slickster:
This talk of banning circling approaches is pathetic. They're not ideal, but then lots of our working lives are not. Grow up. Fly the aeroplane (isn't that why you became a pilot?). I don't often side with 411a, but I'm with him on this, and you'll be shocked to hear (411a) that I grew in the FMS environment.
There is circling, then there is circling. OPRN, being a PANS-OPS airport has a realistic circle-to-land maneuvering area. I have no quarrel with circling at such an airport provided the pilot has proficiency and currency in CTL procedures in a heavy jet transport.
In that case circling at OPRN can be quite safe.
TERPs is a different matter. The protected airspace less than 50% of that provided by PANS-OPS. Is ICAO wasting airspace or is the FAA deadly wrong? It's the latter.