When's The Last Time You Had To Hold?

[User546]

Reading the thread about the DME Holding Fix got me thinking again about holds. The last time I did a hold was during an IPC, and have yet to do one while flying professionally. Now granted, I haven't necessarily racked up a lot of hours yet, but the big joke among airline friends of mine is "what's a hold??" (usually stated during the 6 month checkout sim ride)

So I dont think its a wrong assumption to make that most people who fly for a living (atleast the non-single engine stuff) get issued holds very often.

When was the last time YOU got given a holding instruction? Where were you, and why did you have to hold? And we're not talking about bladders here gentleman.

 

[OtterFO]

WANJO intersection. The IAF for the ILS to rwy 8 at Barrow, AK. It's not uncommon to have 4 or 5 airplanes stacked up while waiting for the rvr to come up to mins for the approach. 737, couple of navajos, BE-99, and CE-208, all driving around in circles.....

 

[OrphicSeth]

The last ATC issued hold was at an IAF waiting for the weather to lift at my local apt for the ILS. We were on top, so it was beautiful. That was at the end of last summer.

 

[Vector4fun]

Just curious;

If Barrow is below ILS mins, what's your nearest practical alternate? I mean, that's likely to have decent WX?

And, rhetorically, why is fuel cheaper in Barrow than at Signature in Austin????

 

[User546]

And, rhetorically, why is fuel cheaper in Barrow than at Signature in Austin????

Thanks for the good laugh, I needed that today! Good ole' Signature...

 

[shamrock]

We did a hold last week and I get holding instructions a couple times a month with an actual hold maybe once every month or two, depending on how much of a mess ATL is.

 

[FN FAL]

About three or four times a year I will wind up spending a lot of time in holds waiting for mins to come up. I have held as long as 2.2 hours waiting while doing 10 mile legs.

After going missed at an ALTERNATE once, the contoller gave me a block of airspace and an EFC...he just told me stay west and north of xyz airport by so many miles, here's an EFC, call you back in an hour.

So I just got to meander around north west of the alternate airport that I went missed at...which put me about halfway between the alternate and the destination airport, which is where I really wanted to go, but it was down there too.

So I dialed in both AWOS's and flew around for a while looking out the window as I drove around at an assigned altitude and did whatever I wanted to for about an hour. Tell me that wouldn't drive ya buggie....

"Yea, we just went missed at zyz!"

"What are your intentions?

"Hold?"

"How about this one, climb to 4,000 take up a heading of 300 and remain Nortwest of the field. Stay 10 miles North and West at 4,000...EFC 1500. I got a Citation coming in that wants to try the approach."

"Oh...OK...we'll monitor ABC awos and maybe we'll get lucky over there!"

 

[xjcaptain]

Unfortunatly it happens quite often inbound to MSP. If not daily, at least a couple of times a week. At some of our outstations that are uncontrolled it's fairly often there also. I think it depends a lot on where you operate. Very rarly do it when inbound to DTW.

 

[movingviolation]

I think I did one way back when I was practicing for my ATP.... and maybe a few years before that for my commercial multi.... oh yeah, and every 90 days I do at least one turn in a hold...... seriously.

 

[enigma]

Holds happen more often on the east coast than the west. I don't think that I did more than one a year flying corporate lears in the south, west and upper midwest. Now that I drive up and down the east coast, I get about one a month.

enigma

 

[EagleRJ]

I haven't held in awhile. Normally when ATC needs some seperation, they can do it by vectoring you back and forth across the course instead of spinning you. They won't normally start holding unless the airport has stopped accepting arrivals completely.

Sometimes we're on the descent for the airport, and the wx is still below mins. Approach usually asks us what we need, and a few minutes later a Special comes out and we have our viz!
Funny how that happens!

 

[HMR]

When was the last time YOU got given a holding instruction? Where were you, and why did you have to hold?

Last month in Cabo.

Last year at Jackson Hole I think we entered holding at FL370 with 20 or so planes below us. It's interesting trying to stay on course while cutting across a 90kt jetstream.

