Aviation View - June 2024

Source: NBAA.org , News, First Published July/August 2024 If you were to take the time to flip through an avionic database, you might think that there is a straight- in RNAV (area navigation)/ILS (instrument landing system)/GPS-type approach to every runway you could ever fly to. Of course, that assumption would be incorrect. Even the biggest and busiest business aviation airports have visual approaches that require some type of circling turn from a fix to the runway’s final track.While it may not seem like this kind of maneuver would cause serious issues for highly trained pilots, flight operations quality assurance data proves it all too often can. “A frequent destination is Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport (TRM) in Southern California, and we go there frequently at night,” explained NBAA Board Member Mark McIntyre, who works as a director of flight operations for a large Part 91 operator. “When EXPERTS: FMS-GUIDED VISUAL APPROACH TECHNOLOGYENHANCES SAFETY Runway 35 is in use because of nearby terrain, there’s no instrument approach that provides a straight-in final leg.The published instrument approach procedure requires a late turn to align with the runway. “We identified a risk with the number of unstabilized approaches at this airport,” McIntyre continued. “The cause seemed to be the lack of precise approach guidance; we couldn’t take full advantage of the great technologies and functionalities – FMS [flight management system], GPS, RNP [required navigation performance], Radius-to-Fix–that have been developed recently.” In McIntyre’s opinion, even with extra simulator practice, unaided visual approaches, especially those that include circling maneuvers, remain problematic simply because, in real life, business jet pilots don’t do them very often. Add to that the challenges of moonless skies, strong winds, “black holes,” terrain/obstacles and unfamiliar OPENING L INES 7 AVIATION VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 04, ISSUE 02