Technique: Brief with a CTAF

A pilot who is beyond the introductory flight stage knows that CTAF stands for common traffic advisory frequency. It’s the frequency we tune in when operating to, at, or out of a nontowered airport. How about using that abbreviation in another aviation context? Flight instructor and designated pilot examiner Mary Latimer hit upon using CTAF as an easy-to-remember way to brief an instrument approach. Instrument approaches have many elements, and running through those elements as you’re speeding along under the hood or in actual instrument meteorological conditions can be a mental juggling act. That’s why Latimer likes this streamlined method. She suggests that the instrument student write CTAF on a sticky note and place it on the panel, where it’s included in the instrument scan. Better yet, put the note on a failed instrument during a partial-panel approach. “Crucial information [is] right in your scan when you really need to stay focused,” she said. In the right seat, Latimer will tell an instrument student to “Check your CTAF” if something’s not right in the approach. Here’s how it works: