KLAX Loop7

[Wayne Bellflower 1300068]

I'm fairly new to Vatsim and had a question about the Loop7 departure. I can't program crossing the SMO at 160 degrees into my FMC. If I take off from runway 25R and cross the SMO as required, then adjust to heading 235, will ATC tell me when to turn to fly to the LAX point?

[Colin Schoen]

Correct, it is a vectored departure. The controller will say something like

 

"Turn left direct the Los Angeles VOR, resume the LOOP7 departure.

[Mark Wolpert]

go to your FMC RAD/NAV page. This is where the navigation radios are tuned. Type in SMO into the navaid (VOR R) and 160 into the CRS. You should then see a green dotted line across your display, when you cross that line you have crossed the SMO 160 radial. I am using VOR R here rather than Left so that the FMS can auto tune the left side but you can just as well put this in the left side if you like.

[Wayne Bellflower 1300068]

Thank you both very much for your help!

 

Wayne

[Wayne Bellflower 1300068]

One follow up, if I may- once I p[Mod - Happy Thoughts] the SMO at 160 degrees/3,000 feet, am I free to begin climbing to 10,000 or do I need to maintain 3,000 until given instruction by ATC to proceed to LAX VOR? Thank you guys for your patience!

[Bradley Grafelman]

The ATC-pilot system never leaves things to chance/guesswork (at least, in the US NAS; I suspect/hope it's much the same elsewhere as well). The answer is always: do exactly that which you were cleared/instructed/approved to do; nothing more, nothing less.

 

So, the question then becomes: What were you cleared to do? In this case, it would likely go back to your original IFR clearance, which hopefully sounded something like...

 

"(Callsign), cleared to (destination) airport, LOOP7 departure, Daggett transition, then as filed; climb via SID, except maintain 5000; ..."

 

So, until you hear differently, you should climb via the SID (meaning you should navigate vertically to comply with any altitude restraints it contains) except with one modification - you must stop the climb at and maintain 5000.

 

After (or along with) the vector back to LAX (and after you've already been radar identified and instructed to climb to 13,000), you'll likely/hopefully also hear something like:

 

"(Callsign), climb and maintain 15,000; contact LA Center 125.8"

 

Or, if the departure controller wanted to ensure the remaining restrictions on the LOOP7 SID weren't effectively cancelled (which is what a controller is doing when (s)he says "climb and maintain", by the way):

 

"(Callsign), climb via the LOOP7 departure, except maintain 15,000"

 

The difference? You're still in a climb up to an intermediate altitude of 15,000, however you must now comply with with the "at or above 13,000" altitude restriction at KEGGS. This is fairly easy to do, considering the departure controller should have vectored you to ensure you cross the LAX VOR at or above 10,000 (safely yet expeditiously, all while remaining within 10 NM of the VOR - it's a fun activity when SoCal is even moderately busy ). However, with the first version (a simple "climb and maintain") you could for whatever reason choose to climb very slowly such that you don't cross KEGGS at or above 13,000 (or to reach 15,000 by COOPP). That's fine, because the controller (whether intentionally or not) canceled those restrictions when (s)he said "climb and maintain."

[Wayne Bellflower 1300068]

Thank you for that awesome advice! Looking forward to flying that departure and not getting yelled at (hopefully)! Thank you, everyone!

[Jason Weaver 1267609]

You'll be fine. Most pilots get in trouble on the LOOP7 dep when they takeoff then turn on the autopilot and LNAV which in some cases turns them right instead of left. The LA controllers will take care of ya!