No, but a visual approach at this altitude, with these surroundings, is definitely less safe than the same visual approach at sea level with flat terrain.
Dangerous? How? For high-performance aircraft with correct all-weather capability, looks pretty easy. Does this approach have ILS or good precise RNAV?
Lmao because of wind. Insane turbulence and windshear etc with those canyons and mountains. Not to mention insane terrain at high elevation - extremely low margin for error.
@@danmoretti8898 It all depends on winds. Calm days, that's not a factor. The runway is situated pretty cleanly and I assume the Instrument Approaches are good with plenty of margin for Decision Height and MDA, etc. When turbulent, you increase your approach airspeed. If you have the "insane" turbulence you speak of, then go MA and head for the alternate.
@@michaelshelton7761 Sure, the winds make things more difficult. However, even on "calm" days you still have the potential for sudden wind changes close on final due to terrain - this has to do with things like mountainous leading edges that form turbulent zones. Secondly, windy and turbulent days are pretty much the norm in this region. Next, don't take it from me: actual pilots who actually fly here state that, when flying this approach for the first time, they "highly recommend" or almost even "almost require" that you bring an experienced mountain CFI with you, because there are a ton of dangerous terrain features that cause other turbulence problems and simply box you in, reducing escape routes. For instance, when landing to the west, you don't have much room to just easily "go MA" despite that being the "easier" approach. Going around requires a sharp right turn up against the bottom of a bunch of mountains - there's no room to climb above them, you have to just turn quickly and climb out over ascending terrain. Complicating things is the fact that this is the second highest elevation of any airport in the USA,
@@danmoretti8898 Dan, points well taken. Let me look at the approach plates and Takeoff Mins / Departures and get back to you. I haven't flown in years but I have a lot of instrument time and a lot of approaches, albeit very, very few into airports of this terrain and altitude.
