This is an excerpt from a report made to the Aviation Safety Reporting System. The narrative is written by the pilot, rather than FAA or NTSB officials. To maintain anonymity, many details, such as aircraft model or airport, are often scrubbed from the reports.
Routine solo flight, after a couple laps in the pattern at Fort Worth Alliance Airport (KAFW) in Texas, I trusted Tower to separate me from wake turbulence because this was my second solo and I was focused on learning how to fly solo.
I encountered wake turbulence on final approach and performed a go around, but I was off course due to the wake and it felt like if I tried to come back to runway heading it would cause an unstable scenario.
Lesson learned: Always caution wake turbulence.
Primary Problem: Environment
ACN: 1857879
If possible, stay high and land long; We’ve all been taught that. Otherwise, go around.
Where in your training did it ever state that you would get extra special treatment as a student pilot where wake turbulence is concerned? The flight instructor surely briefed you on wake turbulence prior to the initial solo, did he not? Mine did, so when I was on downwind with an approaching small jet on my initial solo, seconds from turning base – and wanting to fly a little longer anyway, – when the jet announced straight in final after my announcing base turn, I offered to extend the downwind for the jet. I waited for the wake turbulence to dissipate, turned base and final, landing with no issues.
Since it is rare to solo at a foreign-to-training airport, the issue was in assumption. Had I been your instructor on your solo day, your go-around and attempt to land in wake turbulence would have resulted in at least an hour’s worth of wake turbulence remedial instruction ground school.
The PIC is always the final authority and responsible.
If the tower ATC. actually issues a clearance the PIC can say unable or even declare an emergency.
When the tower issues an advisory or warning the PIC has to decide what and when the degree.
“Just because you are paranoid, doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you”
The ram ran off the cliff because he didn’t see the ewe turn. ✔
Very early in my training at a towered airport we had one of the flight schools’ planes thrown onto the runway from wake turbulence the best thing was the pilot survived the plane damaged badly. The very next day there was wake turbulence training for all students no matter where in your training you were.
I remember, years ago, a common tower call when ‘heavies’ were mixed-in with ‘GA’ was “CAUTION, WAKE TURBULENCE”
My father a veteran Navy pilot PIC and I were in a final approach in the late 1970s following a commercial liner on an adjacent runway. My father repeatedly asked the ATC if there was enough time elapse between us and the liner. ATC indicated it was okay. We encountered wake turbulence and rolled to about 50 degrees. I believe my father was prepared for it and we recovered. Lesson you are the pilot in command and can indicate your intentions of going aroundto ATC.
You are PIC, you made the right decision – GO AROUND. The wrong decision was putting all you trust in someone else.
I always considered that it was MY job, as PIC, to maintain separation from traffic ahead and fly accordingly, and that includes requesting a deviation from sequence directed by the tower (assuming there IS a tower). So I am not clear as to whether the “lesson learned” was directed at ATC in this instance, or you. Good job, anyway. But clearly, this was a “lesson”, Scar tissue can serve you well in the future.
Good judgement, will be a great, safe pilot. Either caution instilled by instructor, or just innate use of what is called common sense.