Date: 201206
Local time of day: 1201-1800
Location: JYO.Airport, VA
Weather elements / visibility: Turbulence
Light: Daylight
Aircraft: Small Aircraft; High Wing; 1 Eng; Fixed Gear
Operator: Personal
Operating under: Part 91
Flight plan: None
Mission: Personal
Flight phase: Landing; Takeoff / Launch
Airspace: Class B DCA; Special Use SFRA
ATC / advisory: TRACON PCT
Reporter organization: Personal
Reporter function: Pilot Flying; Single Pilot
Reporter qualification: Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Commercial; Flight Crew Flight Instructor; Flight Crew Instrument
Human factors: Workload; Communication Breakdown; Distraction; Situational Awareness; Time Pressure
Anomaly: ATC Issue All Types; Conflict Airborne Conflict; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural FAR; Inflight Event / Encounter Wake Vortex Encounter
Detector: Person Flight Crew
When detected: In-flight
Result: Flight Crew Took Evasive Action; Flight Crew Became Reoriented
Contributing factors: Environment - Non Weather Related; ATC Equipment / Nav Facility / Buildings; Airspace Structure; Chart Or Publication; Procedure
Primary problem: Ambiguous

Narrative: The collocations of the JYO SFRA maneuvering area gates with the JYO [Runway] 17 ILS tend to concentrate the traffic inbound from a northerly and north easterly direction. Traffic uses the ILS; and JYO northerly outbound and north easterly bound traffic using the ILS or the fixes as the SFRA boundary in lieu of a ground visual or the AML radials. The AML VORTAC is and has been out of service for a long time. Without AML; if aircraft do not have DME; it is very difficult; due to lack of ground references; to judge the 30 NM arc distance from the DCA VORTAC; hence the use of the ILS and the ILS fixes. The traffic concentration provides the opportunity for arrival and departure head on passing traffic; operating in turbulence; and crossing of departing [Runway] 35 traffic going north and west and arriving traffic going south and west to enter the pattern for 35 in an area where the Class B floor is only 1;500 FT. Some of the turbulence can be significant because most of the large jets and turboprops tend to use the ILS for landing or to side step to the down wind for 35.

Callback: The Reporter stated that the Washington DC SFRA Leesburg Maneuvering Area is defined on the northwestern and western edges by radials from both the DCA and AML VORTACs if the aircraft is not equipped with GPS; DME or EFB. While the AML DME is inoperative pilots have discovered that the easiest Leesburg Maneuvering Area entry method is to track the IJYO Runway 17 ILS. Consequently; traffic along that track is concentrated which exposes VFR traffic to conflicts from both IFR and VFR aircraft. In the Reporter's case; he was entering the JYO Maneuvering Area transponder code before entering the SFRA and encountered the most severe turbulence he has seen in a light aircraft which caused a 70 degree roll in addition to pitch oscillations. He neither saw nor heard traffic but assumes that the turbulence was the result of jet traffic wake. The Reporter believes that a comment should be added to the all published information about JYO so as to alert inbound and outbound pilots about the potential conflict as a result of general aviation and business jet traffic concentrated on the ILS. In addition to his concern about airborne conflicts and turbulence; the Reporter is also concerned that while recovering from the turbulence upset he may have entered the SFRA before the code was activated.



Synopsis: A light aircraft pilot encountered severe wake turbulence while entering Washington; DC Leesburg SFRA because most aircraft use the JYO Runway 17 ILS localizer track for SFRA entry because the AML VORTAC is not available to define the areas boundaries when used with the DCA VORTAC.