VOR A320 Radial intercept

[Natstrackalpha]

You know the method of intercepting a radial say 030 of a VOR (in order to track From) if say you are approaching from the South?

Using the A320 then, can I assume that you just switch ND to VOR and when you get to your radial you simply set your heading to track your radial?

So there is not some command we can insert into the MCDU to do this? - - - which will keep you on the radial, in NAV?

Summary

Will it track a radial?

[EDA]

On FMS Legacy, the only way is to track it "raw data" in HDG or TRACK mode...

[mcdhu]

I guess you could create a leg from VOR XYZ to a PBD XYZ/030/50, head north and push for NAV and it should intercept and fly out to the 030/50 WPT.
Much easier though to intercept (using ROSE VOR if you must) and then select TRK/FPA and TK 030.
I am sure there are other ways which those smarter than I will come up with.

[F14]

since the mid 90s europe went RNAV. Even our BaC 1-11s had a "beam bar". Sp tracking to and from radials is a blast from the past. Yes to get the airbus to do it, you must set radial in on the DIR page, then set intercept and let the FMGS do the rest

[BOAC]

Do you not have the equivalent of the Boeing 'VOR/LOC'? How would you fly a loc approach (non-RNAV)?

[Jonty]

Press the DIR button. Select the VOR (type it in), select the radial in or out bound. NAV will arm and give an intercept. Once it's computed, NAV will execute. FMS 2.

[Cough]

Originally Posted by BOAC

Do you not have the equivalent of the Boeing 'VOR/LOC'? How would you fly a loc approach (non-RNAV)?

Non RNAV - Select TRACK/FPA. Establish on the desired radial and then select the inbound track. Minor adjustments only from then as the A/C maintains the track. At FAF, pull (say!) 3 degrees down flight path angle and relax, making gentle corrections.

No VOR/LOC fitted...But if you have it in the database...

Execute direct to FAF, with inbound radial (as jonty said!) Press approach.

Land aircraft from MDA. Done! SOOOooooo easy!

Edit...

Oops thats for a normal NPA. For a loc approach there is a LOC button! Use that and FPA...

[Natstrackalpha]

BOAC

Do you not have the equivalent of the Boeing 'VOR/LOC'? How would you fly a loc approach (non-RNAV)?

sorry, was that question for me . . ?

If you press the pb LOC then the nearest LOC is tuned in, if you select and insert the LOC freq on the RAD page then the LOC will (hopefully) be ready to tune into the LOC you want when you are in range - you identify it (naturally) - then when ready, press LOC which will light up. Alternately, you could hard tune the LOC freq on the RMP - and then you would probably have LOC on any standby VOR - I am not sure if the LOC pb would light up on this occasion or if indeed it would come up on the ND . . .? But, I should so I will go and look.

Thanks MCDU, I had thought of that method, but I was trying to figure out if I could do it without the . . . A320 going to the . . .VOR itself - your `heading to intercept sounds the best plan.

By the way there was/is a method where one can . .create a waypoint , sorry, create a `from` waypoint, then create a `to` waypoint and it draws a nice straight line for you on the ND and then you intercept the track you have just drawn, in heading, - but it seems to take a bit of messing about deleting waypoints or trying to get them to sequence - this is usually to intercept an airway or route connecting two waypoints and/or VORs.

mcdu - again

I had thought about your PBD method - and, like yourself elected to intercept using hdg to steer or indeed TRK/FPA.
(Of course, TRK/FPA)

EDA

Yep, got it.

F14

If coming from the South in my example then I would select the Radial Out on the DIR page - You wrote `in` am sure it was a typo . . ?

since the mid 90s europe went RNAV. Even our BaC 1-11s had a "beam bar". Sp tracking to and from radials is a blast from the past.

I appreciate this but I would also be wanting to intercept other radials of other things, like QDRs from NDBs and radials from waypoints - which although wpts don`t have radials per se` one can still create them as you know - for instance - PBDs not just VORs, which you can do in an A320, as you know. But there are stil loads of VORs around, aren`t there . . ? Knowing they are there and knowing how to use them is more advantages than not.


