Behind the News
The right approach
Ditching circling approaches the right way
Approaches that are the only circling approaches at their airport will be among those spared as the FAA reviews circling procedures for cancellation, according to a new policy. The policy includes criteria for selecting circling instrument approach procedures for cancellation as part of the transition of the National Airspace System to satellite-based navigation. It incorporates AOPA recommendations to maintain pilots’ access to circling approaches for training and for public awareness of proposed circling-approach cancellations.
What is a circling approach? In the world of instrument flying, pilots use navigational aids to guide them down through the clouds to where they can see the runway for landing. The best guidance—precision instrument landing systems or precision-like GPS approaches—allows general aviation pilots to descend as low as 200 feet above the runway before spotting it. But sometimes an airport environment or wind conditions don’t allow a descent straight in to the runway. Circling approaches allow pilots to maneuver to land somewhere other than straight ahead. That means breaking out of the clouds higher than on straight-in approaches and maneuvering at a relatively low altitude while keeping the runway in sight.
Isn’t that bad? It’s not great. Circling approaches tend to be trickier and require staying in a radius of airspace that you’re sure is clear of obstructions. Some circling procedures are not authorized at night, and many airlines prohibit circling approaches. GPS technology has allowed the FAA to nearly double the number of instrument approach procedures in the United States over the past decade, so now many airports have better options. The FAA is planning to cancel some circling approaches to save maintenance costs.
Why keep any? Some airports have circling-only procedures because of terrain or obstacles that make straight-in procedures impractical or unsafe. Plus, some practical tests require circling approaches. Pilots need to be able to practice circling approaches without traveling too far from their home airport.
Preflight news
TSA reviewing school security practices
Agency solicited comments in hopes of improving process
The Transportation Security Administration has solicited recommendations from the public on ways to improve a program established in 2004 to screen foreign applicants for flight training in the United States, and require that flight school workers undergo security-awareness training.
In the years since the Alien Flight Student Program began, AOPA worked with security officials to streamline the security-threat assessment process and other elements of the TSA regulation.
“AOPA believes the TSA’s request for comments is a positive step toward a comprehensive program review,” said Nobuyo Sakata, AOPA director of aviation security.
The TSA solicited comments as part of an overall review of the security agency’s programs. The request was a response to flight training industry recommendations about ways to modify the rule’s reporting and recordkeeping provisions—for example, by allowing electronic recordkeeping to document compliance in lieu of paper records.
The TSA’s request for comments focused on several program elements, including the costs and benefits of requiring flight training providers to undergo a security threat assessment—a process now required only for foreign flight students.
The agency also sought input on the effects of changing threat assessment requirements for alien flight training candidates from an event-based requirement—requiring the payment of fees for each training event—to a time-based requirement, such as once every three years.
Events
OSH ’18 tops attendance
EAA calls annual event nearly ‘perfect’
Some 601,000 people and more than 10,000 aircraft descended on the small town of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, in late July for the forty-ninth annual EAA AirVenture airshow and aviation gathering. “A perfect event may be unattainable, but AirVenture 2018 came about as close as one could imagine,” said EAA Chairman Jack Pelton. “The combination of outstanding programs, aircraft variety, a robust economy, and good weather combined to complement the efforts of our staff and 5,000 volunteers throughout the grounds. The week was upbeat, exciting, and filled with many ‘only-at-Oshkosh’ moments.”
19,588 aircraft operations in the 11-day event (134 takeoff/landings per hour)
2,979 showplanes (1,160 homebuilt, 1,094 vintage, 377 warbirds, 185 ultralights, 75 seaplanes, 22 rotorcraft, 52 aerobatic, 14 hot-air balloons)
12,300 camping sites for 40,000 campers
867 commercial exhibitors
1,500 forums, workshops, and presentations (attended by 75,000 people)
2,714 international visitors (from 87 nations)
976 media representatives from six continents
$170 million economic impact
