FLYING LESSONS for May 5, 2016

FLYING LESSONS for May 5, 2016 FLYING LESSONS uses the past week s mishap reports to consider what might have contributed to accidents, so you can make better decisions if you face similar circumstances. In almost all cases design characteristics of a specific make and model airplane have little direct bearing on the possible causes of aircraft accidents, so apply these FLYING LESSONS to any airplane you fly. Verify all technical information before applying it to your aircraft or operation, with manufacturers data and recommendations taking precedence. You are pilot in command, and are ultimately responsible for the decisions you make. FLYING LESSONS is an independent product of MASTERY FLIGHT TRAINING, INC. www.mastery-flight-training.com This week s LESSONS: Pursue Mastery of Flight Last week s FLYING LESSONS described the very-near collision I witnessed on the runway of a nontowered airport. The event occurred when the pilot of a turboprop twin, possibly focused on obtaining his IFR release on an 1100-overcast day, apparently not monitoring and certainly not transmitting on the CTAF (Common Traffic Advisory Frequency), pulled out in front of a Cessna Citation jet that was on short final to Runway 18. The Citation pilot executed a go-around, sidestepping to the left to avoid the Piaggio Avanti as it climbed, then flew a left-hand pattern to return and land uneventfully. See www.mastery-flight-training.com/20160428-flying-lessons.pdf Several FLYING LESSONS readers anticipated this week s report with their Debrief emails suggesting the Citation pilot may have made some mistakes too; that the Air Traffic Controller should have warned the Piaggio pilot about the Citation on final approach; and that I myself missed an opportunity to influence the outcome as well. Let s look at this event realizing that this is very speculative from the cockpit of the Citation. The pilot (or crew; we ll use the singular) flew the Runway 18 instrument approach (ILS or RNAV/GPS, it doesn t matter) and broke out of the 1100-foot ceiling a few miles from the airport. Wichita/Colonel James Jabara Airport, where this event took place, has a 1420-foot field elevation. This means the cloud bases (verified by several pilot reports, including mine when my student and I departed shortly afterward) were at about 2500 feet Mean Sea Level (MSL). On the ILS glideslope/lpv glidepath this put the Citation about 1/3 of the way from the Final Approach Fix (FAF) to the Missed Approach Point (MAP) roughly three and a half miles from the airport when it broke out. Notably, the first I heard from the Citation on CTAF was when its pilot reported four miles out, and I saw the jet s landing lights shortly afterward. Now look at the airspace the Citation was in at the time. Here s a segment of the Sectional chart (left). Jabara (KAAO) is depicted by the upper, magenta airport symbol. What type of airspace was the Citation in at approximately 1100 Above Ground Level (AGL), roughly three miles from the airport? Don t peek below, look at the chart. What airspace was he in? 2016 Mastery Flight Training, Inc. All rights reserved. 1

Okay, the Citation was in Class E airspace. Class E airspace can begin at the surface, at 700 AGL, at 1200 AGL, at 14,500 MSL, or at some different charted altitude in mountainous terrain. Now look at some of the depictions of airspace around other airports in the area: Augusta (3AU) and El Dorado (KEQA), and contrast them with Jabara (KAAO). The arrows point at key features of these airspace depictions. What is the major difference? The red dashed ring around Jabara Airport signifies that Class E airspace extends all the way to the ground the surface area. KEQA and AU are more typical nontowered airports, with the base of Class E airspace at 700 feet AGL. In Class E airspace under 10,000 feet MSL, pilots operating under Visual Flight Rules (VFR) must maintain at least three miles flight visibility (visibility was greater than 10 miles on the day of the near collision). They must also remain at least 500 feet below, 1000 feet above and 2000 feet laterally from clouds. The Citation pilot had obviously cancelled IFR, or Air Traffic Control would not have given the Piaggio pilot his IFR release to take off. Hence, the Citation pilot was flying under Visual Flight Rules, and required to maintain VFR minimums. Yet, 500 feet below the cloud base would have been about 600 feet AGL or 2000 feet MSL. The Citation pilot appears to have canceled IFR as soon as he broke out of the clouds, but well before he could legally operate under VFR. 2016 Mastery Flight Training, Inc. All rights reserved. 2

