Traffic Pattern Anyone?

[aucfi]

What happened to entering the traffic pattern the proper & courteous way?

Two aircraft both called 6 mile finals within 10 minutes of each other while there were 3 other aircraft in the pattern including myself. To top it off, one of the aircraft (a Cirrus) called his 6 mile final, his 3 mile final, his 1 mile final, and his short final and then called a go-around after realizing he had made his approach to the CLOSED RUNWAY!

One guy in the pattern simply departed and came back in after things calmed down (smart guy). The other plane in the pattern turned final ahead of the other guy on the long final because the long final traffic said "yeh you guys got plenty of room, Im still 4-5 miles out." Im not going to bank my life/career on this guys estimate of distance on his final approach. My student and I elected to extend until he was in sight and beyond us and simply because he technically has the right of way.

We get a lot of corporate traffic in and out of the airport and they usually cut corners in the pattern. Though its practically no different, I usually dont mind extending to let them in ahead of us or to give them a chance to depart as long as they call ahead and give us in the pattern time to kind of coordinate an opening for them. It doesnt take too long for a corporate jet to fly a 6 mile final, but a 172, c'mon.

 

[Kream926]

whatever happened to overflying the field?

 

[UA-RESURRECTED]

That's what scares me about uncontrolled feilds. My time is pretty low, and ALL of it has been at a towered airport, where ATC basically tells you what to do. The thought of whipping around an uncontrolled feild with other airplanes in the pattern, not to mention others airplane inbound....scares the hell out of me. I hoping I'll get some experiance with non-towered feilds durring the X-country phase of training.

 

[uavchaser]

What happened to entering the traffic pattern the proper & courteous way?

Two aircraft both called 6 mile finals within 10 minutes of each other while there were 3 other aircraft in the pattern including myself. To top it off, one of the aircraft (a Cirrus) called his 6 mile final, his 3 mile final, his 1 mile final, and his short final and then called a go-around after realizing he had made his approach to the CLOSED RUNWAY!

how come no one was courteous enough to tell this guy the runway was closed?

 

[aucfi]

The Cirrus pilot was calling his final to runway 20 and actually made his approach to the closed runway 24

 

[Kream926]

That's what scares me about uncontrolled feilds. My time is pretty low, and ALL of it has been at a towered airport, where ATC basically tells you what to do..

f'n a hes back

towered or uuntowered you're still responsible for see and avoid. i cant count how many times ive been cut off or had towere lose track of whos who in the pattern

 

[MFRskyknight]

The thought of whipping around an uncontrolled feild with other airplanes in the pattern, not to mention others airplane inbound....scares the hell out of me.

My suggestion: less "whipping".

MFR

 

[FN FAL]

"I had the right of way!" is a common engraving on tombstones. That's why it is called en "graving".

 

[cezzna]

Just a thought but it sounds like the Cirrus is the bonanza of the new millenium. Underexperienced aviators overreaching their skills with deep pockets. Instead of the fork-tailed doctor killer its the glass based moron thriller.

 

[siucavflight]

The Cirrus pilot was calling his final to runway 20 and actually made his approach to the closed runway 24

What a tool. You would think that with all of the toys in the Cirrus, the guy could get the name of the runway correct.

 

[Immelman]

What a tool. You would think that with all of the toys in the Cirrus, the guy could get the name of the runway correct.

pprobably was too busy keeping his head square in the cockpit so that his whizbang sectional-chart-replacement device could land the airplane for him.

 

[cforst513]

just curious what the airport identifier is.

i like to head to quasi-busy non-towered airports every once in a while to keep myself fresh (b/c the field where my school is based is towered). just the other day i went to sebastian and no one was there to provide traffic advisories, so i overflew the field, used the windsock to pick my runway, entered 45 degrees to the downwind, and landed, after announcing everything at the proper times.

i was up in ohio last week and i couldn't get over how HORRIBLE some people are on the radio.

"uh.... morrow county traffic, cessna N12345 is, uh..... right field down-- right downwind of the field for, um, landing."

 

[cforst513]

Just a thought but it sounds like the Cirrus is the bonanza of the new millenium. Underexperienced aviators overreaching their skills with deep pockets. Instead of the fork-tailed doctor killer its the glass based moron thriller.

that is pretty funny :laugh:

 

[aucfi]

Danville, VA

KDAN

 

[Kream926]

cforst

im glad you are learning and doing the proper procedure

 

[avbug]

A couple of weeks ago I landed at an uncontrolled field, with several aircraft in area. I arrived IFR and cancelled on arrival at the field. After announcing a downwind, base, and final, I observed a small twin sitting on the opposite end of the runway, while I was on very short final. I went around. As I went over the top of him, I enquired on the radio if the twin sitting on the end of the runway were listening.

He immediately came back and said yes, he was, and he was departing.

Foolish on his part? Yes. He had been sitting down there, he knew I was there. I didn't see him on the runway. The terrain, layout of the runway, and another distraction lead to my failure to see him (and possibly some eyesight that isn't what it once was...though I'm not ready to concede on that point, yet)...yet he was fully aware of me, and my intentions.

End result? I went around, stayed in the pattern, and landed. He departed, and didn't return.

Not a big deal. See and avoid, deal with traffic as you see it.

If the aircraft doing the straight in is a Hawker 800XP, then so be it. Deal with it. If the aircraft doing the straight in is a Cessna 172, then so be it. Deal with it. If the aircraft doing the straight in is a Cirrus, then so be it. Deal with it.

Perhaps the other guy will do the right thing, perhaps he won't. Your problem is taking whatever action is necessary to address the situation. If that means going around extending, leaving the pattern until the other guy figures it out, making an extra announcement, directly querying the other guy, adjusting your speed and/or spacing, or any other action necessary to ensure safe operation, then that's what you do.

And you don't worry about it after the fact.

Don't get wrapped up in what the other guy does or doesn't do, or who was "courteous" to you and who was not. Deal with what you can control, act accordingly, and leave the rest of the baggage behind you in your wake.

You'll live longer.

And happier.

 

[DJS]

I learned at an uncontrolled field and my experience is the opposite of UA: I get much more uptight at towered fields. I feel much better about negotiating my own way into an airport than trust that the tower has their act together (especially at a field that doesn't have radar, like KHIO used to be; what a zoo that was!). I know that even at a towered field it's up to me to see-and-avoid, it's just that I'm more experienced with talking with everyone else and figuring out on a peer-to-peer basis where I can fit in.

 

[Vector4fun]

Avbug,

I don't always agree with everything you post. In this case, I can say that I absolutely agree with every word of it...

 

[aroden]

entered 45 degrees to the downwind, and landed...

I suggested that I do that on my commercial checkride and the DE said to just go straight in...and to not worry about 'that 45 degree thing'. So I called a 7 mile final, put it down and went in to collect my new certificate.

 

[starchkr]

So lets beat this to death again.........There is nothing that says you MUST do a pattern. Straight ins are normal and legal. What happened to talking to eachother to figure out things while in the pattern? I remember the days when i trained at an uncontrolled field (which is now controlled) and we used to actually talk to each other to figure out landing sequence when someone would call straight in. Nothing wrong with that, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with talking to the other people in the area versus just announcing your pattern locations.

Since when did Danville become uncontrolled...I thought they had a tower there. You know on second thought, maybe that was the training tower for Averitt (sp?). Anyway...aucfi, have you tried that nice little grass strip up off the military academy there in Chatham? Nice area with trees at both ends, and i think it is something like 2000'...maybe you could take the cub in there...although i do not know of much to do around there after you are there...oh except hit the girls school just down the road from the academy.