how would you enter this pattern?

Okay, it's spring on the seacoast and the wind is coming from the E
and SE. My favorite destination airport has two runways, grass 14/32
and asphalt 10/28. I much prefer to land on the grass, which is
primarily for ultralights, while everyone else prefers the asphalt
because it seems longer even though it isn't. (The grass runway
crosses the asphalt so most of us who use it confine our activities to
the northern part.)

The usual wind direction is from the north or west, so the traffic
pattern for runway 32 keeps me well out of the traffic for runway 28.
But the spring is a different matter. I've never landed on 14, and it
seems to me that a normal 45 entry would put me directly above the
asphalt runway, so that when I turned downwind I would intersect the
downwind leg for runway 10. That seems unnecessarily provocative!

What would you do? (Yeah, yeah, you'd land on the asphalt, but dang,
it's rough! And grass is where Cubs belong.)

Most everybody in these parts favors the 45 entry, sometimes from the
opposite direction with a midfield crossover to the downwind. But in
this case, midfield crossover for 14 again puts me crossing the
downwind leg for 10.


Blue skies! -- Dan Ford

Claire Chennault and His American Volunteers, 1941-1942
new from HarperCollins www.FlyingTigersBook.com

"Cubdriver" usenet AT danford DOT net wrote in message
...

Okay, it's spring on the seacoast and the wind is coming from the E
and SE. My favorite destination airport has two runways, grass 14/32
and asphalt 10/28. I much prefer to land on the grass, which is
primarily for ultralights,
Blue skies! -- Dan Ford

Dan: This must be Plum Island (2B2). I would
land on 10. BTDT :-)

Bob Barker N8749S

On Tue, 08 Apr 2008 05:53:07 -0400, Cubdriver usenet AT danford DOT
net wrote:


Okay, it's spring on the seacoast and the wind is coming from the E
and SE. My favorite destination airport has two runways, grass 14/32
and asphalt 10/28. I much prefer to land on the grass, which is
primarily for ultralights, while everyone else prefers the asphalt
because it seems longer even though it isn't. (The grass runway
crosses the asphalt so most of us who use it confine our activities to
the northern part.)

The usual wind direction is from the north or west, so the traffic
pattern for runway 32 keeps me well out of the traffic for runway 28.
But the spring is a different matter. I've never landed on 14, and it
seems to me that a normal 45 entry would put me directly above the
asphalt runway, so that when I turned downwind I would intersect the
downwind leg for runway 10. That seems unnecessarily provocative!

What would you do? (Yeah, yeah, you'd land on the asphalt, but dang,
it's rough! And grass is where Cubs belong.)

Most everybody in these parts favors the 45 entry, sometimes from the
opposite direction with a midfield crossover to the downwind. But in
this case, midfield crossover for 14 again puts me crossing the
downwind leg for 10.

If the airport is indeed 2B2 http://www.airnav.com/airport/2B2,
given that the "ULTRALIGHT PATTERN ALTITUDE 400 FT AGL", if use that
altitude, you shouldn't interfere with the downwind leg of the other
runway. After all, your Cub is a LSA. :-)

On Tue, 08 Apr 2008 13:47:47 GMT, Larry Dighera
wrote:

If the airport is indeed 2B2 http://www.airnav.com/airport/2B2,
given that the "ULTRALIGHT PATTERN ALTITUDE 400 FT AGL", if use that
altitude, you shouldn't interfere with the downwind leg of the other
runway. After all, your Cub is a LSA. :-)

LSA is not Ultralight, though. Is it? What would the FAA say to that
argument?

When I was training, my instructor used to take me down to Plum Island
so as to land on asphalt. One day I was landing on 10 and a Thing was
floating in on 14 and of course disappeared under my left tire. I
moaned.

Said Brian: "XXXX, I wish they'd give those XXXX a certificate so they
could take it away from them!"

His wish of course has come true.

Blue skies! -- Dan Ford

Claire Chennault and His American Volunteers, 1941-1942
new from HarperCollins www.FlyingTigersBook.com

Midfield cross overs should not be an issue, we have parallel runways,
normally power on the west and glider on the east and we always cross over
the top coming from the west to east, to fly the east side downwind to the
east runway. Look, announce, look, look, look, do, look, look.

BT

"Cubdriver" usenet AT danford DOT net wrote in message
...

Okay, it's spring on the seacoast and the wind is coming from the E
and SE. My favorite destination airport has two runways, grass 14/32
and asphalt 10/28. I much prefer to land on the grass, which is
primarily for ultralights, while everyone else prefers the asphalt
because it seems longer even though it isn't. (The grass runway
crosses the asphalt so most of us who use it confine our activities to
the northern part.)

The usual wind direction is from the north or west, so the traffic
pattern for runway 32 keeps me well out of the traffic for runway 28.
But the spring is a different matter. I've never landed on 14, and it
seems to me that a normal 45 entry would put me directly above the
asphalt runway, so that when I turned downwind I would intersect the
downwind leg for runway 10. That seems unnecessarily provocative!

What would you do? (Yeah, yeah, you'd land on the asphalt, but dang,
it's rough! And grass is where Cubs belong.)

Most everybody in these parts favors the 45 entry, sometimes from the
opposite direction with a midfield crossover to the downwind. But in
this case, midfield crossover for 14 again puts me crossing the
downwind leg for 10.


