With the impending arrival of Gyroplanes at Old Sarum we were pleased to find in the most recent issue of CHIRP an interesting article on the subject.

Reproduced with the kind permission of CHIRP
Issue 43 Spring 2010

We receive a significant number of reports that indicate a lack of appreciation of the differences in speeds/final approach profiles of different GA categories, such as the slow, steep approaches flown by some microlight types. Gyroplanes also have significant differences.

Report Text: I run a Gyroplane school and sometimes operate from a licensed airfield with an A/G radio service. On three occasions in the last couple of years aircraft have flown approaches which would have led to them passing underneath me while I was on final approach. In all of these cases they have seen me and, presumably, heard my radio calls but, due to the steep approaches made by gyros (we could well be at 500 feet as we approach the airfield boundary particularly if there is a bit of wind), the pilots following me have been confused by what they have seen (“he can’t possibly be landing if he’s that high”) and have continued their approach in spite of my presence. In each case, I have carried out a 'go-around' in order to resolve the conflict. An identical incident occurred recently to one of my former students whilst landing at an airfield with full ATC.

With the advent of factory-built 2-seaters in the UK the number of gyroplanes is growing rapidly and they are appearing at airfields all over the country. At my home base I have no problem with local aircraft, as the pilots know how we operate, but I am always more cautious when visiting aircraft join the circuit. With this in mind I hope that the following will help pilots of other aircraft types understand gyroplane flight characteristics and how they are operated so that we can reduce the risk of conflicts caused by misunderstanding:

1. When landing, gyroplanes approach the runway at a much steeper angle than fixed wing aircraft (so a gyro may maintain circuit height on final and still be high when on very short final).

2. Gyroplane approach speeds are typically in the order of 50kt, so many GA aircraft types will tend to catch them up in the circuit.

3. Gyroplanes typically stop on the runway when carrying out a “touch and go” (so a following aircraft should allow more room than when following a fixedwing aircraft carrying out the same manoeuvre).

4. Gyroplanes have a very short landing roll ('spot 'landings are taught as part of the PPL syllabus), so may land very long in comparison to other types in order to exit the runway as soon as possible.

5. After lining up to take-off a gyro normally has to prerotate its rotors before rolling – this typically takes 60 to 90 seconds – so don’t think a gyro will roll and start to clear the runway as soon as it lines up