By Howard Deevers
Can you fly an airplane with no radio, no lights, no ADS-B, into Class B airspace? A former student called to ask that question. He was looking to buy a Champ that never had an electrical system and wanted to know if he could fly into Chandler from Ryan airport.
The quick and modern day answer is no. While Chandler is not IN Class B airspace, it is below it and within the 30 nm Mode C/ADS-B out veil, requiring Mode-C and ADS-B out. I say “quick and modern” because there are very few airplanes that do not have an electrical system today. Balloons don't, gliders don't, and the old 1946 J-3 Cubs, and some other aircraft of that vintage, never had electrical systems when delivered.
As air traffic got more complicated, and aircraft were delivered with more equipment on them, regulations changed. There are FAR's that tell us how to proceed on an IFR flight in case of total electrical failure. I have experienced total electrical failure on cross-country flights three times and landed without incident. Twice on cross country flights, my transponder quit, and I was still able to land at a Class B airport in one case, and a Class C airport in the other case. In both cases I was able to get the transponder serviced before departing those airports.
In a presentation to the Rotary Club in Pittsburgh, I told them that that is possible to take off from an airport on the West Coast, and fly all the way to the East Coast, without ever talking to anyone and with no radio. Of course, they were shocked to hear that. Then I explained that you could do that only on day, VFR flights, and cannot pass through Class B, C, or D airspace, or any restricted areas, and you would have to know where all of those airspaces are, and how to avoid them. But, yes, you can do it.
Twenty-eight years ago, I flew my instructor, Woody, and another pilot from Pittsburgh to Bridgeport, CT, in his C172. They were taking a plane from Bridgeport to Europe on a ferry flight. From Pittsburgh (AGC) to Bridgeport, CT, we never talked to ATC until landing at Bridgeport. On the way back I did have flight following since it would be night by the time I arrived in Pittsburgh.
In 1966, two teenaged brothers, 15 and 17, bought a 1946 Piper Cub, and rebuilt it in their dad's barn in New Jersey. Their dad had also taught them to fly. After the rebuild, they flew the Cub from New Jersey to California, with no lights, no radio, making news as the youngest pilots to make a full cross-country flight in a single engine airplane.
In about 1982, after a trip to Oshkosh, I was at the Monroeville, PA, airport doing some work for the flying club. Two Ultralight airplanes landed there. Ultralights were fairly rare at that time. I went out to greet them. It was a man and his girlfriend, each flying identical Ultralights. They had only handheld radios. I asked where they came in from. They said from Ohio, and that this was a stop on their way to New Jersey. I commented that it was a long way to fly in an Ultralight. Not to them! They had left from California and were flying across the US to prove that you could do it in an Ultralight. I don't remember their exact route from California, but there were many stops along the way since the range of the Ultralight was less than 200 nm, and they could only fly in calm VFR weather. But they made it!
Now, part of Pilot Training is ATC communications with VOR and other modern navigation. Also, Pilotage and Dead Reckoning is part of the training. Since the 40's, 50’s, and 60's, lots of things have changed about aviation, and many new portable electronic devices have become available. I don't even use paper charts anymore. They are still available, but the iPad with ForeFlight is so much more convenient. Yes, you can still fly without all of that, but do you really want to?
There are 1946 Piper and Cessna planes still flying. Ultralights came along near the end of the 1970's and have improved. Air Traffic Control has evolved to the safest system in the world, and modern airplanes are equipped with more electronics than the most modern WWII aircraft of the time. As Air Traffic Control modernized over time, they made provisions for those airplanes that had no electrical systems. You could fly into busy airports without radios, but you had to call the facility from a phone while on the ground and give them an arrival time for your plane. Even that exemption is now going away. The new ATC is there to keep us safe. I think that I will use everything I can get, even if I am on a VFR flight many miles from any Class B or C airspace. Trying to fly into Class B or C airspace with no transponder or no radio just does not seem like the right thing to do, but maybe that's just me!
Need to know more about airspace and rules? Come to a seminar sponsored by your ARIZONA PILOTS ASSOCIATION and the FAASTeam. Check the website for a location near you. These are free, and count for the WINGS Program, and don't forget to “Bring your wingman.”