It s very likely the controller asked the Citation pilot to cancel IFR as soon as possible so the Piaggio could be released, in time for a G36 Bonanza behind the Citation on the approach to be cleared, in time for my student and me to be released on our own departure clearance. I ve had requests from controller to do lots of things to expedite releases on busy IFR days, including keeping my speed up, slowing down on the approach, and requests to cancel my clearance as soon as possible. I always try to comply with these requests we all should but know that we cannot violate the regulations in doing so and the controller does not expect us to. So the Citation pilot was probably in violation of VFR cloud clearance requirements when he cancelled his clearance (I can t be sure; remember, this is very speculative). He had to be at about 600 feet AGL to be 500 feet below an 1100-foot overcast. This would have put him about one mile out on the approach glideslope/glidepath. Would adhering to the regulations have delayed other operations at the airport? Certainly, but so what? The Citation would have landed and cancelled on the ground. The Piaggio would have continued to hold for release until the G36 flew its low approach and flew the published missed approach procedure (per its pilot s request). Then the Piaggio would have been released, and finally my student and I would have been released. The Piaggio would have been delayed, but by the time we waited for the Citation to circle back and land my student and my departure time would have probably been about the same. Yet another issue is that, after going around, the Citation pilot flew a left-hand traffic pattern to a runway for which right traffic is prescribed (see RP18 on the Sectional chart above). This meant that on its downwind the Citation was about aligned with the active approach into Beech Field, flying opposite the direction of traffic. And, in order to maintain VFR the jet would have had to remain below about 600 feet AGL. If an IFR airplane broke on out Beech Field s approach the Citation might have been in direct conflict with that traffic. We cannot excuse the Piaggio pilot for failing to visually clear the final approach and for not making a radio call on CTAF as a back-up to visual scanning. But if the Citation pilot had complied with the Federal Air Regulations it s most likely the controller would not have given the Piaggio pilot the release that prompted his taking the runway in front of the Cessna jet. Notably, there s nothing to indicate the vertical limits of Class E airspace around nontowered airports on instrument approach charts or IFR Low Altitude En Route charts. You have to look at the VFR Sectional Chart to know the base of the Class E airspace. Yet this is vital information to know so you can decide whether you can cancel your IFR clearance before landing. There s a difference between flying a visual approach (while still on an IFR clearance) and cancelling IFR to fly under Visual Flight Rules. People may think one mile and clear of clouds is the standard for a visual approach, but it s only good for VFR flight in Class G airspace, or if you first request and then Air Traffic Control grants a Special VFR clearance in Class D airspace or the surface area, where Class E extends to the ground (such as at Jabara). See http://rgl.faa.gov/regulatory_and_guidance_library/rgfar.nsf/0/688420e12b4f38e9862576e300703639?opendocument Making yourself aware of all available information (FAR 91.103) means knowing this as well. That s one reason I use the Sectional Chart view on my Electronic Flight Bag during IFR flights unless I have a specific need to check information on the Low Altitude Enroute. See www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?node=14:2.0.1.3.10#se14.2.91_1103 So many pilots tell me they file and fly IFR every time they fly, regardless of weather conditions, because it s easier and they don t have to worry about airspace rules and regulations. They re absolutely correct that flying IFR takes a lot of the guesswork out of airspace clearances. However, we still have to be 2016 Mastery Flight Training, Inc. All rights reserved. 3

