Do pilots ever pause a certain altitude during a descent?
When the pilot begins the descent, does the plane constantly go down from that point on or does the altitude ever stabilize? For example, lets say your at 30,000ft, do you just start slowly decreasing altitude until you touch down, or will it go from 30k, down to 15k, then cruise for another 20-30etc miles and then continue it's descent?
More Questions From This User See All
Answers & Comments
Verified answer
Depends on the airport that's being flown into. If it's busy you may be put in a stack where you fly in a racetrack pattern at a certain altitude, with other aircraft 1000ft and 2000ft and 3000ft below you. When the bottom one goes off to land, the aircraft above go down 1000ft and the process repeats.
Otherwise, there may be a continuous descent until you get closer to the airport when you fly at certain altitudes for a few miles so ATC can get everyone going at the right speed and separation..
It is almost always a series of step-downs. It is extremely rare to receive a continuous descent clearance. Standard Arrival Routes (STAR's) all have step-downs or ATC issues them instead.