Tag: BFI

A Scenic Approach to Boeing Field

I recently flew the A36 Bonanza from Boeing Field (KBFI) in Seattle to Grant County Airport (KMWH) at Moses Lake, WA and back, taking advantage of a break in the weather to cross the Cascade Mountains again before winter weather makes such trips increasingly rare.

The return to KBFI included a visual approach that passed over Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (KSEA) to a swooping descent over Puget Sound and through Elliott Bay to runway 14R.

I also captured videos of the flight to and from KMWH, which you can watch on my YouTube channel here and here.

Flying the Blake Arrival at Boeing Field

Ride along as I return to Boeing Field (KBFI) after a quick stop for fuel at the Shelton-Sanderson airport (KSHN), southwest of Seattle.

I set up for the Blake Arrival, a VFR procedure that begins over Blake Island, which lies about 8 miles west of Boeing Field.

The VFR departure and arrival routes for Boeing Field are described on the reverse side of the Seattle terminal area chart, the so-called VFR Flyway Planning Chart.

I have created more detailed descriptions of each departure and arrival route, available as a PDF in my Aviation Documents folder at OneDrive.

The Blake Island Arrival is a “south arrival” for traffic inbound from the west. It’s used when Runways 14L and 14R are active. It begins over Blake Island at 2000-2500 ft to remain below the Class B shelf in the area. You then fly direct toward Lincoln Park, just north of the Fauntleroy Ferry dock, descending to cross the shoreline at 1500 ft, then continuing down to 1000 ft, taking care to remain below and clear of the overlying Class B airspace.

Boeing Tower usually directs you to fly a right base leg for runway 14R, but sometimes, to sequence you with other traffic, ATC needs to put you on a right downwind.

Or, as happened on this day, changes your runway assignment to 14L.

Lincoln Departure at KBFI

Air traffic control has revised the Lincoln Departure at Boeing Field (KBFI) in Seattle. It’s one of the VFR procedures used at to provide an orderly flow of traffic below the Seattle Class B airspace and to avoid TCAS alerts in airliners descending over KBFI into KSEA.

As noted below, the initial altitude on the Lincoln Departure (which may be renamed the Vashon South Depature) is now 700 ft. MSL.

The Lincoln Departure almost always begins from runway 14R. It now requires a climb straight ahead to 700 ft. MSL, then a level 180-degree turn into a close-in right downwind over the Duwamish River, remaining at 800 ft. As you approach the South Park Bridge, almost abeam the control tower, turn left toward a school bus parking lot and parallel the main streets that head west over the ridge. As you reach the ridge, climb no higher than 1000 ft. Continue on a track between the north tip of Vashon Island and Blake Island. When you cross the SEA 323 degree radial, you can climb to 1500 ft. At the shoreline, you can continue to 2500 ft.