Who remembers flying the Radio Range as a Commercial pilot?

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Chuck Ellsworth

My last flight IFR using the Radio Range was in The Yukon.


I think that was the last of the Radio Range transmitters that were legal to use in Canada.


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vanNostrum
Posts: 338
Joined: Wed Nov 04, 2015 9:04 pm

I read somewhere that Castlegar BC was the last certified LF  range  in N America
How did it work in the mountains?
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Liquid Charlie
Posts: 524
Joined: Sun Aug 23, 2015 1:34 pm

While there were several radio ranges still active when I started flying, I simply used the ADF to do the approach.
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praveen4143
Posts: 57
Joined: Mon Jun 01, 2015 12:57 am

What's radio range?  :o
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Chuck Ellsworth




The Radio Range was an airway system across N. America that was flown by sound only.


All you needed was an AM radio that received the transmissions.


It was one of the main means of flying the airways before the VOR was invented.


When I did my instrument rating the airways were laid out using the radio range signals.


It worked just fine.


You should be able to google it.


Oh, by the way when I got my instrument rating we had to be able to send and read morse code.


When I ended my career all you needed to do was push buttons and the airplane flew its'self
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Colonel
Posts: 3450
Joined: Wed Apr 29, 2015 10:31 am

Soon, no one will know what an NDB or VOR is.

Can you say "single point of failure"?

[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_point_of_failure]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_point_of_failure[/url]
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duCapo
Posts: 65
Joined: Wed Jun 17, 2015 2:55 am

I never used commercially, but did training on them.
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Barneydhc82
Posts: 85
Joined: Wed Apr 29, 2015 8:32 pm

Never flew the range commercially but knowing how it worked and hours of practice, being able to used the facility saved my ass one New Years Day in NS.  I got caught on top while flying from YQM to YZX after my safety pilot fell asleep in the front seat of the Tiger Moth.

It really got interesting when we started picking up heavy rime ice in Procedure turn.  Landed straight-in R 13 with a ton of ice on the old bird.
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Barneydhc82
Posts: 85
Joined: Wed Apr 29, 2015 8:32 pm

Hi Chuck:  From the response, It looks like you and I are the only Old Farts who have experienced the joy of aural range flying.

Barney
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Chuck Ellsworth

That is because we are so fuckin old. :)
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