Blue skies! -- Dan Ford

Claire Chennault and His American Volunteers, 1941-1942
new from HarperCollins www.FlyingTigersBook.com

"midfield crossover for 14 again puts me crossing the downwind leg for 10"

Given that you fly the midfield crossover at pattern altitude + 500 feet
this shouldn't be an issue...




"BT" wrote in message
...
Midfield cross overs should not be an issue, we have parallel runways,
normally power on the west and glider on the east and we always cross over
the top coming from the west to east, to fly the east side downwind to the
east runway. Look, announce, look, look, look, do, look, look.

BT

"Cubdriver" usenet AT danford DOT net wrote in message
...

Okay, it's spring on the seacoast and the wind is coming from the E
and SE. My favorite destination airport has two runways, grass 14/32
and asphalt 10/28. I much prefer to land on the grass, which is
primarily for ultralights, while everyone else prefers the asphalt
because it seems longer even though it isn't. (The grass runway
crosses the asphalt so most of us who use it confine our activities to
the northern part.)

The usual wind direction is from the north or west, so the traffic
pattern for runway 32 keeps me well out of the traffic for runway 28.
But the spring is a different matter. I've never landed on 14, and it
seems to me that a normal 45 entry would put me directly above the
asphalt runway, so that when I turned downwind I would intersect the
downwind leg for runway 10. That seems unnecessarily provocative!

What would you do? (Yeah, yeah, you'd land on the asphalt, but dang,
it's rough! And grass is where Cubs belong.)

Most everybody in these parts favors the 45 entry, sometimes from the
opposite direction with a midfield crossover to the downwind. But in
this case, midfield crossover for 14 again puts me crossing the
downwind leg for 10.


Blue skies! -- Dan Ford

Claire Chennault and His American Volunteers, 1941-1942
new from HarperCollins www.FlyingTigersBook.com

On Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:35:41 GMT, "Bill Denton"
wrote:

"midfield crossover for 14 again puts me crossing the downwind leg for 10"

Given that you fly the midfield crossover at pattern altitude + 500 feet
this shouldn't be an issue...

But I don't! We fly the crossover at TPA. That's what I do, and that's
what I've seen dozens of other pilots do.

Otherwise you are descending onto the downwind, which my instructor
says is a no-no. Do everything in or near the pattern at TPA, says he.


Blue skies! -- Dan Ford

Claire Chennault and His American Volunteers, 1941-1942
new from HarperCollins www.FlyingTigersBook.com

On Thu, 10 Apr 2008 18:09:11 -0400, Cubdriver wrote:



Given that you fly the midfield crossover at pattern altitude + 500 feet
this shouldn't be an issue...

But I don't! We fly the crossover at TPA. That's what I do, and that's
what I've seen dozens of other pilots do.

Otherwise you are descending onto the downwind, which my instructor
says is a no-no. Do everything in or near the pattern at TPA, says he.

Amen.

--
Dan
T182T at 4R4

Given that you fly the midfield crossover at pattern
altitude + 500 feet this shouldn't be an issue...

But I don't! We fly the crossover at TPA. That's what
I do, and that's what I've seen dozens of other pilots do.

Otherwise you are descending onto the downwind, which
my instructor says is a no-no. Do everything in or near the
pattern at TPA, says he.

(I missed the earlier part of the thread so this may be dup), but I too do
all my maneuvering at +500 or more above the pattern. Especially if I'm
nordo or get nothing on the unicom. Then I usually like to come in and peak
at the sock, and maybe do a few orbits to look the field over. Or when I'm
coming from opposite side of the pattern. In all cases, when I've finished
looking, I proceed outbound perpendicular to the downwind at +500. And about
a mile from the downwind I will initiate a descending right turn (225deg)
ending at TPA on the 1 mile 45 to the downwind. I've always preferred this
as I get to loiter above the TPA for as long as I need, and then the big
turn onto the 45 becomes a giant clearing turn.

I've seen others inbound from the opposite side, crossing midfield at TPA
and joining the downwind with a left hand turn. That works for them, but I
never liked it because I've seen it bunch up the downwind.

One thing for sure, in the years I've been flying this (entering the
downwind from opposite side) has been the most discussed issue without ever
being resolved.

I have to respectfully disagree with this.

Overhead the field at 500+ TPA, the entire downwind leg is sprawled
before you and all traffic should be self evident. insert yourself
appropriately. This provides for a healthy separation if, say NORDO,
you find that there are no safe spots in the pattern and you must
abort to make another pattern entry attempt.

That said, my home field (towered) field has me call overhead at 500+
tpa and then drop into downwind... so its possible that I've just been
re-enforcing a bad habit.

-Scott



On Apr 10, 3:09 pm, Cubdriver usenet AT danford DOT net wrote:
On Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:35:41 GMT, "Bill Denton"

wrote:
"midfield crossover for 14 again puts me crossing the downwind leg for 10"

Given that you fly the midfield crossover at pattern altitude + 500 feet
this shouldn't be an issue...

But I don't! We fly the crossover at TPA. That's what I do, and that's
what I've seen dozens of other pilots do.

Otherwise you are descending onto the downwind, which my instructor
says is a no-no. Do everything in or near the pattern at TPA, says he.

Blue skies! -- Dan Ford

Claire Chennault and His American Volunteers, 1941-1942
new from HarperCollinswww.FlyingTigersBook.com