
In my previous column (December 2024/ January 2025 issue), I was flying Bonanza 38Y on my way to ARSHA to hold after doing a missed approach on the ILS-09 at Rhinelander, Wisconsin Airport (KRHI) due to weather (FIG 1).
I want to thank our readers for some of the comments on the article and bring forth some of their thoughts before moving on.
Because there are so many combinations of avionics and manufacturer requirements are different, it has caused a lot of confusion among pilots as to what they can expect during an approach. In the past I have done seminars and webinars covering numerous topics on aviation safety and I received a call last week from my FAA safety program manager from the Milwaukee FSDO, Jurg Grossenbacher, asking me to do a presentation on this very issue and I have agreed. After reading my previous article and this one, I am asking pilots to reach out to me so we can deliver the most accurate information about what pilots and instructors have seen.
One of the comments I received is that I never mentioned activating my approach once I loaded it, so let’s review this using different GPS navigators.
On the Garmin 480, if we load the desired approach as part of the flight plan and list the initial approach fix (IAF) in the enroute segment as well, then it is not necessary to activate the approach. The aircraft will fly the entire flight with no further pilot inputs except power and configuration changes all the way to touchdown. Should you not include the IAF as part of the enroute portion of the flight, the Garmin will show a “discontinuity” prior to reaching the IAF (FIG 2).
The pilot must now edit the flight plan and clear the discontinuity or wait until cleared for the approach, then activate the approach at that time. The normal procedure with other Garmin products (430, 530, 650, 750) is to load the destination airport first, then select the approach and IAF or transition once the pilot determines which approach is in use. This can be done using the direct to key or make it the last entry in the flight plan. The next option is to select “load” or “activate” the approach. If loading the approach only, the aircraft will fly only to the airport, then continue to fly straight past the airport with nowhere to go. The pilot, once cleared for the approach, pushes the “procedures” button and either “Activate Approach” or “Activate Vectors To Final.” If an airport is listed in the flight plan as the last item on the list, we can load the approach by pushing the procedure’s button and select the approach, then the IAF or transition we plan to use. At the time we are cleared to begin the approach, we can again push the procedures button and activate the approach or activate vectors to final if being vectored for the approach. Because the airport is listed prior to the approach sequence, we can select the airport and hit the clear button to remove the airport from the flight plan once the approach is loaded. This will cause similar behavior to removing discontinuity on the Garmin 480.
Once we went missed on our approach which was somewhat of a surprise, we followed protocol with our acronyms and flow pattern (Power-Up, Pitch-Up Positive-Rate, Gear-Up) then using the 5 T’s and we are on our way to the missed approach hold. There is no pilot intervention with the Garmin 480 as it calls out minimums and switches back to GPS guidance at the proper time, and with the GPSS function as selected on the autopilot, we are on our way to the hold. The reason for going to a hold when going missed is to give the pilot the opportunity to decide what to do next.
We can’t discuss the anatomy of an approach now that we have gone missed, without mentioning two more very important items: “Aeronautical Decision Making” and “Human Factors.” These are two important items that are part of the training I do when training pilots for an Instrument Rating. A question I remember from the flight instructor knowledge test is, can an instructor teach good judgement? My answer after many years of instructing does not concur with the FAA correct answer on the exam. We cannot teach good judgement as instructors, but we can influence good decision-making. Human factors can provide a strong influence on decision-making and is a contributing factor to many accidents.
On our flight to Rhinelander, the target of this column, we were optimistic that we would be able to land, and even though the weather had deteriorated. We had friends waiting at the airport to take us to a special event and now we are in a holding pattern trying to decide what to do next. This is a human factor that can have a strong influence on making a good aeronautical decision, but we must in the interest of safety dispel this influence. My options are 1) continue to hold with hopes of improving conditions at Rhinelander, 2) attempt another approach wishing for enough improvement that we would be able to land, or 3) search for an alternate. During flight planning, the weather forecast did not indicate that an alternate would be required. For review, the 1,2,3 rule equals one hour before to one hour after the estimated time of arrival, ceiling of 2000 feet and visibility 3 miles).
While in the hold, I check the current weather for Rheinlander again and see conditions are worsening, so I dispel the idea of continuing to hold or attempt the approach again. Now it is time to start looking for an airport as an alternate. I can check the weather on the Garmin Aera 660 in my aircraft or go to Foreflight on my iPad. I chose the Aera 660 to look for a good alternate and selected Iron Mountain (KIMT) see (Fig-3). Next, I use Foreflight to review the available approaches for (KIMT) and checked for any NOTAMs. The Garmin 480 allows the pilot to select an alternate to be saved in its memory for future use see (FIG 4). This can save time and reduce workload for the pilot in some cases as a single button push will get us on our way to the alternate. I put KIMT into the Garmin 480 and push that button. I have now selected the alternate as our new destination, and I am enroute. I will be doing a GPS approach at KIMT to be continued in the next issue of Midwest Flyer Magazine. See you then!