✈️ Aviation Brief — Issue #94
Weekly insights for student pilots and the instructors who train them.
THIS WEEK'S TOPIC
CA.VI.A — Rectangular Course (Commercial Pilot ACS)
1. ACS STANDARDS SUMMARY
The Commercial Pilot ACS (CA.VI.A) requires the applicant to demonstrate a rectangular course by selecting a suitable ground reference area, planning the maneuver for the existing wind, and applying timely wind corrections to maintain a uniform rectangular ground track while holding a constant altitude, airspeed, and coordinated flight. The examiner expects the pilot to enter at a 45° angle to the downwind leg, use appropriate bank and crab angles on each leg, roll out precisely on headings, and explain how wind affects track and groundspeed throughout the pattern.
2. THREE COMMON STUDENT MISTAKES
- Failing to adjust crab angle on the downwind and base legs, causing the airplane to drift inside or outside the intended ground track.
- Rolling out of turns too early or too late because they forget that groundspeed (and therefore turn radius) changes with the wind.
- Fixating on the reference lines instead of looking ahead to the next corner, which leads to late corrections and altitude or airspeed deviations.
3. CFI PRO TIP
Before each leg change, have the student state the wind direction relative to the airplane and the exact correction they will use on the upcoming leg. Verbalizing “quartering tailwind, need 10° crab and slightly less bank” forces them to think ahead instead of reacting after the track already drifts.
4. SAFETY SPOTLIGHT
NTSB accident data shows that many low-altitude loss-of-control events occur during traffic-pattern operations when pilots fail to correct for wind drift and then over-bank or over-pitch while trying to stay over the runway. Rectangular course training builds the habit of scanning both the ground track and instruments before these corrections become instinctive.
5. DID YOU KNOW
The rectangular course is essentially the traffic pattern practiced away from the airport, which is why the same wind-correction techniques you learn here transfer directly to safe pattern flying at any airport.
---
Exec Flight Services | execflightservices.com | [email protected]
Based in Las Vegas, NV
Follow Exec Flight Services on Facebook for weekly updates.
← Back to all issues