Flying patterns

On Thu, 28 Sep 2006 22:50:58 +0200, Wolfgang Schwanke
wrote:

Mxsmanic wrote in
:

Where on the Web can I learn more about flying traffic patterns?

wikipedia is often a good start:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airfield_traffic_pattern

Are these patterns of a
standard size, or do they vary from one airport to another?

(This is from a European perspective)
There's a "default" pattern which is rectangular, and whose lengths are
defined by the runway length and the fact that crosswind & base are
supposed to be 1 NM long. Everything else is deduced from there.

Here in the states my cross wind varies from about a city block to
nearly a mile depending on what I'm flying and how bad I want to scare
my passengers.


Most airports have published pattern map though which every pilot is
supposed to read before landing there. Often only one of two possible
patterns is defined, or motor and glider traffic have separate ones.

The height is defined, but the speed of the aircraft will determine
how large the pattern.

A light jet is going to make a one mile base seem pretty short.

When I do a circle to land in the Deb holding one mile takes a lot of
power and it's a pretty steep turn at low altitude. Generally
passengers do not like that sort of landing.

Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com