Kevin Darling wrote:

It's not that far off -- I think (but am not certain) that a
fully-loaded DC-9 has a best climb angle of around 650 ft/nm, while a
small single-engine plane will manage something like 400-600 ft/nm at Vx
depending on horsepower and load. Of course, the DC-9 has a much better
climb *rate*, but that's not the concern here [...]

I could be wrong, too, but I think even a loaded DC-9 can manage at
least 1000-1500fpm... and might have to do so for noise abatement
around the airport.

You need to know the forward speed as well. At 120 kt, 1500 fpm would be
750 ft/nm; at 180 kt, it would be only 500 ft/nm (but I think that the DC-9
can do better than that). In either case, the climb angle is not that much
greater than that of a light single.


All the best,


David