Tight Circle

Circling an airport after an instrument approach procedure (IAP) to land on a runway other than the one aligned with the IAP is something all instrument-rated pilots have practiced. Its a maneuver that places an airplane relatively close to the ground-sometimes at half the traffic-pattern altitude-and can require steeply banked turns.

Joseph E. (Jeb) Burnside

Tuesday, July 21, 2015 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Circling-to-land maneuvers inherently carry high stall-spin risks due to low altitudes, slow airspeeds, and the potential for steep banks that significantly increase stall speed, often performed in poor weather.
A fatal accident occurred during a circling approach because the pilot failed to maintain airspeed while aggressively banking in and out of clouds in gusty tailwind conditions, leading to an aerodynamic stall.
The accident underscores the critical importance of maintaining adequate airspeed and pattern spacing, and opting for a missed approach if visual contact is lost during such high-risk maneuvers.

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Circling an airport after an instrument approach procedure (IAP) to land on a runway other than the one aligned with the IAP is something all instrument-rated pilots have practiced. It’s a maneuver that places an airplane relatively close to the ground—sometimes at half the traffic-pattern altitude—and can require steeply banked turns.

Of course, steep banks close to the ground are an invitation for a stall-spin accident when the vertical lift component is traded for the horizontal. Since circling is usually performed in poor weather, it can be a busy time: In addition to keeping the airport and intended runway in sight, pilots must also maneuver the airplane at a relatively low speed. Of course, slow airspeeds, steep banks and low altitudes are the recipe for fatal stall-spin accidents. There just isn’t enough altitude to recover.