Mastering ILS Approaches
Transcript
Mastering ILS Approaches Featuring: Wally Moran
Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com, LLC. This material is available to customers Of PilotWorkshops.com, which is the only place it can be legally obtained. If you received this material from any other online or commercial source, please let us know by sending an email to [email protected].
Mastering ILS Approaches_
TRANSCRIPT
The secret to mastering any approach is really quite simple: Stay ahead of your airplane and make the airplane do what you want it to. So, let’s talk about how to stay ahead of the airplane. The first step is having set configurations for the approach. You need to know the power settings and pitch attitudes that work while descending for the airport and on the approach itself. If you don’t know these numbers, every approach is a new adventure. How do you determine what works for your airplane? You go out on a VFR day and test it. For an average high-performance single, start with a power setting and pitch attitude that gives you straight-and-level at about 110-120 Knots with the gear up if you have retractable gear. If you fly a lower-performance airplane, you might want something like 90 Knots. Then find another power/pitch combination that will give approximately a 500 FPM descent at the same speed. This is usually about five inches of manifold pressure or 500 RPM less than the level flight number. The third configuration is the same 500 FPM descent, but now with the gear down and whatever flap setting you prefer from the final approach fix to the decision altitude. With these three power settings and configurations, you can easily maneuver your airplane in the airport area and fly an ILS approach. Use these numbers every time and each approach will be the same rather than being a new adventure. Some pilots I know paste these right on the panel so they don’t have to memorize them. One additional helpful step is testing how much time or distance it takes to transition from your normal cruise speed to 120 knots in level flight after you reduce power. OK, now that we can make our airplane perform predictably, we must know when to use the numbers we’ve generated. That means knowing where we are now and where we are going next, sometimes called situational awareness. Naturally you want to get the ATIS or airport information as soon as possible. Now you know the active runway and can determine the best approach, which we’re going to assume right now is an ILS. Performance-wise, a GPS LPV approach is flown the same way. Next, figure out how ATC will vector you from your present position to intercept the final approach course. A moving map makes the job a lot easier, but also knowing what to expect from ATC is even more important. ATC usually vectors aircraft on a downwind, base and 30- to 45-degree intercept to the final approach course at least two miles outside the final approach fix. Without a moving map, DME distance or VOR bearings let you create a mental map or estimate your position on an approach plate. This is good practice for the day your moving map shuts down unexpectedly as well. Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com
1
Mastering ILS Approaches_
TRANSCRIPT
It is important to get the airplane slowed down to that first known configuration early. The last thing you want is to be high and fast while trying to track the localizer and glideslope. Slowing down makes getting down easier and when things are not happening so fast you are less likely to get behind. ATC is probably going to vector you just as they’re vectoring the airplanes ahead of you, so note headings, altitude restrictions and other instructions given to those airplanes. When ATC instructs the plane ahead of you to change to the tower frequency, that’s a good reminder for you to put that frequency in the standby position. Some GPS units automatically zoom in on the map as the airplane approaches a waypoint. This feature can be changed in the system setup. I prefer to manually scale down as I approach the final approach fix, but either way, ensure the range gives you an accurate visual picture of your relation to the fixes. It’s best to be consistent on where you set the range for approach, so you get a feel for what a certain distance on the screen means for your aircraft performance. When loading an ILS approach in most GPS units, you get a warning that GPS guidance is for information only, or something along that line. When I get that message, it’s my reminder to now get the ILS frequency tuned and identified, set the CDI to the inbound course and confirm ILS information is now displaying on the CDI. I suggest you do this if you have a manual HSI or CDI in your airplane. Many units do this automatically later in the approach. I prefer to set these systems manually because it keeps me from forgetting to check to see if it happened automatically later on. If you prefer the automatic system, just ensure you have some procedure to check that it happened correctly before you turn on to the final approach course. On many GPS units, activating vectors-to-final extends the course line outward from the final approach fix. While this is a common procedure, on some systems it eliminates step down fixes preceding the final approach fix. If you wish to keep those fixes available, activating the leg ending at the first approach fix is usually the best solution. It’s well worth your time to learn this trick because it can saves a lot of mental math when ATC tells you to maintain an altitude to a fix that’s no longer on your map. As you approach the localizer, the controller will give you a final intercept heading—usually 30 to 45-degrees off the final approach course—and clear you for the approach. The next major event is localizer coming alive. If you fail to see it coming and don’t begin your turn inbound you will fly right through the localizer. Now you’re behind the airplane before the approach has even begun. Even if you don’t hit another airplane or a mountainside when you do this, the controller will surely see it and realize you are a real rookie. When I get that clearance, I stop whatever I’m doing and do nothing else until that needle comes alive and I turn inbound. Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com
2
Mastering ILS Approaches_
TRANSCRIPT
