Padraig wrote:

One of the big take-aways from this back-and-forth that surprised me
was that no one talked about Visual Descent Points (VDPs), charted or
otherwise. The point of a VDP is to indicate to the pilot when they
are at a safe distance from the MAP at which point they can leave MDA
(assuming they meet the requirements for leaving MDA). In lieu of a
charted VDPs, make your own using the rule of 300 ft/nm descent rate.
So if your MDA takes you to 600 AGL, leave MDA 2.0NM before the runway
(again, assuming you're in a position to land and meet the reqs of
descending below MDA). I believe in part it's to keep a/c from
descending into the ground after the "DIVE/DRIVE" method and they
break out way before MAP (especially at night).

The VDP is invaluable when it is charted. But, many NPAs don't have
them because the charting requirements are rather stringent.

Of course, use of a VDP requires leaving MDA prior to the MAP. ;-)