Clearance on Final

kostcoguy

New Member
Hey everyone, I was just wondering today as I was driving by the pattern at KSNA, how far should a GA aircraft be behind say a 737 on short final? I was wondering because I was watching a 737 land and a 172 was directly behind it, the 737 was still above the trees in my line of site, (I was on the freeway, he was probably 100 AGL), and the c172 was well into his final, not more than 60 yards behind him. Maybe I'm wrong but it seems like it was cuttin it a little close. Thanks in advance.

Kostco
 
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Hey everyone, I was just wondering today as I was driving by the pattern at KSNA, how far should a GA aircraft be behind say a 737 on short final? I was wondering because I was watching a 737 land and a 172 was directly behind it, the 737 was still above the trees in my line of site, (I was on the freeway, he was probably 100 AGL), and the c172 was well into his final, not more than 60 yards behind him. Maybe I'm wrong but it seems like it was cuttin it a little close. Thanks in advance.

Kostco

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Sure the Cessna wasn't landing on the parallel?

I usually get the "go around" call when flying GA since I tend to cut my patterns close to @4000' spacing from preceding aircraft on final.

Sucks.
smile.gif
 
I'm based at SNA ...

The 737 was definitely landing on 19R and the Cessna was almost definitely landing on 19L ... it may have looked like they were trailing each other for the same runway but they weren't. Tower at SNA is not required to give any spacing between landings if two aircraft are landing at the same time, one on each runway. They will always say "caution for wake turbulence" however beyond that, it's not uncommon at all for a jet to land on the right side while a cessna is landing on the left side.
 
According the the AIM 7-3-9, ATC has to give you anywhere between 4-6 miles separation. You can waive this. I'd say as long as you're above the flight path of the bigger aircraft and you touch down beyond where they landed, you should be okay.
 
3 to 5 miles on short final?! this must have been extremely short final then! It was not more than a 2-3 mile final.
 
At SNA the clearance usually consists of

"N12345, do you have the B757 in sight 5 mile final?"

You say yeah

they say "N12345 maintain visual seperation from the B757, cleared to land, caution wake turbulence"

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Or if you say "yeah, will maintain visual sep" when calling the traffic in sight they will say "approved" and you will save them the trouble

Anyways the point is you waive spearation standards when you comply with their 'visual separation'
 
I'm paraphrazing from the AIM but it requires 4 miles for a small a/c behind a "large" aircraft, 5 miles behind a 757, and 6 miles behind a "heavy"

Large = a/c capable of > 41,000 pounds

Heavy = a/c capable of > 255,000 pounds
 
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I thought large just meant greater than 12,500 lbs gross. Is that incorrect?

Grayson

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You'd be corrrect.
 
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