subject: What Are Continuous Descent Approaches? [print this page] Continuous descent approaches are a method of conserving fuel that may start being used to save fuel. Then involve much slower and more drawn out descent.
Continuous descent approaches could become the industry standard in aeronautics, and could have a substantially amount of fuel. Currently airplanes begin the ascent when the airport is almost in sight. This is common all around the world. But in a world with one aeroplane it would make no sense to fly at such a high altitude and then drop so quickly. It would make more sense to descend very gradually from many hundreds of miles away. This would save fuel and potentially make flights cheaper and more efficient in terms of carbon emissions.
There are some hurdles to overcome before flights from London to San Francisco begin their descents when over Las Vegas. Firstly, there's the problem of air traffic and the thousands of other planes in the air. This problem could be fixed when they have developed sufficiently enhanced control systems that replace the current system of communication between ground control and pilots via radios. A better system, with manual oversight, could be electronic and could permit and continual descent of an aeroplane that so that flights from Denver to Boston could commence their descent way before they reach the East Coast.
This would save a lot of fuel, but there are some problems. No such electronic system exists to guide planes in. And having planes gradually descending all across the country greatly increases the risk of a collision. And for short flights from San Francisco to Los Angeles it's pretty much a straight up and down already, so it's not worth it for many routes to invest in the technology. It's a long way off, but if oil were to triple or quadruple in cost, it's something that airlines may seriously consider.
