AOPA Pilot Magazine - October 2016 - 94

TM

WingX Pro7

P&E 

ON INSTRUMENTS

INNOVATION IS JUST
A TRACE AWAY
climb table. There, you'll see the climb-gradient rate plotted against groundspeed. For
the airplanes most of us fly, for example,
you'll see that at a climb groundspeed of
90 knots, you'll need to climb at 300 fpm
to meet a 200-foot-per-nm climb-gradient
requirement. Ordinarily, that's no problem for most of the piston singles and light
twins we fly. Maybe that's why departure
procedures don't get heavy emphasis in
instrument training.
What if the government's surveyors
determine that obstacles do enter the 40:1

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what! Wait until temperatures drop,
lighten your load, or both.
There's yet another option that many
may not know exists. It's the visual climb
over airport (VCOA) technique. Simply
climb in visual conditions, remaining over
the departure airport until reaching a safe
altitude, before departing on the flight's
en route segment.
VCOAs are intended for use at airports
where no SID, DP, or even ODP could ever
meet standard criteria. If an obstacle more
than three statute miles from the DER

There's yet another option that many may not
know exists. It's the visual climb over airport
(VCOA) technique. Simply climb in visual
conditions, remaining over the departure
airport until reaching a safe altitude, before
departing on the flight's en route segment.
OCS? That's when an obstacle departure
procedure is published. Be advised that
required climb gradients may be higher
than standard. ATC will clear you for
an ODP only if traffic is a factor; otherwise, pilots operating under FAR Part 91
can fly an ODP at their discretion-even
if the weather is below visual flight rules
minimums. Even so, it's a good idea to
put "departing via ODP" in the remarks
section of your flight plan, for ATC's
information.
But beware: ODPs can be complicated,
and they have many turns, fixes, and altitude restrictions. They are riskier than
your run-of-the-mill DPs-because terrain and obstacles are closer to the airport.
They can be harder to find, too, and not
many are published as graphical charts.
Now let's say that you're at a high-elevation airport, temperatures are toasty, and
you've consulted the rate-of-climb table.
A check of the performance section in
your pilot's operating handbook reveals
there's no way you can meet climb-gradient requirements. What can you do?
Refuse the departure clearance, that's
94 | AOPA PILOT October 2016

requires more than a 200-foot-per-nm
climb gradient, then it's a candidate for
a VCOA. Again, look in the takeoff minimums and departures section of your
terminal instrument procedures for a
departure procedure mentioning a "climb
in visual conditions" for details.
A VCOA removes the extra layer of
hairiness that instrument conditions
impose on other departure procedures,
but risks still abound. After all, it wouldn't
be published unless there was some pretty
impressive, close-in scenery surrounding
the airport.
Before we depart this subject (intentional pun), it's worth a final reminder for
pilots of twin-engine airplanes, including turboprops and jets. The mandatory,
minimum climb gradients we've been
discussing assume that both engines are
operating. With one engine inoperative, it's
doubtful that some underpowered piston
twins could meet that 200-foot-per-nm target-especially if conditions are hot, high,
and heavy.	
AOPA
EMAIL tom.horne@aopa.org
http://hiltonsoftware.com http://www.trade-a-plane.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - October 2016
