Easy way to teach holds?

[JetSpeed219]

I've got my CFII checkride on tuesday and I know I will be asked to teach holds. Any suggestions on an easy way to teach a hold? Thanks in advance...

 

[DC8 Flyer]

Ive used this and it seems to work fairly well.

When trying to figure out how to enter the hold there are basically two headings you could use. The parrellel/direct heading, or the teardrop heading. Simply note those two headings and when you hit the fix turn until you arrive at one of them.

Seems to work all the time.

 

[labbats]

Get some sidewalk chalk, draw it out and "walk the chalk".

 

[TonyC]

Simply note those two headings and when you hit the fix turn until you arrive at one of them.

Seems to work all the time.

Except when you turn in the wrong direction?!?!




.

 

[StrykerFL]

I use an easy to remember acronym for determining your entry heading.

LARS (For determining entry heading)

Left
Add
Right
Subtract

Teardrop: +/- 30 degrees from the Outbound Leg
Parallel: +/- 30 degrees from the Inbound Leg

For instance:

Hold west of the ORL VOR right turns, 1 min legs, etc...

Inbound 090/Outbound 270 and you're SE of the VOR

First its Right Turns so you will subtract and its a parallel entry so you subtract from the inbound:

Inbound Leg 090 - 30= 060

After you cross the fix and parallel outbound 1 min, you'll turn left to a heading of 060 and then intercept your course inbound and hold to the right.

If you were NE of the VOR it would be a teardrop.

Outbound Leg 270 - 30= 240

Once you cross the VOR turn to a heading of 240 for 1 minute then turn right to intercept your inbound heading of 090.

It seems to help with most of my instrument students. Good luck on your checkride.

 

[DC8 Flyer]

Except when you turn in the wrong direction?!?!




.

Not sure I follow what you mean. Works for both left and right hand holds? Only thing is you have to use a little grey matter to figure out when are entering direct.

 

[Fly_Chick]

One way I teach is that whenever you reach the fix, you will always need to turn towards/fly on the outbound heading.

If the student has in mind that they always have to turn in the direction of the outbound heading, combined with labbats 'walk the chalk', it works out well and they tend to pick the appropriate entry.

Also, always separate the entry from the actual hold. These are two separate pieces of the 'hold'. I separate them as the student will have less tendency while entering the hold to get caught up in the whole "left turns" "standard turns". Those come only after the student has entered the hold.

 

[GravityHater]

More of a practical note vs what you will have to teach but...

I had a pretty experienced instructor and corporate pilot tell me to forget the parallel completely. He recommends, and only uses, either direct or teardrop.
I have tried it, and it is a lot easier when you only have to remember two entries. The parallel confuses many anyway. I take it a little further and make the division line that you draw to be a 90d, not that crazy 30/60 thing that no one can remember. Try it, you will prefer it.

 

[JetSpeed219]

Passed!!!!!

 

[aucfi]

Congrats!!

 

[Dr Pokenhiemer]

Congrats!! A lot of people make things more complicated than they have to be when trying to instruct. Look at your holding fix, draw your holding pattern, then imagine you arrpoaching the fix from different directions. Then ask yourself one question--What's the easiest way for me to hit the fix then get turned around heading the correct way for the holding pattern? If it's teardrop or parallel, always make your turn to the inside of the pattern.

 

[chriskcmo]

I had a good friend who's an FAA inspector teach me this little trick. He learned it from a old crusty TWA captain.


Depending on whether you're doing right or left turns in the hold, you choose your right hand (for right turns). Hold your hand out, palm facing you (you should know holding like the palm of your hand). Now, stick your thumb out at an angle. Place your hand on the DG or HSI with the miniature airplane sitting where your thumb attaches to your hand, palm still facing out.

Whereever the radial that you're holding ON sits in relationship to your hand, you do the following:

If it is in the area between your thumb and index finger, it's a teardrop entry (if you look, you can kind of see a "teardrop" formed by your thumb and finger).

If it in the area between your index finger and your little finger, it's a parallel entry (the fingers are parallel to eachother).

And if it falls anywhere else, it's direct.

Go try it sometime in an airplane or sim. Works every time.

 

[MFRskyknight]

The way I was taught to conceptualize holds (not that long ago) that really made it simple was by intially breaking down the holding clearance and drawing it out like so:

ATC: "Cessna 123, hold west on the ABC VOR 263 radial 12 DME, left turns..."

1) Draw a point (the fix). Draw a line sticking out to the west of it, with an arrow pointing towards the fix. There's the inbound course.

2) Write the exact radial/bearing (263) off to the side somewhere for reference.

3) Draw the racetrack according to standard or nonstandard turn direction, with another arrow pointing opposite for the outbound course. Label the inbound/outbound courses (083/263, respectively).

4) Hold your pen across the fix at 90 degrees to the course, then slant it about 20 degrees in the direction of the outbound course, and draw that line through the fix.

5) Anywhere on the side of the line with the larger part of the racetrack body is a direct entry. On the other side, the sector that contains the small end of the racetrack is parallel, and the sector that contains no part of the racetrack is the teardrop. Because it's sad. 'Cause it don't have no part of the holding pattern in it, see?

Clear as mud?

MFR

 

[MFRskyknight]

I had a good friend who's an FAA inspector teach me this little trick. He learned it from a old crusty TWA captain.


Depending on whether you're doing right or left turns in the hold, you choose your right hand (for right turns). Hold your hand out, palm facing you (you should know holding like the palm of your hand). Now, stick your thumb out at an angle. Place your hand on the DG or HSI with the miniature airplane sitting where your thumb attaches to your hand, palm still facing out.

Whereever the radial that you're holding ON sits in relationship to your hand, you do the following:

If it is in the area between your thumb and index finger, it's a teardrop entry (if you look, you can kind of see a "teardrop" formed by your thumb and finger).

If it in the area between your index finger and your little finger, it's a parallel entry (the fingers are parallel to eachother).

And if it falls anywhere else, it's direct.

Go try it sometime in an airplane or sim. Works every time.

Wow!!! It does work!

MFR