On most approaches the FAF is located approximately 5 miles from the end of the runway, so it is my plan to be stabilized at a minimum of 7 miles on final or approximately 2 miles from the final fix. By stabilized, I mean flying at the configuration you already know gives you 110-120 knots in level flight for highperformance or 90 knots for lower performance. Now that we’ve turned inbound, it is time to track that localizer. My technique is to find two headings perhaps 15 degrees either side of the published course. One heading will move the localizer needle left and the other will move it right. Now I own that needle instead of it owning me. As I proceed inbound, I can narrow that bracket to ten degrees either side and later maybe 5 degrees either side. If the wind changes during your descent, you may have to move your bracket a little right or left a bit. This is called bracketing and it is a lot more effective than chasing the needle. If you have GPS, even an iPad, this can be even simpler with GPS track information. Fly the published course for a few seconds, and then look at your GPS track over the ground. If it matches the published course, there is no wind correction needed—for now. If it’s off by, say, 10 degrees, turn 10 degrees to correct your path and use five-degree bracketing from then on, checking the GPS track periodically for the rest of the approach. I fly with pilots who move the heading bug every time they change heading on final. I find this extra work since your heading will never be steady all the way down. My technique upon intercepting the localizer is to set the heading bug to the missed approach heading. Now it’s out of the way and set to something I might later need. With the localizer under control, we’re watching for the glideslope needle. As it reaches almost center, set pitch, power, gear and flaps for your 500-foot per minute descent, complete the landing checklist and confirm I am on tower frequency. Now all I have to do is fly the airplane; everything else is done. It is important to be stabilized prior to glideslope intercept for several reasons. First, it gives you a chance to compare your altimeter to the published crossing altitude for the FAF on the approach plate. Any significant error here needs to be corrected immediately or a missed approach executed. This is your chance to catch a missset altimeter, or a malfunction of a nav aid or ground station. Just think about this, in about two minutes you will be down to 200 feet above the ground and possibly still in the clouds. This is your last chance to make sure everything is working, so don’t pass it up. Another reason to be stabilized prior to the final fix is to make flying the airplane easier. Trying to slow an aircraft down, re-trim and complete checklists while also trying to capture and maintain the glideslope is difficult work. Distractions like this have led to many accidents. So don’t do it. If you’re not stabilized prior to the final fix, go around and set it up again. I don’t like to use the term “salvage” and “instrument approach” in the same sentence. Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com
3
Mastering ILS Approaches_
TRANSCRIPT
I track the glideslope using the vertical speed indicator just as I track the localizer using the heading indicator. For example I find a vertical speed that will move the needle up and one that will move it down, now I can move it where I want it. If I am keeping the VSI needle between those numbers, I am not straying too far off the center and I know how to get it back if I need to. Again, I am controlling the needle rather than it controlling me. A common error I see in training is a pilot looking at the approach chart to either confirm DA or the missed approach procedure when they are almost at DA. Looking away invariably starts the needles wandering and messes up an otherwise good approach. You simply can’t look away from the flight instruments below 500 AGL. From the final fix inbound, you only need know DA and the first step of the missed approach. If you’re afraid you’ll forget DA, write it on a sticky note placed on the panel. The first step on the missed approach is always the same: It’s climb. So resist the temptation to look away. After breaking out at the end of this flawless ILS approach, you simply transition to your final configuration and land. One danger here is ducking below the glideslope. Many low visibility accidents have been caused by the airplane descending below the glideslope and striking the approach lights. Especially in low visibility and at night, hold that glideslope until over the runway. What if we don’t see the required visual references at DA? Well, we already know the first step of the missed approach, so get on with it. After getting established and cleaned up on a Vy climb, you can read further steps, but not before that climb is positively established. If your GPS unit has the missed approach in the flight plan, and you go missed before the missed approach waypoint, it’s usually safest to just leave it alone and let it suspend sequencing. Most modern IFR-capable GPS units can be unsuspended for guidance on the missed as soon as you pass the missed approach point, but some require you comply with published climbs on the approach plate first. Know your device and always follow the procedure on the plate, or what ATC has issued as alternate instructions, rather than blindly following the GPS. Here are my tips for mastering an ILS approach: 1. Know the numbers and pitch attitudes for your airplane. 2. Slow down early. 3. Listen to ATC to know what’s coming next. 4. Know how to set up your GPS equipment. 5. Be stabilized and slowed prior to the final approach fix. 6. Use the heading indicator and vertical speed to track localizer and glideslope – Don’t chase needles. 7. Stay on glideslope after breaking out. 8. Don’t try to salvage a botched approach. It’s just not worth it. Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com
4
Mastering ILS Approaches Featuring: Wally Moran
Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com, LLC. This material is available to customers Of PilotWorkshops.com, which is the only place it can be legally obtained. If you received this material from any other online or commercial source, please let us know by sending an email to [email protected].