aware of the Visual Flight Rules cloud clearance and visibility requirements for controlled (and uncontrolled) airspace even if we always fly IFR because as soon as you cancel IFR before landing, or you take off visually to pick up a clearance in the air, you re a VFR pilot. Had the Citation pilot not acted quickly and correctly to go around from his visual landing, and if he had not side-stepped away from the runway to avoid the rapidly climbing Piaggio turboprop, and if a collision had in fact occurred, then it s possible that cancelling IFR when conditions did not permit might have been found to be a contributing factor. All pilots, including always IFR fliers, should review the airspace and VFR minimums information in Chapter 14 of the Pilot s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge. Knowing and following the rules might just prevent a collision. See https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/handbooks_manuals/aviation/pilot_handbook/media/phak%20-%20chapter%2014.pdf Next week I ll address the possible controller issues, and what I might have done to intercede. Comments? Questions? Let us learn from you, at mastery.flight.training@cox.net See http://pilotworkshop.com/ifr-focus/signup/today-mft Debrief: Readers write about recent FLYING LESSONS: Reader Mike Radomsky adds to last week s LESSON as this week s as well: [I] really enjoyed this edition. I have had the experience a near-calamity on the runway from several points of view - once, Tower cleared me to land, then cleared another aircraft to take off, with timing that would practically guarantee a conflict - the controller simply goofed. I've had the experience of noticing a Cessna moving from the run-up area onto the runway, but without hearing him make any announcement on the CTAF. I guessed he might have been using the (different) UNICOM frequency, so I monitored that. Just as he made his "Cessna 1234 rolling runway XX" call, I heard a jet call short final on the intersecting runway. A quick call to the Cessna on UNICOM prevented a potential intersection crash. These days, my practice (for me and those I instruct) is to conduct a brief-but-thorough Departure Briefing before leaving the run-up area, then before crossing the hold-short line, I go through the usual LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION - but the latter is five things: 1 - I'm cleared 2 - The Departure end is clear 3 - The Approach is clear 4 - This is the correct runway 5 - Time is noted 2016 Mastery Flight Training, Inc. All rights reserved. 4

Murphy being the odd sort that he is, I have experienced no "saves" since I started doing this, but I feel a lot better. Thanks for supplementing what I ve written, Mike. Reader John Scherer adds: Hi Tom, you have given us great things to think about once again. The Citation go-around incident reminds me of how important situational awareness is when operating an airplane, especially at a non-towered airport. When I was safety officer at Quantico Marine Corps Flying Club, I had to investigate an accident where our club member was hit by a Cessna 210 at Atlantic City Bader Field. Our club member was in the club s Piper Lance and on final landing to the west. The Lance announced downwind, base and final as I recall. The C210 Pilot taxied out onto the runway as our airplane was landing. Fortunately no one was injured, but the Lance was destroyed. When I tried to interview the C210 pilot he wouldn t talk to me. I concluded that he didn t have his radio on and didn t bother to clear the runway as he was taxiing southbound. It would have been very hard to see an airplane on final with the high wing airplane. But the Lance had already landed when they collided. I still don t know what the C210 pilot was doing. As I recall, he sounded confused when I talked to him on the phone. Your article on flying the [Piper] Cub was great. I took my Commercial single engine checkride in Lubbock, Texas, after graduation from Air Force Pilot Training. It was in a C150 with no radio from a dirt strip with a veteran World War II Pilot examiner. He had a steel gray crew-cut and piercing blue eyes. He wasn t interested in radio work or landing on big runways. He wanted to see if I could fly a C150 off a dirt strip with no radios. It was a great time! Thanks for your great articles every week. Thank you, John. I ve been flying since 1983, and I think I ve seen four FAA Back to Basics campaigns to try to get pilots to avoid the accident scenarios that time and time again contribute to almost all fatal crashes. It sounds like we both found an instructor that helped bring that LESSON alive. What do you think? Let us learn from you, at mastery.flight.training@cox.net I love what you are doing, and my family and passengers are safer because of your effort and insight. Thank you for the wonderful weekly flight lessons. Forrest Jones Please help me cover the costs of providing FLYING LESSONS through the secure PayPal donations button at www.mastery-flight-training.com. Thank you, generous supporters. Addressing pilot fatigue SAFE, the Society for Aviation and Flight Education, has several excellent resources not only for instructors, but also for the entire pilot population. SAFE has posted Understanding Pilot Fatigue, which addresses this difficult and little-understood factor in so many transportation accidents and which is endemic in modern society. Read this paper and see if it helps you make better fatigue-related decisions. See: www.safepilots.org https://safeblog.org/2016/04/16/understanding-pilot-fatigue/ Share the skies with master aviators. Forward FLYING LESSONS to a friend Pursue Mastery of Flight. Thomas P. Turner, M.S. Aviation Safety, Three-time Master CFI Flight Instructor Hall of Fame 2010 National FAA Safety Team Representative of the Year 2008 FAA Central Region CFI of the Year FLYING LESSONS is 2016 Mastery Flight Training, Inc. For more information see www.mastery-flighttraining.com, or contact mastery.flight.training@cox.net. 2016 Mastery Flight Training, Inc. All rights reserved. 5