Insights

The traffic pattern affliction

A pilot departs the airport and remains in the traffic pattern to practice landings. His upwind and final legs were not on the extended runway centerline, the crosswind and base legs were not perpendicular to the runway, and the downwind leg was not parallel to the runway--initially, his downwind leg was a half-mile from the extended runway centerline, but when he turned to the base leg, he was a mile from that reference. He suffers from quadrilateralism, because he flew a four-sided pattern that's not a rectangle.

If I mention this to the student's instructor, here's what I'll probably hear: "He never does that with me.... I teach ground-reference maneuvers in the pattern. I solo my students in minimum time...he knows how to fly a constant heading."

When an instructor tells me that his student never does what I see, I want to hand the instructor a gold-plated barnyard shovel. The instructor has probably never sat back and allowed his student to make mistakes. He probably talks nonstop, cautioning the student about what will happen if certain actions are not taken.

That's the bane of modern flight training, where students and instructors use headsets and intercom systems. The instructor who talks all the time is an obstacle to learning, and to teach ground-reference skills in the traffic pattern is an absurdity. There are too many other things that must be accomplished, and too many distractions. Proper ground-reference skills cannot be mastered in a traffic pattern, particularly at a busy airport.

Prior to concentrated traffic pattern work and the first solo flight, all students should master tracking over a road, tracking parallel to a road, rectangular patterns, and S-turns across a road. These maneuvers cannot be taught effectively unless wind is present. Instructors must watch for proper conditions and schedule their students accordingly.

No instructor wants to prolong a student's training time to the first solo, but training priorities should never be compromised in order to minimize that time. I sincerely believe that instructors who do otherwise are just trying to make themselves look good in the eyes of their peers.

Minimum solo time, like minimum certification time, means nothing. Everyone's goal must be a properly trained pilot who has truly mastered each required skill.

The ability to fly a constant heading does not mean that the student can fly a specific ground track, because heading control does not require wind and ground-track awareness. Show me a pilot who is not constantly aware of his position and the general wind direction and velocity, and I'll show you an improperly trained pilot. I can say the same for the pilot who turns to a planned heading and assumes he'll stay on course.

It doesn't matter if it's a traffic pattern leg or a cross-country leg. Specific procedures must be followed. When flying the traffic pattern, pick a line on the ground that you want to track. Obviously, specific lines are seldom present, but specific references are--structures, intersections, or other prominent features. Consider wind conditions and turn to a heading that will allow you to track that line. The student who thinks in this manner can easily fly rectangular traffic patterns.

On cross-country flights, momentarily turn to the no-wind heading when you start a new leg. Look straight ahead, pick a distinctive reference point that is on or near the horizon, and pick one or two references points that lie between that point and your present position. Now turn to your planned heading based on forecast winds and monitor the reference points you selected. Adjust your heading as necessary in order to track the desired course and locate the landmarks you circled on your navigation chart during flight planning.

In both cases--the traffic pattern and the cross-country leg--you now spend the majority of your time looking outside the cockpit at ground references in order to evaluate wind drift and ground track. While doing that, add air traffic to your scan. Thank you. You are now leaving the realm of a primordial airplane driver and advancing toward the exalted position of airplane pilot.

Do not think that GPS excuses you from this basic proficiency level for cross-country flying. GPS is truly incredible, but a good pilot must be trained to deal with the unexpected. You're asking for trouble if you think that technology will eliminate that requirement.

Ralph Butcher, a retired United Airlines captain, is the chief flight instructor at a California flight school. He has been flying since 1959 and has 25,000 hours in fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. Visit his Web site.