base leg?

[ruddersup?]

Curious if there is a regulation where you can or can't join a base leg. Does it always have to be before the end of the runway? Could it be half way down a long runway?

[ruddersup?]

Oops, the beginning of the runway, lol.

[‘Bob’]

The relevant regulation is CAR 602.96. The only thing it says that’s relevant is conforming to or avoiding the traffic pattern.

The AIM is advisory, not regulatory, and says that you should join on the upwind side.. or downwind if you are sure that no conflicts exist with existing traffic. There are some that try to pass this off as Gospel.. but it’s not.

And you can determine the runway is clear on final.

[DHC-1 Jockey]

The relevant regulation is CAR 602.96. The only thing it says that’s relevant is conforming to or avoiding the traffic pattern.

The AIM is advisory, not regulatory, and says that you should join on the upwind side.. or downwind if you are sure that no conflicts exist with existing traffic. There are some that try to pass this off as Gospel.. but it’s not.

And you can determine the runway is clear on final.

tp11541e.pdf

(441.79 KiB) Downloaded 62 times

On the VFR Circuit Procedures at Uncontrolled Airports diagram (TP11541), it shows that you can enter directly on the base or final only if there are MF procedures in effect: "At aerodromes where MF procedures are in effect, aircraft may also join the circuit from the flight paths indicated in blue."

It appears therefore that if the airport does not have an MF and only an ATF, you can only join the circuit via the downwind or crossing over from the upwind side.

[digits_]

The relevant regulation is CAR 602.96. The only thing it says that’s relevant is conforming to or avoiding the traffic pattern.

The AIM is advisory, not regulatory, and says that you should join on the upwind side.. or downwind if you are sure that no conflicts exist with existing traffic. There are some that try to pass this off as Gospel.. but it’s not.

And you can determine the runway is clear on final.

tp11541e.pdf
On the VFR Circuit Procedures at Uncontrolled Airports diagram (TP11541), it shows that you can enter directly on the base or final only if there are MF procedures in effect: "At aerodromes where MF procedures are in effect, aircraft may also join the circuit from the flight paths indicated in blue."

It appears therefore that if the airport does not have an MF and only an ATF, you can only join the circuit via the downwind or crossing over from the upwind side.

Most of those procedures reference the AIM only. The referenced CARs are quite vague.

It doesn't define a location for final or base either. You're not breaking any rules by assuming final overlaps with the runway if you're planning on landing at the 8000 ft marker of a 10 000 ft runway in a c172. Turning base at the 2000 ft marker would give you 6000 ft of final. Hard to find an uncontrolled airport of that size, but I am sure they exist.

[khedrei]

There are several. North Bay, Val dor, churchill, London at night.

There is no CAR that says you can't join a vfr circuit in any way that is safe to do so. Vfr traffic established in the circuit have the right of way.

[ruddersup?]

Thanks to all with answers. This, even after 60 years of doing this has always been on my mind. So now I wait for a CADORS, lol.

[co-joe]

There was a story 25 years ago of YTH radio passing off reports to TC about pilots joining onto base, word was you could get a violation for it. So we all called joining a straight in for runway 24 from the south, or whatever. Nobody I know ever got a fine, but everyone was sure that they knew someone who had. Weird but that stuck with me all this time. They'd say you have to make 2 turns or if you had wind and runway condition you could do a straight in.