Tailwinds

Yes, you would go 100 kts faster with respect to the ground.

The "maximum speed" you refer to is your speed with respect to the air around you (hence the term "knots indicated air speed, or KIAS" and it is a measure of the aerodynamic stress on the airframe. You must not exceed that air speed, or your aircraft could come apart around you (that's bad). So no matter which way the wind is blowing, and how fast, you must not exceed that maximum air speed.

However, when you're flying from point A on the ground to point B on the ground, the number that tells you how it will take to get there is your ground speed-- how fast you're moving with respect to the ground. If the wind is blowing east and you're flying east, you travel over the ground at a higher speed than if you were flying west, if you keep you airspeed the same.

Make sense?

Ed

If you have 100knts tail wind while landing, you are doomed. 😀 If the airport isn't closed and some crazy tower controller allow you to land by this wind.

I get it. Since the IAS is what's on the airspeed indicator, that is not the same as the groundspeed which is what really matters. So there is no maximum ground speed you can be going?

Anonymous wrote:

I get it. Since the IAS is what's on the airspeed indicator, that is not the same as the groundspeed which is what really matters. So there is no maximum ground speed you can be going?

Well, IAS is what matters to the air frame-- that's what tells you if you're about to rip the wings off. 😳

Ground speed is what matters to the passengers who are in a hurry to get to Chicago, or where ever. Unless you rip the wings off, in which case they'll start thinking more about airspeed. 😂

But no, there is no maximum ground speed.

Ed

As a matter of interest....at least to me! Did an exercise some years ago in a C150 where we were actually flying backwards over the ground due to strong headwinds IAS was enough to keep us airborne. Done with a low power settingadopting slow flight...probably possible to replicate on FS.

It's more likely you would have to deal with shifting winds, as there are to and from Hawaii. The more altitude you have, the stronger the winds. This can be very dangerous since the wind is speeding you up and then suddenly shifts and you loose speed suddenly.

Want to know what it's like? Set an IRF course from the mainland to Hawaii. Go to 31,000' and you will learn what winds can do to an aircraft. Then picture what those winds magnified can do. (Set real world weather)