, it is more
economical to slightly overshoot and use speed brakes to recover than to undershoot and have to
add thrust to reach position.
Approach
Maintain a clean configuration as long as possible and use only the minimum flap necessary to meet
the speed requirements. Delay gear extension as long as possible but always be in landing
configuration and stabilized flight by 500 feet AGL or earlier if IFR.

Taxi In
During taxi in, the No. 2 and No. 3 engines may be shut down. Always delay starting the APU as
long as possible and shut it down as soon as ground power is plugged in if passenger comfort
permits. However, to limit APU start cycles and improve APU reliability, the APU should not be
shut down when it will be required for any use within the next 45 minutes.

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