Hi folks;
Every time I see a little strip tucked in the middle of nowhere, I want to land there, and check it out. (Imagine that.)
Now, what are the "hard & fast" rules on this? How do you "bend" 'em?

I know of one little strip near here, where there's no "X's" or "R's" on it, and rumor has it that it's okay to land there - as long as you *don't* have permission. Then, I know of at least one other that has an "R" on each end, where they do ask that pilots receive permission b4 lndg, and they'll run you off if you set down.
Up in B.C., approaching a pass with Wx down on it, I dropped into a little forest strip (w/o markings) to wait a few hours for the Wx to improve. No one came out, and it was a perfect choice, and a chance to see some of the local country up close.

If there was some way to know, I'd stop at a lot more places like that.
How do each of you handle these types of situations?
Thanks for your thoughts, Berk

Berk, you might try this. If the strip is on your sectional, go to AirNav and put in the name of the strip. AirNav will give you a name and phone number. For example: Near Red Bluff, CA are three private strips, Meadow, Deer Creek, and Rancho Tehama. If you plug these names (one at a time) in AirNav, you will get several airports with similar names. You must then pick the one you want (usually there will only be one in the state you are interested in). Hope this helps. Happy Landings! - Mike

Berk wrote:Hi folks;
Every time I see a little strip tucked in the middle of nowhere, I want to land there, and check it out. (Imagine that.) Now, what are the "hard & fast" rules on this? How do you "bend" 'em?

I think it depends somewhat on what you're flying....I'd be a lot more inclined to just drop in when flying a Cub or similar 2 place ragwing than in my 180.

Remember the old saw that it's sometimes better to ask forgiveness than to get permission.

If I saw a nice little strip that was obviously private, but had no X markings, I would probably try looking it up on Airnav.com before landing there. They have one of the best databases on private strips I've seen. It can be a little hard to identify unknown strips, try the advanced search by Lat/Longs. Some state aeronautical divisions have data on private strips, too.

Often the best way is to find a crop duster nearby and pick his brains, they usually know of every strip in their territory, and the owners attitudes toward strangers.

Some owners are adamant about not letting their strips get into any datbase for obvious reasons, and these folks I would try not to bother until I got some local info about their attitude. There is also the unfortunate fact that without ground truthing, invisible hazards like a barb wire fence across the middle, hidden ditches, etc. are all too common. A wreck on a private strip without permission to land could really ruin your day (or week, month, year). Another fact to consider is that these strips do change ownership and the new owner may not be a pilot and has other plans for the land. Any info more than a few months old is always suspect.

Aside from the above concerns, it is a good feeling to have every possible landing area in your section of the country set up as user waypoints in your GPS, with runway and hazard notes. It could mean the difference between a precautionary landing at a private but safe strip and an off-field landing with damage. You can even use Google Earth and AirNav together so you have a 3-D view of every one. A good project for winter evenings.

Here's a sample:
STOBART CREEK 51.34.15N 123.03.20W 3456FT 15/33 4200X50 DIRT PVT EMGCY ONLY WIRES SE END


Good Luck!

Rocky