Loiter landings
In a "loiter landing", Ruby descends to ground in a circular or pacing loiter pattern rather than flying a straight final approach.
For landing in fields hemmed in by tall trees or other obstructions, this might be the only option. |
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In a "loiter landing", you simply cut throttle while Ruby is in "Return to Home" or "Loiter at Current Position" mode.
This approach is less preferable than the straight-in but may be the only solution for smaller fields hemmed in by high trees / obstructions that don't permit a straight-in approach.
Since by default loiters have a 250 foot radius with possibility of straying 50 or more feet further from home, this approach requires an open area where the closest obstruction in any direction is at least 350 feet from the location where you set "home".
This approach is not desirable when wind near the ground is high because groundspeed on the downwind portions of the circle will be high and cause a hard, fast landing if the touchdown occurrs while heading downwind.
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