Advanced Autopilot Use

Suppose that I am faced with an either-or situation with my autopilot. If I were told I couldnt use the autopilot at either cruise or while being vectored and flying an approach, Id chose to use it on approach. Sure, autopilots help relieve the tedium of long cross-country flights, but they regularly change a stressful approach into a rewarding experience. Lets look at some general tips, then take a close look at how to get the most from your autopilot on approach.

Frank Bowlin

Sunday, September 16, 2018 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Rigorous technique is essential for autopilot use, emphasizing correct mode selection (e.g., HDG, NAV) *before* control inputs and strictly setting only *cleared* altitudes in the preselector, with a specific exception for emergency descents.
Strategic management of the altitude preselector is key during approaches; set the next leg's altitude upon crossing a fix for step-downs, transition promptly to missed approach altitude after leveling at MDA for non-precision, or set it at the FAF for precision approaches.
Pilots must understand their autopilot's specific behavior for critical scenarios, including executing a missed approach, handling back course tracking (especially CDI sensing), and performing pre-configured emergency descents from high altitudes.

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Suppose that I am faced with an either-or situation with my autopilot. If I were told I couldn’t use the autopilot at either cruise or while being vectored and flying an approach, I’d chose to use it on approach. Sure, autopilots help relieve the tedium of long cross-country flights, but they regularly change a stressful approach into a rewarding experience. Let’s look at some general tips, then take a close look at how to get the most from your autopilot on approach.

Technique Tips

Like most of flying, rigorous adherence to technique or procedure keeps you out of trouble with your autopilot. Probably the most common mistake using an autopilot is having the wrong mode set. Say you’re at cruise using GPSS NAV mode. ATC calls, “Turn left one-zero degrees for traffic. Expect direct NEXTT.” You acknowledge and turn the heading bug 10 degrees to the left and go back to reading your newspaper.