 

[millhouse21]

Two days ago at Dulles. It's not all that uncommon there.

 

[OtterFO]

Alternates for Barrow include Deadhorse (PASC), Bettels (PBET), and Kotz. All require lots and lots of fuel. However we would keep track of the current conditions at Wainwright (PAWI), 75 miles away and Nuiqsit (PAQT) 110 miles away, neither are legal alternates because of TAFs and GPS approaches. But you can always change your destination. It was amazing, after holding for a while, Barrow FSS would ask your fuel state, then within another 10 mins the RVR would go up to 2400 just as you got to the FAF. Those FSS guys are the best in the business.

Jet A is cheapest at Deadhorse because they refine it right there at the oil field.

 

[BluDevAv8r]

I held 3 times on my last 4-day trip and all 3 were "due to volume" at our arrival airport. Not a huge deal except for the fact that I should probably keep that en route chart out so when the ATC controller says "hold at abc fix as published" I don't waste time trying to find the proper chart. Then again, I heard another aircraft ask ATC what the "hold as published" meant since they were too lazy to dig up the chart.

-Neal

 

[Ill Mitch]

I held while trying to get into SMX about 7 months ago. I was number 3 behind a Van and a -99. The weather was right at mins. The funny thing is, even when the weather is like that, I rarely hold. We just all happen to arrive at the same time.

 

[minitour]

When was the last time YOU got given a holding instruction? Where were you, and why did you have to hold? And we're not talking about bladders here gentleman.

November 3, 2004 - Instrument Check Ride

SOONR Intersection/OM 5,000'

King Air on the approach wanted to get in and we were (obviously) slower. Knocked out the hold requirement too. Broke out at about 4,200 on the way up but a little buildup came over and started tossing some ice on us, so we got to descend as the KA was crossing the marker. One turn later cleared for the approach, called tower, got b*tched at for the landing (see crab and kick v slip thread for details if you're interested) got tanked that night.

I've been given vectors way the hell out to BFE, but not a hold since...unfortunately.

-mini

 

[RVSM]

3-4 times per day for my PHL ops. 1-2 turns at VCN and then in. VFR, IFR obviously it gets worse.

It is an arrival volume issue.

 

[FN FAL]

3-4 times per day for my PHL ops. 1-2 turns at VCN and then in. VFR, IFR obviously it gets worse.

It is an arrival volume issue.

One night at MKE they had us in a serpentine conga line arrangement. It was unforecast 100vv and the lowest rvr possible to get in.

I would have to say the that the vectors in the conga line lasted 45 minutes. The funny thing was the Northwest Guys that checked on and they were given holding instructions. They acted all surprised that things were all that bad...it almost seemed as if the rest of us were a great imposition on them. The controller told them get their pen handy, they were number 25.

During portions of the vectors in the conga line, they asked me to make 360's at least twice, if not three times. That's kind of fun, 360's in IFR conditions...expecially the way the cloud structure was, because occasionally you'd see the other aircraft out there.

I was monitoring the awos at about 4 airports in case I had to make a run for it, UES was 400 and 1 and I was getting to the point with fuel where it was starting to make think of whipping out the "min fuel" card or head to UES and top off.

Next think you know, they vectored me on heading of 090 to cross the field for the downwind to the ILS and I was next in line.

It was all of at least 45 minutes of vectoring and it was unforecast conditions at MKE...coastal cities, go figure. One little change in wind direction at sunset and everybody gets to get in line.

 

[minitour]

During portions of the vectors in the conga line, they asked me to make 360's at least twice, if not three times. That's kind of fun, 360's in IFR conditions...expecially the way the cloud structure was, because occasionally you'd see the other aircraft out there.

That sounds pretty sweet...but you still haven't told me how to enter the hold backwards....I'm waiting...you know...just for one of those things to make ATC go, "huh?"

(for those of you that can't tell...no...I wouldn't actually enter a hold backwards and tie up airspace for kicks, but FN told a story a few months ago about entering a hold backwards during his training and I wanted him to explain it to me then and he still hasn't...but no...I wouldn't actually do it so spare me the lecture)

-mini