In this lesson, we wrap up exploring the various uses of the VOR radio navigation aid by learning to fly in circles or follow the DME arc.
Sometimes we fly into airfields that appear to be surrounded by hills or restricted areas for example, so unless we happen to be approaching from a specific fix or direction, we may be forced to make our approach while ‘threading the needles’ between mountain peaks or busy airspace – not a great idea. But help is at hand as by again combining the information provided by the VOR and the DME, we may be able to make a simpler and safer approach to these types of airports by flying the DME arc.
Figure 1 is a simplified VOR/DME arc approach, so we can appreciate the general principle. It shows our aircraft arriving from the west and joining the approach at the Initial Approach Fix (IAF) at 10DME before flying the 10DME arc to intercept the VOR inbound radial to make the final approach. Note that the VOR/DME doesn't have to be at the airfield, and in this example, we'll keep it straightforward and break it down into manageable pieces.
We’ll be flying our trusty C172 in IMC from Jupiter Gwinn/06FA airport into Vero Beach Regional/KVRB, a hop of 45nm in Florida USA. Set up some manually configured …
