 |
37000 Feet | Browse and search NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System |
|
PA46 pilot experiences confusion when instructed to enter a right downwind and accidentally enters a left downwind. Infrequent flying and a recent upgrade to an all glass panel cockpit are cited as factors in the incident.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 928808 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201101 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1201-1800 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | PA-46 Malibu Meridian |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 91 |
| Flight Phase | Initial Approach |
| Flight Plan | None |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Single Pilot |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Commercial Flight Crew Instrument Flight Crew Multiengine |
| Experience | Flight Crew Type 188 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Deviation - Procedural Clearance Deviation - Track / Heading All Types |
Narrative:
I was flying an airplane new to me for the first time by myself. I was instructed by tower when 15 miles out to enter right-hand downwind for runway xx. Upon entering traffic pattern I entered a left-hand downwind entry. I haven't been flying as much as usual and to be honest I got confused as to what a normal pattern is and didn't get to thinking straight until I was already in the pattern. I thought to myself; 'I'm making left-hand turns; this is a left-hand pattern….duh.' I was preoccupied with getting an airplane with an unfamiliar glass panel configured for landing. I'm sure had I had a higher comfort level with flying this airplane I would have been fine. I've never flown anything with glass panels other than a trip home of 3 hours in this airplane and 2 hours of checkout. I find I didn't know where to look for info I need at a glance like I do in an airplane equipped with steam gauges. I would think any kind of hard IFR would be very dangerous. If I had to point to a cause I would say lack of flying time and lack of proficiency in make and model with glass panel avionics of this type.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: PA46 pilot experiences confusion when instructed to enter a right downwind and accidentally enters a left downwind. Infrequent flying and a recent upgrade to an all glass panel cockpit are cited as factors in the incident.
Narrative: I was flying an airplane new to me for the first time by myself. I was instructed by Tower when 15 miles out to enter right-hand downwind for Runway XX. Upon entering traffic pattern I entered a left-hand downwind entry. I haven't been flying as much as usual and to be honest I got confused as to what a normal pattern is and didn't get to thinking straight until I was already in the pattern. I thought to myself; 'I'm making left-hand turns; this is a left-hand pattern….DUH.' I was preoccupied with getting an airplane with an unfamiliar glass panel configured for landing. I'm sure had I had a higher comfort level with flying this airplane I would have been fine. I've never flown anything with glass panels other than a trip home of 3 hours in this airplane and 2 hours of checkout. I find I didn't know where to look for info I need at a glance like I do in an airplane equipped with steam gauges. I would think any kind of hard IFR would be very dangerous. If I had to point to a cause I would say lack of flying time and lack of proficiency in make and model with glass panel avionics of this type.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.