Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) Practice Exam

In a situation where a pilot is descending on a 3-degree glide slope and experiences a transition from a constant tailwind to calm winds, it's important to recognize how this change affects the aircraft's performance.

A tailwind contributes to groundspeed, allowing the aircraft to maintain its descent path with a specific airspeed. When the wind shifts suddenly to calm, the groundspeed decreases. However, the aircraft's inertia continues to affect its descent, meaning without the continuing tailwind, the aircraft will not descend as quickly through the air.

As the aircraft's groundspeed decreases, but the descent rate remains constant initially, the aircraft will tend to climb relative to the new position on the glide slope. Consequently, this requires the pilot to react by adjusting the pitch attitude upwards to maintain the desired glide slope. The increase in pitch attitude will also generally result in an increase in airspeed if the throttle settings are maintained because the aircraft may enter a climb profile or an unstable state.

Therefore, with a transition from a tailwind to calm winds, the pilot should expect that airspeed and pitch attitude will increase, along with a tendency to go above the glide slope, requiring attention to ensure proper descent management.