What is this tower and how tall is it? Clearing land hazards.

[Jonathan Bailey]

The tower in this picture has a yellow circle around it. Will this airplane safely clear it at 1,202 feet?

 

How can a pilot of any aircraft ensure he can clear a structure on land safely? This tower has a single flashing red light on top? Does the paint scheme of this tower give any indication of its height? This question should be especially relevant to helicopter pilots since they often fly closer to land than fixed-wing planes.

 

The simulated Beech KA 350 is flying low on an air tour over Tacoma, Washington. It is both exciting and dangerous to fly LOW.

[Hand_Grenade_Pilot]

Turn 10° to the left or right. Simulated crisis avoided...

[Eric Hunt]

Ah, Jono, you must get a real kick from your computer sim. Don't worry about the tower, just fly your pretend aircraft straight through it. It won't hurt you a bit.

[Jonathan Bailey]

Ah, Jono, you must get a real kick from your computer sim. Don't worry about the tower, just fly your pretend aircraft straight through it. It won't hurt you a bit.

Some of us are not rich or privileged to fly the "real deal" but I don't envy the pilots of Flight 370.

 

All joking aside, don't real-world pilots get trained to measure the height of tall land-based objects?

[Astro]

We have charts we can use to determine the safest altitude for obstacle clearance over a given route/area.

[Velocity173]

The antenna is 919 ft MSL so you're roughly 300 ft above it. In that particular area you should be 1000 ft above the obstruction if you're within 2000 ft lateral from it.

 

Anything over 200 feet agl is required to be lit. Some antennas less than 200 AGL are required as well depending on location.

 

The aviation white and orange paint is for increased visibility during the day. They're spaced in intervals with distances based on the overall height of the antenna tower.

 

As far as training for pilots, we have maps (sectionals) that depict obstructions and in a lot of cases we have terrain awareness devices (HTAWS) giving audible alerts to obstructions. Also with synthetic terrain (SVT) you can visually see the obstruction on the display. Obviously if the obstruction is higher than the horizon and penetrating the sky, you're not going to clear it.

[avbug]

Wealth or privilege isn't necessary to fly. Determination and dedication toward a goal is. You may not be able to get your pilot certification quickly, but you can get it. Believe me; if I could do it, a kid that grew up literally without two quarters to rub together, then anyone can.

 

Height of obstacles? If you're in instrument conditions, then you need to know minimum altitudes for your route or area. In visual conditions, go over or around the obstacle.

 

If you can look at the horizon and the object is above it, chances are it's higher than you.

 

Some fixed wing aircraft don't operate close to the ground. Some do.

 

If you want to fly something other than the simulator, visit your local civil air patrol Start out as an observer, and work toward flying when you're able.

[Flying Pig]

I flew for civil air patrol for about 10yrs. The vast majority of members aren't pilots, so there is plenty of opportunities to get into an airplane and at least he part of a crew or at minimum, be around aviation probably more than you are able to now.

[Wally]

The top of the tower is a very small part of the danger they pose, but I never fly over a tower, period!

 

I see too many towers with failed lighting to get in the habit of flying over the top, day or night, that light might be the top, and it might not...

 

I see many, many towers that are not marked aviation red and white (plain metal all the way up) to consider the paint scheme more than somebody's whim.

 

But the book says-

 

"AC 70/7460-1K

 

Paragraph 33 e.

…

4. Approximately one-seventh the height if the structure is 700 feet (214m) AGL or less. For each additional 200 feet (61m) or fraction thereof, add one (1) additional orange and one (1) additional white band.

5. Equal and in proportion to the structure’s height AGL.

 

Greater Than But not more than Band width

10.5 feet (3.2m) 700 feet (214m) 1/7 of height (7 bands)

701 feet (214 m) 900 feet (275m) 1/9 of height (9 bands)

901 feet (275m) 1,100 feet (336 m) 1/11 of height (11 bands)

1,100 feet (336m) 1,300 feet (397m) 1/13 of height (13 bands)"

 

All of which means red on top...

Edited May 26, 2014 by Wally

[Flying Pig]

Keep in kind that there are frequencies of lights that can't be seen by NVGs also. I discovered that a couple years ago flying in an area where I knew there were towers. Unaided.... There they were. On NVGs, poof.... Gone.

On a side note, a lot of the new LED lights on newer police cars can't be seen on NVGs either. Wen I come into a scene I have to flip up my goggles to find the patrol cars.

 

Oh..... And the taxiway lights at my airport are completely invisible on NVGs. there, hijacked that thread

Edited May 26, 2014 by Flying Pig

[WolftalonID]

You have to take the lens caps off when using them????

[Flying Pig]

Ummmmm........ well when I use them during the day they work better with the caps on. Isn't that the idea?

Edited May 26, 2014 by Flying Pig

[aeroscout]

Put a pinhole in the object lens covers to convert them to day vision filters.

[superstallion6113]

Just upload the file nomoretowers.exe in to flight sim. Bam, problem solved.

[BH206L3]

An easy way to remember, is that if the object grows larger in your wind screen, then you are going to fly into it, if it grows smaller then you will clear the object. We use charts to plot courses routes and alt to fly, or old guys like me did. Nobody flies tours in King Airs that I know of why would you want to in the first place, you would go bankrupt in a week if not sooner. There are other hazards besides the tower proper, most have wires that keep the structure up right and stable. These are hard to see, so giving such towers a wide berth is a very wise thing to do. In the Airspace were most helicopters fly the real hazard is not so much the towers, but the wires, wire strikes are the thing I am most concerned with when working a helicopter.

[aeroscout]

CBDR co altitude. Constant bearing decreasing range.