7.9 Holding Patterns

7.9.1 Basically, a Hold is for aircraft like a stoplight for cars. Except that you can’t put the parking brake on in flight.

7.9.2 The purpose is to have the aircraft wait at a specified point until the traffic ahead of your plane is far away enough or has landed.

7.9.3 Though Holding instructions are seldom ever used under the virtual ATC environment, on very congested areas (Fly-ins) or simply for practice, it can be interesting both for ATC and Pilot if Hold is accepted and flown.

7.9.4 A holding pattern with right turns is called a Standard hold, one with left turns is called a non-standard hold . This is important to know, as some ATC can say “standard” instead of “right turns” or assume that the hold will be standard if they don’t specify the direction of the turns.

7.9.5 See also the inbound leg: this is the leg to which ATC refers to when giving the clearance; it is always going to and finishing at the holding fix. The inbound leg should be flown for ONE minute if below 14000ft or 1½ minute if above 14000ft unless otherwise specified. The outbound leg is not timed and depending on the wind can take more or less time than the inbound leg.

7.9.6 Note that ATC can also give DME Holds, in which case ATC will specify the distances from the navigation aid at which the inbound and outbound legs are to be terminated. In this case no timing should occur, since the DME distances given describe the end of the inbound leg and the start of the turn outbound, and the end of the outbound leg and the start of the inbound turn.

7.9.7 Last, look at the turns. No radius is specified here since they are all standard rate turns (3° per second) in a hold. It’s time to use the small airplane of your turn coordinator!

See Main menu – Training – Examples – Holding Patterns