NTA/CTAF changes continue

These include that the area surrounding an NTA, or CTAF aerodrome as they used to be known – typically around a country airport – will now have an upper limit of 5,000ft or the base of CTA, whichever is the lowest, or 8,500ft if the area lies below low-level Class E airspace.

This declaration will bring to an end the debate on when a call should be made when over-flying an affected NTA. It will sort out operators, including RPT operators, who have chosen to ignore this requirement.

These no-call decisions often were made on the basis of time and altitude.

The previous ‘in the vicinity of ’ requirement for an NTA radio call was open-ended.

Pilots had to make up their own minds whether over-flying an aerodrome at say 2,500ft AGL was satisfactory to make or not make a call – or should it be higher? How high was too much? How high was too little? Noone knew.

The stating of a specific altitude will now go a long way to head off a coroner saying that an accident occurred because the pilot did not make a call ‘in the vicinity of ’ but without any benchmark as to what this should be – 2,000ft, 5,000ft or 10,000ft AGL above the NTA? Calling by 10nm has been a requirement for some time.

It still needs to be emphasised to students and licensed pilots alike that calls can and should be made by 10nm, not at 10nm.

The subject of no upper altitude limit over CTAFs, now NTAs, was raised in the December 2007 and March 2009 issues of this column.

On the subject of NTA and radio work, it’s probably a good time to remind readers that radio calls, while highly desirable, are not mandatory at all NTAs.

I was reminded of this recently when a CPL student and I were doing a precautionary landing exercise at a country airport. We had made all the recommended inbound and circuit pattern radio calls when the student commented on a Petrel amphibian biplane landing without any radio call having been heard.

I pointed out that not all NTAs require a radio call – AIP section ENR 1. 1-45, 2 June ’11. notes that in the top right-hand corner of the ERSA book aerodrome details will show if a radio call is mandatory.

That information, below the aerodrome abbreviation, will indicate CERT, REG or MIL if a radio call is mandatory.

If the letters UNCR are shown a radio call is not mandatory unless required by the aerodrome operator or designated by CASA.

Needless to say, radio calls from any aircraft that has a serviceable radio can assist with separation and safety. In the past, the NTA CTAF frequency with (R) after it indicated radio use was required.

These changes, and other NTA procedures, are expected to come into effect on the AIRAC effective date of June 28 2012.

Fuel Exhaustion

The same issue of Flight Safety Australia that generated the above article also had another article of interest, that of running out of fuel when very close to home.

I can recall several instances of pilots who have had this happen. Some were the result of ignorance and others were simply pushing the issue. The end result was the same – out of fuel and into membership of the gliding club.

When I look at some NTSB investigations, mention often is made of a small amount of fuel being found in the selected tank.

Never discussed – but one has to wonder if that amount of fuel, small as it may be, might have got the subject aircraft to overhead the destination airport if the aircraft had remained in straight and level flight attitude.

Instead, the pilot set the aircraft up in the normal descent mode as he approached the destination field. The little remaining fuel in the tank sloshed forward and allowed air into the fuel line, assuming the line was toward the rear of the tank.

No two aircraft are going to have the same tank design but most work on the principle of getting the most fuel out of the tank in a level position.

The article rightly advocates landing and refuelling if the fuel level gets low. Having said that, if one does get into the undesirable situation of running on empty then keeping the aircraft straight and level until it is over the destination airport might get a better result than fuel exhaustion in the circuit pattern.

It is also critical that the pilot has leaned the engine and has a reduced power setting and therefore fuel burn.

All food for thought. Reader comments welcome. n Contact Dave via email at flyer02@optusnet. com. au