The FAA’s Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing (ASIAS) program recently published a study on circle-to-land approaches that identifies contributing factors of safety issues experienced by pilots when flying this maneuver. ASIAS analyzed data from various voluntary safety programs to offer useful insights and tips for pilots conducting circle-to-land approaches.
Pilots of business aircraft must, on occasion, fly a circling approach when they cannot land from a straight-in approach due to tailwinds, obstacles, other limitations, or the need to accommodate traffic flow for ATC. Circling approaches, according to the ASIAS study, “present an increased risk to general aviation operations because they require maneuvering at low altitude and low airspeed during the final segment of the approach and landing.”
Pilot, safety expert, consultant, and aviation journalist Stuart “Kipp” Lau writes about flight safety and airmanship for AIN.
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