LOM approach procedures
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Okay, gotcha now. I didn't realize she was approaching with the same alignment as the inbound course.
Heather could do what a lot of people do (but aren't supposed to), especially if she's low on fuel. Fudge over to align with the inbound course (especially if she has a way to determine she's close enough to do so), drop down to the minimum altitude approaching the beacon, and shoot the approach straight in.
She wouldn't be getting vectors in Coral Harbor, though a vector to final obviates the need to fly the procedure turn. If one is in a true state of emergency, especially over flat terrain, and one knows one's position relative to the beacon, one might consider working the approach straight in...preferable to running out of fuel while getting oriented.
Conversely, part of the purpose of the procedure turn is to establish wind correction in order to be as accurate as possible on the approach. During a normal NDB approach, while inbound, one has perhaps two opportunities to establish a correction or find the correct angle to fly the wind correction, before the approach is over. Making a stab or two at it while flying outbound and then when intercepting the course gives one the greatest possible opportunity to establish an accurate track and get the proper wind correction angle.
If Heather is flying the procedure with a stiff, gusty crosswind, she will wand to avail herself of every opportunity to get established, because with that minimal fuel, she won't want to be fooling around with a missed approach. Gotta get it right the first time.
Heather could do what a lot of people do (but aren't supposed to), especially if she's low on fuel. Fudge over to align with the inbound course (especially if she has a way to determine she's close enough to do so), drop down to the minimum altitude approaching the beacon, and shoot the approach straight in.
She wouldn't be getting vectors in Coral Harbor, though a vector to final obviates the need to fly the procedure turn. If one is in a true state of emergency, especially over flat terrain, and one knows one's position relative to the beacon, one might consider working the approach straight in...preferable to running out of fuel while getting oriented.
Conversely, part of the purpose of the procedure turn is to establish wind correction in order to be as accurate as possible on the approach. During a normal NDB approach, while inbound, one has perhaps two opportunities to establish a correction or find the correct angle to fly the wind correction, before the approach is over. Making a stab or two at it while flying outbound and then when intercepting the course gives one the greatest possible opportunity to establish an accurate track and get the proper wind correction angle.
If Heather is flying the procedure with a stiff, gusty crosswind, she will wand to avail herself of every opportunity to get established, because with that minimal fuel, she won't want to be fooling around with a missed approach. Gotta get it right the first time.
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If Heather is flying the procedure with a stiff, gusty crosswind, she will wand to avail herself of every opportunity to get established, because with that minimal fuel, she won't want to be fooling around with a missed approach. Gotta get it right the first time.
to REALLY make the scene into a cliffhanger, and also put in a fierce gust of wind (below the MDA, of course ) that nearly puts the plane into the roof of the main hangar. (I've decided to fudge on the mud, though -- I don't have enough experience with muddy runways to describe a landing on one in exciting detail, and in any case the landing is scary enough already 
. )
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AO,
Cold, stiff wet mud can be slick as glass; clay especially. It's like landing on ice or driving on a skid pan.
Slightly frozen across the surface and thick mud underneath can be particularly dangerous. If one has the time, especially if it's got a little snow on it or one isn't sure if it's properly frozen, one can put one wheel down lightly, run it along the runway, then pick up and go around. One comes back down the runway the next time to see if the rut or track one made has filled up with water or mud.
Otherwise, it's a soft-field landing, trying to keep the wheels from getting mired or keeping the aircraft from getting stuck and flipped.
The fuel gauges in the Queen Air, like most light airplanes, aren't necessarily that accurate, especially when one is dealing with just minutes of fuel remaining. One might have the amount of fuel one thinks, or one might not. If the consumption is just slightly higher than what one thinks, one may be out of fuel and not realize it. That might be an interesting side note to weave in there; she thinks she has that much fuel remaining, but really has no way to know; she can only hope the fuel holds out because in reality, by the time the fuel is this low, the gauges will be sitting for all intents and purposes on empty, or bouncing off the peg.
The only time that gauge is required by regulation to read exactly correct is when it's empty. When it gets close, it will very nearly the same as empty. Further, when the tanks are that close to empty, any diversion from straight and level flight, even a slight pitch up or down, can starve a tank of fuel and cause the engine to hesitate, skip, burp, or quit. Also something that may be useful for your protagonist. Perhaps she banks in one of the turns and the engine runs rough or quits, and she levels the wings quickly or shallows her bank to nurse the airplane around to the new heading, to keep it from dying.
Cold, stiff wet mud can be slick as glass; clay especially. It's like landing on ice or driving on a skid pan.
Slightly frozen across the surface and thick mud underneath can be particularly dangerous. If one has the time, especially if it's got a little snow on it or one isn't sure if it's properly frozen, one can put one wheel down lightly, run it along the runway, then pick up and go around. One comes back down the runway the next time to see if the rut or track one made has filled up with water or mud.
Otherwise, it's a soft-field landing, trying to keep the wheels from getting mired or keeping the aircraft from getting stuck and flipped.
The fuel gauges in the Queen Air, like most light airplanes, aren't necessarily that accurate, especially when one is dealing with just minutes of fuel remaining. One might have the amount of fuel one thinks, or one might not. If the consumption is just slightly higher than what one thinks, one may be out of fuel and not realize it. That might be an interesting side note to weave in there; she thinks she has that much fuel remaining, but really has no way to know; she can only hope the fuel holds out because in reality, by the time the fuel is this low, the gauges will be sitting for all intents and purposes on empty, or bouncing off the peg.
The only time that gauge is required by regulation to read exactly correct is when it's empty. When it gets close, it will very nearly the same as empty. Further, when the tanks are that close to empty, any diversion from straight and level flight, even a slight pitch up or down, can starve a tank of fuel and cause the engine to hesitate, skip, burp, or quit. Also something that may be useful for your protagonist. Perhaps she banks in one of the turns and the engine runs rough or quits, and she levels the wings quickly or shallows her bank to nurse the airplane around to the new heading, to keep it from dying.
