Pine Bluff, Arkansas ILS LOC RWY 18

The approach into this non-towered rural airport is surprisingly complex at first glance.

Jason Blair

Thursday, August 17, 2023 at 04:37 PM ET

Verified

[Reproduced with permission of Jeppesen. Not for Navigational Use]

Key Takeaways:

The ILS approach to Pine Bluff's Runway 18 is unusually complex, offering three distinct DME arcs for initial approach transitions from the PBF VOR.
Pilots must carefully switch from VOR to ILS/LOC navigation when established inbound from a DME arc to ensure correct alignment with the runway.
The approach does not provide DME for ILS/LOC stepdown or missed approach points, requiring pilots to rely on time or decision height.
The missed approach procedure is non-straightforward, demanding a precise right turn to transition from ILS/LOC to VOR navigation and intercept a specific radial for holding.

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A pilot will find the town of Pine Bluff in the heart of a rich agricultural area in the Arkansas River Basin south of Little Rock, Arkansas. While you might consider it a straightforward approach—with the non-towered airport’s single runway (18/36) served by an ILS to Runway 18—the approach plate is a pretty busy one when you first take a look at it

This Article First Appeared in FLYING Magazine

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