Ditching in the Pacific Ocean

[ph-sbe]

Originally Posted by MarcK

Are you sure you are from San Jose? There is no way you can get a Class B entry through the airliner approach paths between the West bay and the East bay. So 2,500 is as high as you can go. Try the Instrument approach to Half Moon Bay: over the water on final below 2,000. Watsonville: 11 miles over water below 3,000. Enroute, you can get higher, of course. The point being, I don't know anyone who wears a life vest when practicing instrument approaches into Watsonville (but then, I don't know everyone).

I've lived here since 2010.

Go fly the bay tour out of RHV. You'll be cleared to cross SJC at 2,500 and after that you'll be cleared to stay at 3,500 "south and west of the bayshore freeway" (I've heard that phrase sooooo often now). That's the 101. The airliners are well above you. In fact, you'll usually stay at 3,500 up until you are cleared to descent when you reach the City of SF, when they tell you to descend under the Bravo so you can fly over the Golden Gate and orbit Alcatraz. Which is the one time I'd by slightly out of gliding distance as I usually do that at 1,500. I usually just follow the 280 (that runs parallel to the 101, but more to the west, closer to HAF). KHAF is way east of the 101, and the airliners are typically way above the assigned 3,500 at that point.

And this guy was not flying IFR. He was flying VFR and should have stayed higher.

[n5296s]

I don't know anyone who wears a life vest when practicing instrument approaches into Watsonville (but then, I don't know everyone).

I actually bought lifejackets for flying the ILS into Monterey, which involves a long over-water approach with no hope of gliding to terra firma.

There is no way you can get a Class B entry through the airliner approach paths between the West bay and the East bay

I'm sure that's true - I've never tried - but there are lots of places you CAN fly under the Class B or where they will let you in if there's a good reason. I must have flown the "Bay Tour" of one kind or another nearly 100 times, and have only been refused Class B or politely sent to Oakland's Class C a handful of times. Of course a lot depends on whether you sound like you know what you're doing.