Mastering ILS Approaches_
TRANSCRIPT
The secret to mastering any approach is really quite simple: Stay ahead of your airplane and make the airplane do what you want it to. So, let’s talk about how to stay ahead of the airplane. The first step is having set configurations for the approach. You need to know the power settings and pitch attitudes that work while descending for the airport and on the approach itself. If you don’t know these numbers, every approach is a new adventure. How do you determine what works for your airplane? You go out on a VFR day and test it. For an average high-performance single, start with a power setting and pitch attitude that gives you straight-and-level at about 110-120 Knots with the gear up if you have retractable gear. If you fly a lower-performance airplane, you might want something like 90 Knots. Then find another power/pitch combination that will give approximately a 500 FPM descent at the same speed. This is usually about five inches of manifold pressure or 500 RPM less than the level flight number. The third configuration is the same 500 FPM descent, but now with the gear down and whatever flap setting you prefer from the final approach fix to the decision altitude. With these three power settings and configurations, you can easily maneuver your airplane in the airport area and fly an ILS approach. Use these numbers every time and each approach will be the same rather than being a new adventure. Some pilots I know paste these right on the panel so they don’t have to memorize them. One additional helpful step is testing how much time or distance it takes to transition from your normal cruise speed to 120 knots in level flight after you reduce power. OK, now that we can make our airplane perform predictably, we must know when to use the numbers we’ve generated. That means knowing where we are now and where we are going next, sometimes called situational awareness. Naturally you want to get the ATIS or airport information as soon as possible. Now you know the active runway and can determine the best approach, which we’re going to assume right now is an ILS. Performance-wise, a GPS LPV approach is flown the same way. Next, figure out how ATC will vector you from your present position to intercept the final approach course. A moving map makes the job a lot easier, but also knowing what to expect from ATC is even more important. ATC usually vectors aircraft on a downwind, base and 30- to 45-degree intercept to the final approach course at least two miles outside the final approach fix. Without a moving map, DME distance or VOR bearings let you create a mental map or estimate your position on an approach plate. This is good practice for the day your moving map shuts down unexpectedly as well. Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com
1
Mastering ILS Approaches_
TRANSCRIPT
It is important to get the airplane slowed down to that first known configuration early. The last thing you want is to be high and fast while trying to track the localizer and glideslope. Slowing down makes getting down easier and when things are not happening so fast you are less likely to get behind. ATC is probably going to vector you just as they’re vectoring the airplanes ahead of you, so note headings, altitude restrictions and other instructions given to those airplanes. When ATC instructs the plane ahead of you to change to the tower frequency, that’s a good reminder for you to put that frequency in the standby position. Some GPS units automatically zoom in on the map as the airplane approaches a waypoint. This feature can be changed in the system setup. I prefer to manually scale down as I approach the final approach fix, but either way, ensure the range gives you an accurate visual picture of your relation to the fixes. It’s best to be consistent on where you set the range for approach, so you get a feel for what a certain distance on the screen means for your aircraft performance. When loading an ILS approach in most GPS units, you get a warning that GPS guidance is for information only, or something along that line. When I get that message, it’s my reminder to now get the ILS frequency tuned and identified, set the CDI to the inbound course and confirm ILS information is now displaying on the CDI. I suggest you do this if you have a manual HSI or CDI in your airplane. Many units do this automatically later in the approach. I prefer to set these systems manually because it keeps me from forgetting to check to see if it happened automatically later on. If you prefer the automatic system, just ensure you have some procedure to check that it happened correctly before you turn on to the final approach course. On many GPS units, activating vectors-to-final extends the course line outward from the final approach fix. While this is a common procedure, on some systems it eliminates step down fixes preceding the final approach fix. If you wish to keep those fixes available, activating the leg ending at the first approach fix is usually the best solution. It’s well worth your time to learn this trick because it can saves a lot of mental math when ATC tells you to maintain an altitude to a fix that’s no longer on your map. As you approach the localizer, the controller will give you a final intercept heading—usually 30 to 45-degrees off the final approach course—and clear you for the approach. The next major event is localizer coming alive. If you fail to see it coming and don’t begin your turn inbound you will fly right through the localizer. Now you’re behind the airplane before the approach has even begun. Even if you don’t hit another airplane or a mountainside when you do this, the controller will surely see it and realize you are a real rookie. When I get that clearance, I stop whatever I’m doing and do nothing else until that needle comes alive and I turn inbound. Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com
2
Mastering ILS Approaches_
TRANSCRIPT