Thank you for all your help.

[J.L.Seagull]

F14 is right (but didn't explain it clearly)...

Jonty has got it spot on!

You can track any radial (inbound or outbound) doing it exactly the way Jonty described. If your heading is wrong, it will even tell you "NO NAV INTERCEPT".

[vilas]

Do you not have the equivalent of the Boeing 'VOR/LOC'? The answer is NO. While LOC mode will track ILS localiser APP mode will not track Radial from VOR beam but track the radial from geographical position of the VOR even if the actual VOR is off. Same is true for Radial In/Out function.

[DutchOne]

If you wanna do it in NAV, then the easiest way is radial IN (or OUT for outbound). Provided Accuracy is HIGH.

[BOAC]

Originally Posted by Cough

Establish on the desired radial and then select the inbound track.

- I guess the only way 'track' can be ascertained is from the INS?

Interesting stuff. I take it then, without a working database or Nav updating you could not easily navigate a VOR based airway and you would have to fly the VOR approach or airway c/line in heading, tracking the bar, which I take it is displayed in 'ROSE VOR' - or is it an RDMI job?

[Natstrackalpha]

BOAC

Interesting stuff. I take it then, without a working database or Nav updating you could not easily navigate a VOR based airway and you would have to fly the VOR approach or airway c/line in heading, tracking the bar, which I take it is displayed in 'ROSE VOR' - or is it an RDMI job?

Right on both counts.

Selecting VOR Switch givng you Rose VOR on the Nav Display (ND) and there is also the VOR standby VOR which gives you two needles = VOR 1 and 2 respectively, or VOR 1 and ADF 1 or VOR 2 and ADF 1 (or ADF 2 for over water ops - )

By inserting the freq into the RAD page and/or hard tuning on the RMP - keep the needles in the middle on the NAV ROSE, or in the case of the standby VOR keeping the needle on the . . . bearing on the compass card.
The bearing being the bearing to the VOR, or the NDB.

Its a magnetic bearing.

The whole thing is a DDRMI, like you said - and is a function of the ADIRS (INS effectively) all flags show if ADIRS is TU.

Although the hard tuning on the Radio Management Panel (RMP) removes the tuning from the FMGC with a 1 or 2 ADIR failure - a total failure of the ADIRS (would remove any meaningful heading info on your compass card as it is dead anyway) but would leave you without a VOR.

As far as I can gather, there is no stand alone VHF VOR back up - I may be wrong, but I think not. In retrospect, however, you may get away with tuning on VHF 3 but that would not give you any display and the tuning range of the digits may not facilitate the lower VOR freqs. . . .?

But in that case one would have bigger fish to fry and you would have to adjust heading every 10 mins if attempting to track a great circle track, calculate convergency, and so forth. Back to DR. Hello Linberg, Brown, Alcock and the like.

[BOAC]

Thanks for that.

Hello Linberg, Brown, Alcock and the like.

- not forgetting, if it is a BA777, sending PNF out onto the wing occasionally to chip the ice off the fuel heat exchanger................

[AirbusVince]

There is a few way how you are going to be able to do this:

1. Raw data :
On MCDU, Radnav page, set your Frequency and your Course
Then put your EFIS to VOR Rose mode
Then select either TRACK/FPA or HDG/VS
Then fly your heading/track to intercept

2. With NAV/Managed:
let say LKS vor, and we will use Place Bearing distance
On the flight plan put LKS/030/5, then put LKS/030/50
Make sure you are flying from the fix, then put your heading to intercept between the line, and manage heading, you will get the intercept line

3. Hit Direct button on MCDU (FMS2 honeywell) Put LKS VOR, then u may use Radial In / Radial out

Option 2/3 will work preety well if you have high accuracy with GPS. The LOC button will not work for you