Average descent rate for commercial jets?

Question

what is the average rate per minute of climb to the cruising altitude and whats the average descent rate. if its different for each plane what is it for a 767, and 747

Answer 1

Average descent rate is 2000 fpm.

Average climb rate is 1000 fpm.

Descend so you're down about a thousand feet every 3 miles.  

Answer 2

There really is no average descent rate.  It all depends on the conditions, airspeed, weight of the aircraft, and what drag you have available.  For example, the descent rate is larger when you have the flaps and slats out, but your airspeed is generally lower.  Climb rate also depends on the conditions, like weight and temperature.  Perhaps if you tell us why you want this, we can answer you better.

Answer 3

Airliners begin their descent from cruising altitude around 100 nm out of the airport, which, for a cruise altitude of 36,000 feet or so and a field at sea level, at 250 knots, would equate to about 1500 fpm or so.  However, there are a great many variables to consider.

When you are making your descent, slow down.  Then you can descend quickly enough to not overshoot your destination.  Coming in too fast and too high is the classic mistake of beginner pilots flying big iron.

Answer 4

In order to save fuel, most aircraft try to maximize descent rates in order to gain the beetter fuel efficiency at altitude for a longer period of time.  So rather than descending at 1000 feet per minute, we prefer to wait until the last second, chop the throttles to idle, and descend at a faster rate.  Depending on the aircraft, it is usually between about 3000 and 3500 fpm.

On climbout, we are limited by gravity, but at lower altitudes where the air is denser (and therefore we get both more power and more lift) it is not uncommon to see a jet aircraft climb at 4000-5000 fpm.  Obviously that slows down at we climb and there is less excess power available to us, but again the concept is the same.  Get up into the thin air as quickly as possible to save fuel.

And to answer to someone who said we don't do mental gymnastics any more, I'd like to respectfully disagree.  Automation is great but you can never let a computer fly your airplane or make your decisions for you.  In order to plan a descent, I generally use a quick and easy formula of thousands of feet to lose x 2.5.  For instance to descend from FL380 to 10000' is 28,000' of altitude to lose.  28x2.5=70nm.  Begin a descent 70nm out and roll the VSI down to 3000fpm and you will end up right about where you want to be.  Of course this only works for my airplane, your airplane might be a bit different :)

Answer 5

I am not a pilot, but it seems about 1000 feet per minute, up or down. Both aircraft. The aircraft can climb faster, but burns more fuel.

Regards,

Dan

Answer 6

As we’ve discussed, the "average" depends on many factors...weight, DA, altitude, winds aloft, distance from waypoint, etc.

But the flight simulator problem you're having can be mostly solved by deploying the spoilers / speed brakes (forward slash "/" key) and / or some degree of flaps during the descent.

You've got to learn the aircraft though...40 degrees of flaps at Mach .83 at FL390 in B-747-400 would cause great excitement in the real world.

A maneuver used primarily in light aircraft is called a "slip." This is where the pilot inputs aileron with opposite rudder. This causes the aircraft to lose altitude significantly faster with out increasing airspeed. It's rarely used in commercial aviation because it tends to pin the passengers hard up against the fuselage wall...it's a deliberate uncoordinated maneuver.

Answer 7

that depends a a few things, traffic being one, weight another, emergency another, weather another. tough question

Answer 8

Anywhere between 2500 and 3500 fpm. Depends on variables already discussed above.  

Answer 9

The industry standard descent profile is 3 degrees,for pax comfort and manageable descent rates, this is close to 300 feet per nautical mile. This means from 30,000 feet the descent would begin 100 miles from the destination plus 10 to 20 miles to slow to approach speed. The mathematics gives us a descent rate equal to half the ground speed times ten to stay on this profile.

Ground speed is going to be around 600 kts. at 30,000 feet plus or minus the wind. So the initial descent rate will be around 3000 feet per minute decreasing as altitude decreases.

The FMS and autopilot do all the work these days but it comes up with these same numbers. No more mental gymnastics for the pilots