On most approaches the FAF is located approximately 5 miles from the end of the runway, so it is my plan to be stabilized at a minimum of 7 miles on final or approximately 2 miles from the final fix. By stabilized, I mean flying at the configuration you already know gives you 110-120 knots in level flight for highperformance or 90 knots for lower performance. Now that we’ve turned inbound, it is time to track that localizer. My technique is to find two headings perhaps 15 degrees either side of the published course. One heading will move the localizer needle left and the other will move it right. Now I own that needle instead of it owning me. As I proceed inbound, I can narrow that bracket to ten degrees either side and later maybe 5 degrees either side. If the wind changes during your descent, you may have to move your bracket a little right or left a bit. This is called bracketing and it is a lot more effective than chasing the needle. If you have GPS, even an iPad, this can be even simpler with GPS track information. Fly the published course for a few seconds, and then look at your GPS track over the ground. If it matches the published course, there is no wind correction needed—for now. If it’s off by, say, 10 degrees, turn 10 degrees to correct your path and use five-degree bracketing from then on, checking the GPS track periodically for the rest of the approach. I fly with pilots who move the heading bug every time they change heading on final. I find this extra work since your heading will never be steady all the way down. My technique upon intercepting the localizer is to set the heading bug to the missed approach heading. Now it’s out of the way and set to something I might later need. With the localizer under control, we’re watching for the glideslope needle. As it reaches almost center, set pitch, power, gear and flaps for your 500-foot per minute descent, complete the landing checklist and confirm I am on tower frequency. Now all I have to do is fly the airplane; everything else is done. It is important to be stabilized prior to glideslope intercept for several reasons. First, it gives you a chance to compare your altimeter to the published crossing altitude for the FAF on the approach plate. Any significant error here needs to be corrected immediately or a missed approach executed. This is your chance to catch a missset altimeter, or a malfunction of a nav aid or ground station. Just think about this, in about two minutes you will be down to 200 feet above the ground and possibly still in the clouds. This is your last chance to make sure everything is working, so don’t pass it up. Another reason to be stabilized prior to the final fix is to make flying the airplane easier. Trying to slow an aircraft down, re-trim and complete checklists while also trying to capture and maintain the glideslope is difficult work. Distractions like this have led to many accidents. So don’t do it. If you’re not stabilized prior to the final fix, go around and set it up again. I don’t like to use the term “salvage” and “instrument approach” in the same sentence. Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com
3
Mastering ILS Approaches_
TRANSCRIPT
I track the glideslope using the vertical speed indicator just as I track the localizer using the heading indicator. For example I find a vertical speed that will move the needle up and one that will move it down, now I can move it where I want it. If I am keeping the VSI needle between those numbers, I am not straying too far off the center and I know how to get it back if I need to. Again, I am controlling the needle rather than it controlling me. A common error I see in training is a pilot looking at the approach chart to either confirm DA or the missed approach procedure when they are almost at DA. Looking away invariably starts the needles wandering and messes up an otherwise good approach. You simply can’t look away from the flight instruments below 500 AGL. From the final fix inbound, you only need know DA and the first step of the missed approach. If you’re afraid you’ll forget DA, write it on a sticky note placed on the panel. The first step on the missed approach is always the same: It’s climb. So resist the temptation to look away. After breaking out at the end of this flawless ILS approach, you simply transition to your final configuration and land. One danger here is ducking below the glideslope. Many low visibility accidents have been caused by the airplane descending below the glideslope and striking the approach lights. Especially in low visibility and at night, hold that glideslope until over the runway. What if we don’t see the required visual references at DA? Well, we already know the first step of the missed approach, so get on with it. After getting established and cleaned up on a Vy climb, you can read further steps, but not before that climb is positively established. If your GPS unit has the missed approach in the flight plan, and you go missed before the missed approach waypoint, it’s usually safest to just leave it alone and let it suspend sequencing. Most modern IFR-capable GPS units can be unsuspended for guidance on the missed as soon as you pass the missed approach point, but some require you comply with published climbs on the approach plate first. Know your device and always follow the procedure on the plate, or what ATC has issued as alternate instructions, rather than blindly following the GPS. Here are my tips for mastering an ILS approach: 1. Know the numbers and pitch attitudes for your airplane. 2. Slow down early. 3. Listen to ATC to know what’s coming next. 4. Know how to set up your GPS equipment. 5. Be stabilized and slowed prior to the final approach fix. 6. Use the heading indicator and vertical speed to track localizer and glideslope – Don’t chase needles. 7. Stay on glideslope after breaking out. 8. Don’t try to salvage a botched approach. It’s just not worth it. Copyright © PilotWorkshops.com
4
