What’s your on course heading?

[luvflyin]

Its the flyway chart for the Las Vegas class B airspace. If you have foreflight you go to documents>FAA>Fly Charts>Las Vegas FLY. It shows the VFR corridors into the airports under the bravo shelf. I was flying the VFR corridor between HND to VGT which is a <4,000 route clockwise until you meet I-95 and then you follow I-95 NW out of the bravo airspace.

I’d have accepted the Clearance into the Bravo. Why didn’t you want to? What else did they say when they cleared you in? Was there an altitude assignment or Route instructions? Being able to start a climb then would have solved some of the terrain issues you were talking about. What was your destination?

 

[Rex Kwan Do]

I was in contact with the first controller on the downwind departure from the HND 35L. He cleared me into the bravo and was going to leave me on a 170 in a climb and turn me out and some point, I wasn't expecting this and I said I'd fly the VFR corridor and he said 'it'll probably be faster' I hadn't reached the bravo shelf yet so he had me remain VFR and handed me off to second controller who also cleared me into the bravo, and told me to continue my climb to 10,500 and asked me my on-course heading. Again, not a high time pilot, first time in a Bravo. I should have just told him I wanted to remain in the VFR corridor. But instead I got stuck on the 'on-course heading' If I tried to go direct KHTH I wouldn't make the terrain. My route of flight was overfly VGT to get around the terrain and then proceed on course following I-95 NW bound. what I did was tell him my on course heading direct to my destination rather than my on-course heading to my next waypoint which KVGT. Upon reflection my response could have been "direct North Las Vegas, Direct Desert Rock NV65. That would have got me where I wanted to go. I was afraid of screwing up in the bravo and had automatically assumed I'd not be cleared into the bravo and as a result failed to prepare for it. It was a good learning experience and a little humbling.

 

[noahfong]

I was in contact with the first controller on the downwind departure from the HND 35L. He cleared me into the bravo and was going to leave me on a 170 in a climb and turn me out and some point, I wasn't expecting this and I said I'd fly the VFR corridor and he said 'it'll probably be faster' I hadn't reached the bravo shelf yet so he had me remain VFR and handed me off to second controller who also cleared me into the bravo, and told me to continue my climb to 10,500 and asked me my on-course heading. Again, not a high time pilot, first time in a Bravo. I should have just told him I wanted to remain in the VFR corridor. But instead I got stuck on the 'on-course heading' If I tried to go direct KHTH I wouldn't make the terrain. My route of flight was overfly VGT to get around the terrain and then proceed on course following I-95 NW bound. what I did was tell him my on course heading direct to my destination rather than my on-course heading to my next waypoint which KVGT. Upon reflection my response could have been "direct North Las Vegas, Direct Desert Rock NV65. That would have got me where I wanted to go. I was afraid of screwing up in the bravo and had automatically assumed I'd not be cleared into the bravo and as a result failed to prepare for it. It was a good learning experience and a little humbling.

I'm not sure I'm following your scenario but it sounds like you were departing KHND and intended to arc around the west of KLAS using the VFR flyway, staying below the bravo, to KVGT and then proceed NW bound to KHTH. Did I get that right?

I don't think it's technically correct to call this a "corridor" even though it is referred to that once on the back of the TAC, but I could be wrong. This reference really confused me.

The clearance into bravo is to do you a favor. You are free to climb higher than 4000 at that point. You should not object to getting it.

As to the query about your "on-course heading"... my guess is they never told you to maintain any specific heading. You just assumed that once you told them it would be NW bound, you needed to immediately adhere to that heading. If that is your assumption, it is not correct.

But it sounds like you figured out most of it. You could have told them you intend to proceed to KVGT and then proceed NW bound, destination KHTH. Probably baffled them when you insisted on remaining outside of bravo. They also were probably confused when you used the term, "VFR corridor" (what VFR corridor? Whatever).

 

[luvflyin]

I was in contact with the first controller on the downwind departure from the HND 35L. He cleared me into the bravo and was going to leave me on a 170 in a climb and turn me out and some point, I wasn't expecting this and I said I'd fly the VFR corridor and he said 'it'll probably be faster' I hadn't reached the bravo shelf yet so he had me remain VFR and handed me off to second controller who also cleared me into the bravo, and told me to continue my climb to 10,500 and asked me my on-course heading. Again, not a high time pilot, first time in a Bravo. I should have just told him I wanted to remain in the VFR corridor. But instead I got stuck on the 'on-course heading' If I tried to go direct KHTH I wouldn't make the terrain. My route of flight was overfly VGT to get around the terrain and then proceed on course following I-95 NW bound. what I did was tell him my on course heading direct to my destination rather than my on-course heading to my next waypoint which KVGT. Upon reflection my response could have been "direct North Las Vegas, Direct Desert Rock NV65. That would have got me where I wanted to go. I was afraid of screwing up in the bravo and had automatically assumed I'd not be cleared into the bravo and as a result failed to prepare for it. It was a good learning experience and a little humbling.

Had you gotten any instructions from HND Tower(ground/CD) before departing? Who were the two Controllers you mentioned? Tower and then Approach? Or two Approach sectors?

 

[Clip4]

If you are lousy Pilot be honest and advise you can’t hold heading.