Approach question
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: UK
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Sorry, wombat13, in my opinion that is still not a standard join.
Anyway, your suggestion of joining overhead at 2000' seems the same as an OHJ to me, except it doesn't involve using the deadside; that's why I considered it outside the criteria of "OHJ prohibited" as posed in the original question. Also, how precisely do you get to the position to start that procedure if you are approaching from the North, all turns are to the left, and there is an "avoid" to the East? Quite apart from the safety angle, isn't it all extremely cumbersome compared with a conventional join, that is far simpler and that everyone else will be expecting?
I can well understand a procedure being specific to a particular airfield (e.g. when the deadside is unavailable due to gliding) but just because you are using it there, that does not make it a "standard procedure". In the event it is required, then I would expect pilots to be properly pre-briefed to both use this procedure and therefore (this is the important bit) to be expecting others to be joining the circuit in this way. Safety comes down to behaving in a considerate and expected way towards others.
If you pitch up at a strange strip in the middle of nowhere, see other traffic in the circuit, and then join in the way you suggest, that would be neither considerate nor safe in my opinion. Descending on the centreline over departing traffic or descending crosswind over other traffic which may be joining in a more conventional manner seems frankly to be bordering on the reckless to me. It is totally different from the situation where that procedure is the required and known procedure at that airfield. That is what I meant by non-standard.
Its the same principle as arriving at a civil airfield, callings "initials", then executing a run-and-break arrival. Perfectly OK if other aircraft are expecting it - and are fully familiar with what you are doing - but nevertheless a totally non-standard join at a civil airfield.
JD
Anyway, your suggestion of joining overhead at 2000' seems the same as an OHJ to me, except it doesn't involve using the deadside; that's why I considered it outside the criteria of "OHJ prohibited" as posed in the original question. Also, how precisely do you get to the position to start that procedure if you are approaching from the North, all turns are to the left, and there is an "avoid" to the East? Quite apart from the safety angle, isn't it all extremely cumbersome compared with a conventional join, that is far simpler and that everyone else will be expecting?
I can well understand a procedure being specific to a particular airfield (e.g. when the deadside is unavailable due to gliding) but just because you are using it there, that does not make it a "standard procedure". In the event it is required, then I would expect pilots to be properly pre-briefed to both use this procedure and therefore (this is the important bit) to be expecting others to be joining the circuit in this way. Safety comes down to behaving in a considerate and expected way towards others.
If you pitch up at a strange strip in the middle of nowhere, see other traffic in the circuit, and then join in the way you suggest, that would be neither considerate nor safe in my opinion. Descending on the centreline over departing traffic or descending crosswind over other traffic which may be joining in a more conventional manner seems frankly to be bordering on the reckless to me. It is totally different from the situation where that procedure is the required and known procedure at that airfield. That is what I meant by non-standard.
Its the same principle as arriving at a civil airfield, callings "initials", then executing a run-and-break arrival. Perfectly OK if other aircraft are expecting it - and are fully familiar with what you are doing - but nevertheless a totally non-standard join at a civil airfield.
JD
