Aviation Topic of the Week
By Michael Oxner, February 8, 2004


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This week's topic:
IFR Flight Example, Part 3: Taxiing for Departure

Last week our pilots received the IFR clearance, evaluated and accepted it. Now it's time to get the airplane out onto the field and take to the air. This will be a comparatively short topic. I'd like to leave the actual departure to a separate topic. Again, this topic contains some clips from outdated publications our example for review, so I have to say the same thing again: Always use current, real-world publications for real-world flight.

Review of Situation
Preparing to Taxi Out at Stephenville
Taxiing Out for Take-Off

Review of Situation

Just a quick review, so we all know what's important for this topic.

Weather:
METAR CYJT 251600Z 10005KT 15SM FEW016 BKN032 OVC050 M04/M07 A2980
RMK SC2SC5SC2 SLP095=

IFR Clearance:
CZQX: "Alpha Romeo Tango is cleared to the Halifax Airport via victor three one nine Sydney, flight planned route. Maintain eight thousand, expect one four thousand thirty miles southwest of Stephenville. Depart runway zero nine, turn right heading two six zero to intercept victor three one nine and proceed on course. Squawk two five four two. Clearance is canceled if not airborne by one six two zero."

Current time:
1605z, giving 15 minutes to get airborne.

Preparing to Taxi Out at Stephenville

With a valid clearance in hand, the pilots have some pre-departure checklists to run through, and the task of taxiing out at hand. Have a look at this outdated CYJT airport diagram for reference:

CYJT The current position of the KingAir is marked on the diagram to give you a reference point. The aircraft is parked on Apron I. Departure on Runway 09 is desired, so we have to look at a taxi route. Could it be any easier? Taxiway A leaves Apron I and ends right at the threshold of 09. The path seems pretty simple.

CYJT is an uncontrolled aerodrome. How can that be with controlled airspace reaching right to the ground as mentioned before? Simple. Yes, there is controlled airspace, but it's Class E. This means that IFR flights are controlled, but VFR are not. There are higher VFR weather limits in control zones, such as that surrounding CYJT, to provide a better opportunity for an IFR aircraft to see a VFR aircraft, but CYJT does not have the one item required to make it a controlled airport: a control tower. If there were a TWR at CYJT, several things would be different. For one, the list of agencies across the top would include a Tower and Ground frequency instead of APRT RDO. Most importantly, the rules of how aircraft movements are made would be very different.

At a controlled airport, everybody wanting access to the Manoeuvring Area of an airport needs clearance to do so. This was defined in a previous topic about airport movements, but it really means that any movement desired on a taxiway or runway needs permission. At an uncontrolled airport, aircraft movements are not controlled by outside agencies, and so the Pilot In Command (PIC) is the one responsible for his aircraft and his movements at the airport. Our pilot bible, the AIP Canada has details on operating at uncontrolled airports in section RAC 4.5. These practices include tuning in the airport's Mandatory Frequency (MF), listed in the aerodrome diagram at left, listening for other aircraft transmissions, and making blind radio calls (or directed ones if traffic is known to be a conflict) and moving about the airfield and surrounding areas accordingly.


Taxiing for Take-Off

With the aircraft readied for taxi and take-off, the MF tuned up, our pilots initiate the radio calls. Again, after a brief listening watch to ensure nobody gets "stepped on":

FART: "Stephenville Airport Radio, KingAir Foxtrot Alpha Romeo Tango on Apron One, taxiing Alpha for departure on runway 09."
CYJT ARPT RDO: "KingAir Foxtrot Alpha Romeo Tango, Stephenville Airport Radio. Winds one three zero at five, altimeter two niner eight zero. There is a Cessna 172, Golf Lima Oscar Bravo, in the circuit left hand for runway 09, just reported downwind for a touch and go."
FART: "Alpha Romeo Tango, roger, we'll call before entering the runway."
Note the last transmission was made as a courtesy to let everyone know what our pilot's intentions are. The fact is, the rules in an MF require a radio call prior to entering a runway anyway.

Now that our pilots have established who else is operating around the airport and that no current conflict exists, they take a good look around on the apron before starting to move. It should be obvious, since it is elementary that people should see where they're going before they start to move. The search for other vehicles, personnel on the ground and other aircraft reveals nothing of concern, so the throttles are opened just a little to start the aircraft moving, and the journey to the runway begins.

Leaving the apron, a right turn is made to proceed in Alpha westbound to head for the threshold. The pre-takeoff checklist is run through as both pilots confirm items and one steers the plane down the taxiway. Approaching the hold line, the take-off checklist is not quite completed. A new radio transmission comes through:

GLOB: "Alpha Romeo Tango, I see you there on the taxiway, I can extend a little to let you go if you want to."

With the checklist incomplete, knowing it will take another minute or so before everything is done, the pilot responds:

FART: "Lima Oscar Bravo, negative. We're not quite ready. You might as well continue and we'll wait for you."
GLOB: "Airport Radio, Lima Oscar Bravo turning base now."

CYJT ARPT RDO: "Lima Oscar Bravo, Airport Radio, roger."

The checklist is complete. Our pilots now brief the clearance and the take-off plan. The take-off plan includes the departure procedure for the aerodrome, as listed on the airport diagram above, the departure instructions in the clearance, and the mechanics associated with the take-off itself. With the weight and balance sheet done up, the appropriate speeds are determined for the take-off roll (V1, Vr and V2). It is decided at this point that the take-off will be conducted by the Captain and the First Officer will monitor the progress on instruments and call out speeds. Both pilots do a check of the approach area and the Cessna 172 in the circuit is seen on final approach. No other traffic is sighted.

GLOB: "Airport Radio, Lima Oscar Bravo on final runway 09, touch and go."
CYJT ARPT RDO: "Lima Oscar Bravo, Airport Radio, winds one three zero at five."
A short time later, GLOB is past the threshold and proceeding down the runway on his touch and go...
FART: "Airport Radio, Alpha Romeo Tango is taxiing to position runway 09. We'll wait for Lima Oscar Bravo to start the turn to the left before we roll."
CYJT ARPT RDO: "Alpha Romeo Tango, Airport Radio, roger."

The KingAir taxis onto the runway and lines up as both pilots once again scan the final approach area for other traffic, just in case someone without a radio is in the area and can't make calls. Everything is clear. A check of the windsock confirms the wind speed and direction, and a check of the clock confirms that the IFR clearance is still valid as it is now 1610z. Time to go...




Whoops! Look at that! It's time to break for the week. Again, an awful lot of reading for something that would take so little time to accomplish. I'm not trying to make this seem complicated, despite the amount of writing I am doing for this. Each step along the way is important to ensuring a successful and safe flight. Any feedback for our flight so far can be sent to my e-mail address, moxner@nbnet.nb.ca. Thanks for taking the time to read!