non-towered airport question

Whenever I am flying at a non-controlled airport, my primary runway will
be
the one appropriate to the direction of the wind. If the wind changes, I
will change.

What if others are still using the "original" runway?

One of the "problems" with posting to newsgroups is if you leave something
out, it is automatically assumed the writer doesn't do it :-). Thus far,
when that situation has occurred, and the other aircraft haven't made the
adjustment, I will broadcast a CTAF message about the wind/runway change.
Thus far the other aircraft have all followed suit and adjusted to the new
runway. I haven't had the "opportunity" of someone refusing to change.


If I want to do some x-wind landing practice on a different runway from
the
preferred, I will clearly announce my intentions

Not meaning to pick, just curious: do you really announce
"Pepsi County traffic, Cessna 12345 entering left downwind
for 34 for crosswind landing practice" or some such?

Yes. That is exactly what I do when 34 is NOT the desired runway for the
given wind direction. I would rather use an extra 2 seconds of air time and
avoid a potiential problem.


My personal tick on UNICOM is not being able to make necessary
traffic calls in a timely manner because someone is taking up
the frequency with a lengthy announcement full of unnecessary
information. Of course, students gotta learn, but it's often
not students I hear doing it.

Where I fly, the radio "problems" I have encountered isn't so much a long
winded pilot but having to put up with the radio traffic coming from other
uncontrolled airports :-(.

About the only time I get frustrated with the radio traffic is going into a
Class-C airspace and the controllers are so busy I have to go into a
"holding pattern" while waiting to establish communications with them.


Needless to say my outside scanning becomes much more intense in
this situation; you never know when an airplane will be NORDO.

Just to point out that your outside scanning should be IMHO
as intense as you can make it at all times.

See, there you go trying to read between the lines :-)). One day, I had a
C172 take the runway for departure AFTER I had announced turning final for
that runway. I had to do a go-around. Trust me, I am ALWAYS watching. :-)

You never know when
a NORDO aircraft is going to perceive an operational advantage
in using a different runway than you prefer, at any time. You
also never know when someone is going to say one thing and show
up somewhere else. I have to admit I'm usually not directionally
challenged but I've been known to make directionally-challenged
radio calls myself.

You too??? :-) At least I don't feel like the Lone Ranger now. I still have
a hard time deciding if I am approaching from the S.E., N.W., S.W., etc.


Also, if the airport is busy on that particular day, I will defer my
practices until another time.

Well, how do you define busy? One other aircraft? Two? Four?
Seven?

That is a hard question to answer. I just depends on what the other aircraft
are doing. I have left the area with 2 in the pattern and have stayed with
as many as 5. But, if it is "busy" I will not deviate from the pattern that
the others are using. When I was a student, our practice area wasn't too far
from the uncontrolled airport we would practice our landings/TOs. What I
would do is fly over to the practice area for some other practice and then
return back to the airport when the other aircraft went home.

Sydney, where to you fligh out of primarily?

Happy flying,

Harry