Roy Smith wrote in message ...
It has always struck me odd that a standard landing pattern is left
turns and a standard hold is right turns. Having a left patterns for
landing makes a bit of sense, since the pilot is on the left side of the
cockpit and has a better view of the runway making left turns.

But, for IFR holds, there doesn't seem to be any advantage to one way or
the other. Why did they pick right turns to be standard?

Perhaps they just had to pick one and since most of us are right
handed, it may have been an easy suggestion. The straight section was
probably to adjust for wind correction, etc. It would be pretty hard
to stay over the holding fix if you just kept turning and never flew
straight. Of course, back then, the holding fix was probably an AM
radio beacon not a fix painted on a full color Garmin. The left hand
landing pattern seems pretty obvious since people seem to have always
wanted to fly from the left seat.

-Robert