The first widebody - the business class cabin on the -400 main deck.
the biggest challenge in flying this airplane is going down and slowing down. This occasionally creates conflict with ATC instructions when they need a speed and altitude restriction during an arrival, but we can usually accommodate them. Most ATC facilities understand the limitations of heavy jets like this and usually refrain from putting us in tight spots on our performance.
excessive thrust on airport ramps is a concern for any airplane, but especially on heavy jets like the 747. You can do a lot of damage or even get someone killed if you’re not careful with your thrust. In his excellent series on the 747 (to be found in https:// smokeongo.co.za/the-mightyboeing-747-400-part-one/), Scully Levin writes; “I cannot even begin to describe what it was like to fly these magnificent aircraft, as there was simply nothing else like them. Suffice it to say that I personally consider all the 747s, colloquially referred to as Jumbos, to be the most perfect of all the 200 or so aircraft types that I have ever flown.
it ’s s impl y a wonde r f ul air plane to fly
One of the biggest challenges has been taxying the plane when it’s heavy. At nominal weights, and on level surfaces, the 747 can start rolling only with idle thrust. That’s nice because all you have to do is manage the speed with regular brake applications. But I’ve already had a few situations where I’ve had to get the airplane rolling from a stop (including a few times on a slight uphill slope) when it was heavy, which required an unnerving amount thrust. Using
"The cockpit is eight metres above ground and so during taxi the aircraft appears to be moving slower than it is. A ground speed display December / January 2021/22
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