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[[Image:STS-117 approach path.gif|thumb|200px|right|The HAC is cleary shown on the flight path of STS-117.]]
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The Heading Alignment Cylinder is an imaginary cylinder, used to guide NASA's Space Shuttle on to the centerline of a runway for landing.
[[Image:Definition Spiral HAC.png|thumb|200px|right|NASA definition of the spiral HAC used for the shuttle]]
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The radius of a HAC is about 18,000 feet, and will be entered at about 22 nm's of altitude. It consists of one 360-degree turn along with a high rate of descent.
A '''Heading Alignment Cone (HAC)'''  is a virtual truncated cone, used to guide NASA's [[Space Shuttle]] onto the centerline of a runway for landing. Some publications also name it ''Heading Alignment Cylinder'', but that is not the official NASA terminology. The radius of a HAC is about 18,000 feet in  22 NM altitude.  
 
  
For alignment with the runway, the surface of the '''HAC''' is followed by the [[Shuttle]] orbiter until runway alignment is achieved, with the point, where the final glide path meets the '''HAC''', being called ''Nominal Energy Point'' (NEP).
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The HAC is followed until landing runway alignment, plus or minus 20 degrees, has been achieved.  
  
[[Category: Articles]]
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Once, there was an add-on that visualised the flight path throughout the descent, however this add-on is not found in the Orbithangar.
[[Category: Glossary]]
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[http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/180633main_EDW219_close.gif]
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''The HAC is cleary shown on the flight path of STS-117.''

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