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No more "Left Downwind"?
We attended a safety seminar on Tuesday during which the FAA presenter
(who was otherwise outstanding) went over a list of unapproved radio calls. (Number one being, of course, the despised and now-specifically prohibited "Any other traffic please advise...") To our surprise, he claimed that the common phraseology "Iowa City Traffic, N56993 entering left downwind for Runway 25, Iowa City" is incorrect. In short, he stated that you should say "Iowa City Traffic, N56993 entering downwind for Runway 25, Iowa City", omitting the word "left". In his opinion (and, apparently, the FAA's), saying "left downwind" is redundant, since everyone should know that the pattern is left (or right, if appropriate) hand traffic. In high traffic areas, the FAA thinks that omitting this single word will open the over-crowded unicom frequencies so that other pilots can squeeze a word in. Mary and I (and several other pilots) kept quiet during the presentation, but strongly disagree with him on this topic. IMHO, saying "left downwind" is clear, concise, and -- most importantly -- clarifies which side of the airport you're on. To assume that everyone knows whether the pattern is left (or right) is, in my experience, naive. What do you guys think? -- Jay Honeck Iowa City, IA Pathfinder N56993 www.AlexisParkInn.com "Your Aviation Destination" |
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