Why are certain planes lower than others?
Aircraft altitude is generally determined by the distance from the landing or takeoff runway. The closer the aircraft is to the runway, the lower the altitude will be. Arrivals tend to descend at a fixed angle of 3 degrees. This equates to aircraft being only 750ft above the runway elevation while still 2.5 miles from the runway. The angle of ascent for departures is a function of aircraft type, weight, air temperature, departure profile, bank angle, wind speed and direction.
