ATC Clearances And Procedures Flashcards
The following is your clearance to KABQ, be ready to copy: “Cessna 976SP, cleared to Albuquerque International Airport via, PHX ONE DEPARTURE, V95, INW, V12, ABQ, climb maintain 5000, expect 11,000 in 10 minutes, Phoenix Departure frequency 123.7, squawk 4141.”
After departing IFR on Runway 30L you fly immediately into IMC and lose coms, what are
you going to do? Take me through your lost coms process here.
1st troubleshoot (provide examples). 2nd squawk 7,600. 3rd continue flying your assigned route (at this point the ODP) and fly the highest of your Minimum IFR Alt (you’re not off-route, so in this case it’s the 4,000 listed on the ODP), your expected alt (but only if the time has elapsed, which in this case has not), and your assigned alt (5,000). So climb to 5,000 until 10 minutes passes, then climb to 11,000. Maintain 11,000 for the remainder of the route, as this is the highest of the Min IFR/Expected/Assigned for every segment.
Different note: if you’d lost coms after having been vectored off of the DP, then you are off route, so your Min IFR Alt becomes the OROCA during departure and enroute phases of flight, or, the MSA once inbound on an approach and within the MSA’s range. Then adjust the altitude upward so that it conforms with the IFR hemispherical rule. Route-wise, if you lose coms after having been vectored off-route, proceed direct to the fix or airway that you are being vectored to join.
You’re still lost coms in IMC when you get to the end of your route. How will you descend from your enroute altitude and land the plane? (Everyone knows that IFR lost com procedures are as gray as anything in aviation. Every FSDO, every examiner, every instructor . . . they all have different interpretations and expectations when it comes to 91.185, and in particular, procedures surrounding how and when to descend and land at the destination airport. The key here is to abide by the regs when they are clear, to have a plan that will get the plane safely on the ground, and to demonstrate good ADM throughout. The following are 3 valid options:)
1) The Literal-Interpretation-of-the-FARs Option.
Here’swhat91.185saysaboutleavingtheclearancelimit, definedintheglossaryas “the fix, point, or location to which an aircraft is cleared when receiving an ATC clearance” (therefore our clearance limit would be KABQ): “(ii) If the clearance limit is not a fix from which an approach begins (like KABQ, in our case), leave the clearance limit at the expect-further-clearance time if one has been received (one hasn’t, in our case), or if none has been received (we don’t have an EFC, so this next part applies to us), upon arrival over the clearance limit (KABQ), and proceed to a fix from which an approach begins (an IAF) and commence descent or descent and approach as close as possible to the estimated time of arrival as calculated from the filed or amended (with ATC) estimated time en route (time off the ground + filed ETE). How would this play out in reality? After arriving at ABQ VOR, you would have to use the GPS to navigate off-route over the airport (abide by the MSA), then upon crossing over the top of KABQ head to an IAF (say, BIBQU for the RNAV3 if you expect the winds to favor runway 3; or head to JILUG for the RNAV8 if winds favor runway 8), preferably use IAFs with holds so that you have the option to hold if you arrive early, then start your descent at your ETA.
2) The SDL FSDO Option Circa 2016.
During an examiner meeting at the FSDO a few years ago, the lack of consistency surrounding 91.185 procedures on checkrides was raised. It was determined that applicants should end their IFR XC routes at an IAF, hold at that fix in the event that they arrive prior to the ETA, then descend along the approach at the ETA. This matches up with the FARs perfectly if “clearance limit” were instead defined as being the final fix along the assigned route (which very well could’ve been the FAA’s intention when they wrote 91.185).
3) The Emergency Option
Being lost coms in IMC while descending into an airport environment could certainly be considered an emergency. 6-4-1 in the AIM states the following: “It is virtually impossible to provide regulations and procedures applicable to all possible situations associated with two-way radio communications failure. During two-way radio communications failure, when confronted by a situation not covered in the regulations, pilots are expected to exercise good judgment in whatever action they elect to take. Should the situation so dictate they should not be reluctant to use the emergency action contained in 14 CFR Section 91.3(b).” This option would have the pilot squawk 7700 and do what he or she needs to do to get the plane safely on the ground…while utilizing good ADM, of course.
At what time are you trying to get to an IAF?
Your ETA
How did you calculate your ETA?
Time off the ground + filed ETE
What will you do if you arrive at the fix early?
Hold until your ETA (unless, perhaps, you’ve chosen The Emergency Option). Hopefully you were smart and ended your route at a fix with a published hold associated with it.
As you approach the INW VOR you break out of the clouds, visibility is at least 5sm in every direction. What are you going to do?
Maintain VFR and descend and land at Winslow Regional Airport.
Let’s rewind back to KIWA. Same clearance except now it’s clear skies at KIWA. You’re departure leg and you lose coms so you troubleshoot, squawk 7600 . . . and then to what altitude do you climb? What route do you fly?
Fly 500ft above the highest TPA (in this case the turbine pattern is 3,100, so climb to 3,600), join the traffic pattern, and look for light gun signals
How can you tell if you have a stuck mic?
“TX” appears permanently next to the frequencies.
What would you do if you had a stuck mic while climbing out of KIWA in VMC on an IFR flight plan?
Try to fix it first. Then announce to twr that you have a stuck mic and that you’d like to turn around, join the pattern, and land. Switch off frequency (123.45 is a valid option) so that you’re not clogging up the radios. Look for light gun signals. You can switch back to 120.6 periodically in order to acknowledge the signals or to announce intentions.
Draw the hold for the POC ODP - what hold entry would we use? Simulate the call to ATC as you cross the holding fix
OK
You’re told to hold at ____ thousand ft. What is your max airspeed?
How long will you fly the inbound leg?
Holding speeds restrictions
Altitude (MSL) Max airspeed (kts) 6000' or below 200 kts 6001-14,000 230 kts 14,001 and above. 265 kts Air Force fields 310 kts * Navy fields 230 kts * * Unless published otherwise
Unless published or instructed otherwise by ATC, the inbound leg timing is: 1 minute below 14,000 ft MSL, and 1.5 minutes at 14,001 ft MSL and above.
The inbound timing begins when established wings-level on the inbound turn and ends at the fix.
Controller might also give you distance to hold instead of time
Draw this hold on the board: “Hold over the IWA VOR on the 180 radial, right turns.”
Ok
Let’s say there’s a crosswind from the left/west that forces you to fly heading 350 in order to maintain the 360 inbound track.
Triple the wind correction, so 210.
What is the risk involved in not tripling the correction on the outbound leg?
You could
end up on the unprotected side of the hold, as the wind will push you toward that side
during the turns.
Draw this hold: “Cessna 976SP, hold Southeast of the 10DME fix on the IWA 330 degree radial, left turns.”
❏ Are the left turns here standard or non-standard?
Standard is right turns
