Category Archives: Safety

Safety

TUCSON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT – OPERATIONAL SPECIAL NOTICE

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Notice Number: NOTC3729

TUCSON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT – May 2012 -
There have been several incidents where incoming aircraft were aligned with the wrong runway; 29L or 29R and even Taxiway Alpha.

Runway 29R is being confused for runway 29L due to the recent resurfacing of Taxiway A.

Left Base for Runways 29 at Tucson International Airport

Left Base for Runways 29 at Tucson International Airport

From a distance, while on left base to final and on final, Taxiway Alpha appears to be a runway.  Taxiway Alpha’s length and the new Taxiway Golf give it the appearance of being Runway 29R.  Pilots are confusing 29R for 29L, and making approaches and landing on the wrong runway.

Vigilance is required for operations both day and night.  It would be prudent in the best interest of safety to familiarize yourself with the airport environment.

Taxiway Alpha, in the near foreground, may be mistaken for Runway 29R, and Runway 29R may instead be confused for Runway 29L.

To assist in finding Runway 29L, pilots should look for a threshold to the left of and approximately 2,500 feet past Runway 29R threshold and with bunkers with white/light gray roofs leading up to the threshold of Runway 29L.

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Download the Airport Diagram for TUS here.

Popularity: 2%

Fly safe — and fly friendly!

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Excerpt from IWA's "Fly Friendly" PDF, available on the airport website for pilots.

A reminder from our friends at IWA (Phoenix-Mesa Gateway) that noise-sensitive areas exist all around the airport.

In particular, heightened sensitivity has focused on the area east of the corridor for traffic heading to the Southeast Practice areas. Also, be aware of Fighter Combat conducting aerobatic training east of IWA’s Class Delta airspace. 

IWA Community Relations Coordinator Patrick Oakley says that some residents in those areas have recently expressed concern about the noise of some departing and arriving aircraft.

IWA’s website provides a good section for pilots on how to “Fly Friendly.” It’s worth a look. Here’s the link: http://www.phxmesagateway.org/FlyFriendly.aspx Continue reading →

Popularity: 9%

Southeast Practice Area Being Redefined

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The Arizona Flight Training Workgroup needs comments from flight instructors and others who fly and train regularly in the southeastern Phoenix metropolitan area.

The AFTW is redrawing its popular chart depicting practice areas over the PHX area, and your comments will be used to help increase safety over airspace that both commercial jet traffic and training flights currently share. Continue reading →

Popularity: 41%

Training flights and commercial jets at odds for airspace east of IWA

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The blue tracks indicate VFR aircraft squawking 1200, red tracks depict large turbine aircraft arriving or departing IWA, and white tracks represent other aircraft being provided air traffic services by Phoenix TRACON.

The ad-hoc Phoenix Airspace Users Working Group recently issued some stunning graphics  showing just how congested the airspace in and around IWA in the southeastern Phoenix metropolitan area is becoming.

“Pilots operating in the airspace near IWA should be aware of the density of air traffic operations in the area,” writes Phillip D. Thornton, Air Traffic Manager, Phoenix Terminal Radar Approach Control, in a Jan. 18, 2012, Letter to Airmen. The letter becomes effective in 30 days . “Approximately 800 aircraft operations a day transit the airspace depicted above at or below 5,000’ MSL (excluding Phoenix Sky Harbor traffic).”

Download the Letter to Airmen, which contains more graphics indicating the airspace issues. (PDF,  requires Adobe Reader.)

Permalink, where you can discuss this: http://aftw.org/wp/2012/01/iwaairspace/

 

Popularity: 35%

FAA places new emphasis on ATC communications; Gateway issues new radio procedures

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In an effort to improve safety and reduce the risk of runway incursions, air traffic controllers at Phoenix Gateway airport (IWA) will be expecting more precise radio communications from pilots.

Effective immediately, all aircraft who are No. 1 for departure will be instructed to hold short of the runway. Controllers must ensure a proper read back of all hold short instructions, including the the runway assignment in the read back. In addition, all pilots must include their call sign in the read backs.

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Popularity: 35%

PHX Practice Area Reporting Points

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The AFTW’s recommended Practice Area Reporting Points for the Phoenix area are now up for review and discussion.

The frequencies and points outlined on the Phoenix Terminal Area Chart are those that the group have generally agreed work best to improve safety in the intensive flight-training environments around the Valley.

Downloads (both web-friendly and very large TIF format) are available on the next page. (Click “continue reading” for the download links.)

This chart has been assembled by Matt Miller. Thanks Matt!

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Popularity: 100%