VFR Practice Approach Circling Mins

Scenario:

VFR Conditions reported at the airport of intended landing.
VFR Conditions reported enroute on the VOR approach.
Cessna 210 inbound in VFR conditions on the VOR Practice Approach as a VFR arrival receiving VFR radar services (until FAF).

A/C is terminated by approach at the FAF due to no radar coverage.
A/C passes FAF and reports apt in sight to twr.
Tower issues enter left base to rwy 22.
A/C Begins to circle northeast for the left base.

Is it twr's responsibility to ensure the a/c remains within a required # of miles from the runway because he's still on a VFR practice approach?

Please explain with 7110.65 or 7210 refs. Thanks alot.

pilotchip

I dont feel like looking in a .65 but I dont see why I would care how far from the runway he is. Are you going to somehow give him radar guidance through the maneuver to accomplish this?

As far as I'm concerned he's in a closed pattern and can fly any distance he wants. Maybe we were doing it wrong but at the USAF base I was at we didnt police IFR circling approaches, so I certainly wouldnt care what a VFR guy does. It was my understanding that its up to the pilot to meet the minimums.

This probably isn't the answer you want, but I'll go with, "it depends."

First things first. On a circle, as with IFR aircraft, a VFR practice approach having been approved, the aircraft should fly the circle to the appropriate circling minima depicted on the approach plate unless a local policy advises otherwise. Some airports have noise abatement areas that specify, in VFR weather, all aircraft circling use Cat E minimums.

Add to the above that on a circle, the pilot is responsible for maintaining visual with the landing surface.

That said, here is what I'd say for no. If you have no traffic, let them take it out. They get their training and you're not delaying anyone. If they're stretching your Class D, give a kind prompting like, "I'm not sure what's out there, remain within the Class D."

For the yes answer, I'd have to be tighter with this and use it only of I needed to sequence and seperate. If you can give a heads-up to the pilot, let them know you'll have traffic for them and what they can expect to do. Although generally frowned upon, there is nothing implicitly wrong with terminating a VFR practice approach.

True, through my mil experience it was up to the pilot, but as a controller you cannot issue instructions that would extend their pattern (extend downwind etc..) I'm talking more about circling off of a vor approach not aligned with a runway.

Why do you want to keep him within xxx number of miles from the airport? Once I read aircraft was terminated by approach control it became just another vfr arrival to your airport. Sequence as you would normally for any other vfr arriving aircraft.
With no tower radar, you dont have a clue what is beyond your visual range. You may instruct pilot to turn in cause him to collide with someone your not even talking to. Keep it simple!

SL DAB

You need to see if you have a letter to airmen on vfr practice approaches. If you don't, the easy thing to do is "VFR Practice approach approved, No separation services provided" If you have a letter to airmen that states that the approach control is providing separation services to VFR practice approaches, 1 you either provide IFR separation IAW 7110.65 or B. Terminate the approach prior to shipping the aircraft to the tower, the aircraft can continue the approach however they are no longer cleared for it, they are just proceeding to the airport VFR.

SL...The Ravens Suck!!!

Once I figure out who you are, bite me!

a couple things come to mind here.

1. Is the aircraft in question cleared for the VOR approach (IFR/VFR) or is he just a no kidding VFR practice approach? If he is a no kidding VFR practice approach then he was already told that "no separation services will be provided and maintain VFR". If he is doing a VFR circling approach off of the VOR then he is still VFR and required to maintain his own terrain and obstacle clearance. The tower controller is not required to provide any other service other than the proper runway separation and sequencing.

2. Pilotchip is right about extending the downwind of a circling approach. You cannot extend their downwind because it may take them out of the area guaranteed to be free of terrain or obstructions at the circling altitude. You would have to instruct the aircraft to climb to an appropriate altitude (pattern altitude in VMC). Again, this is only for IFR aircraft. A VFR aircraft doing a VFR practice approach is not afforded this service, hence the "no separation services provided, maintain VFR" blurb again.

First, the circling instructions are issued IN the approach clearance not after they are switched to the tower.

Second, the phraseology is "circle to runway" or "circle north of the airport for a left base to runway 22".

Third 4-8-6 says, don' t issue instructions that will take the plane outside the circling area. If you didn't issue such instructions, and the plane goes out on their own, you did nothing wrong.

Fourth, they are VFR, on a practice VFR approach. There are no separation requirements between the plane and terrain or obstructions, so it doesn't matter anyway.

7110.65 4-8-6. CIRCLING APPROACH

a. Circling approach instructions may only be given for aircraft landing at airports with operational control towers.

b. Include in the approach clearance instructions to circle to the runway in use if landing will be made on a runway other than that aligned with the direction of instrument approach. When the direction of the circling maneuver in relation to the airport/runway is required, state the direction (eight cardinal compass points) and specify a left or right base/downwind leg as appropriate.

PHRASEOLOGY

CIRCLE TO RUNWAY (number),

or

CIRCLE (direction using eight cardinal compass points)

OF THE AIRPORT/RUNWAY FOR A LEFT/RIGHT

BASE/DOWNWIND TO RUNWAY (number).

NOTE
Where standard instrument approach procedures (SIAPs) authorize circling approaches, they provide a basic minimum of 300 feet of obstacle clearance at the MDA within the circling area considered. The dimensions of these areas, expressed in distances from the runways, vary for the different approach categories of aircraft. In some cases a SIAP may otherwise restrict circling approach maneuvers.

c. Do not issue clearances, such as “extend downwind leg,” which might cause an aircraft to exceed the circling approach area distance from the runways within which required circling approach obstacle clearance is assured.

i just re-read the original question. there is no circling approach. tower gave u pattern entry instructions. "enter left base ry 22" is not a circling approach. tower sees u as a vfr inbound. if ur on a practice approach, now would be a good time to speak up with your request to continue on the VFR practice approach. tower may not even know that you were told that you could do a practice VFR approach by the approach controller.

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