What happens after a plane flies past the point of no return

The point of no return, or PNR, is the point at which a plane is no longer able to fly back to the airport it set off from due to not having enough fuel.

The point of no return is calculated before the flight. 

But it’s also updated throughout the flight as conditions change. 

And there’s a very important reason for it.

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What does it mean when a plane hits the point of no return

During a flight, a plane will hit the point of no return after which it won’t be able to fly back to the airport it set off from, while keeping within legally required fuel reserves. 

The point of no return is calculated using a bunch of factors, including the plane’s performance, wind, and fuel requirements, by pilots and dispatchers. 

Alongside this, the plane’s equal time point (ETP) is also calculated, showing the specific point of the journey when the plane is equidistant between two airports. 

The two work hand-in-hand.

So a pilot will know when they can no longer return to the airport they set off from, thanks to the PNR, and will also know which alternative airport is closest to get to because of the ETP. 

Although it might sound a little daunting, passing the point of no return in a plane doesn’t mean it’s stuck. 

It just means that pilots and dispatchers would be looking at airports ahead, rather than considering flying back to where the plane set off from.

Knowing a flight’s point of no return is essential for ensuring that planes are always able to safely get to a suitable airport without running out of fuel. 

It also allows the pilots to make critical decisions, such as choosing to divert to an alternate airport if there’s an emergency on board.

Ever wondered why your flight time was a little weird?

While the PNR isn’t something the average passenger has to spend any time thinking about, the odds are that you have noticed that when it comes to your flight time, it’s a little unusual. 

Rather than 9 am or 12 pm on the dot, you’ll often find that your flight time is 9.07 am or 12.41 pm. 

Well, a pilot recently revealed what was behind the odd timings, and it’s actually pretty simple. 

He explained that flights used to be on the hour, but it would often cause chaos as there was a big demand for flights being pushed back, which resulted in delays and people being held while airborne, so a solution was put in place.

“They started staggering all of the departure times so they doled it out to all of the airlines and said, ‘Look, you guys can’t build a schedule where everybody leaves at 2:00 or everybody leaves at 3:00,’” explained the US pilot.

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