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Taxi instructions from tower during short final

If you land at a large and busy airport like EDDH, it is expected from you to familiarize yourself with the runway exits.

In case there is an airliner behind and your lack of preparation requires it to go-around, a lot of economic damage will be done. Also the ATCO will learn that the next time a SEP comes, it will get delay vectors and holdings until the approach has a lot of space.

You’re not helping GA by being unprepared… Being a good citizen at large airports requires some experience. It’s good that you raised this topic.

I had the exact same situation when landing at EDDH RWY15 last week: got the taxi clearance on short final. I was also informed about a A320 on RWY26 (crossing runway) who was lined up and waiting for me.
A lot of information in a critical phase of the flight.
I was lucky to have a pilot on the RHS who handled the radio and told me to do a high speed taxi to T.
In our case all went well, but the workload was intense. We were discussing the situation afterwards and I think that when flying single pilot I would just have said “Standby” and focus on a landing on the markers, and figure out the taxi instructions after landing.

Can ATC instruct you to “land long” when on a ILS? The procedure requires you to touch down on the markers…

Can ATC instruct you to “land long” when on a ILS?

According to my understanding ATC can give you no instructions at all regarding your landing. And if they tell you which taxiway to take after landing, that’s only a request, not an instruction (as clearly written in the ICAO document quoted by atmilatos). Some airports have “preferential taxi routes” stating where to leave the runway depending on runway in use and parking zone. But again, these are only recommendations. Nobody is allowed to interfere with your landing. If you can’t make the exit they requested, let them know (“7.10.3.3 If the pilot-in-command considers that he or she is unable to comply with the requested operation, the
controller shall be advised without delay”) But this does not mean that you have to make radio calls on short final or during the initial breaking on the runway!

Our company SOPs go like that: “Touch down shall be made within the touchdown zone on instrument approaches, or within 1000 ft of the landing threshold on non-instrument approaches.” So whenever I get a “long landing approved” request by ATC ,I have a choice of either violating our company rules (and thereby possibly losing the protection provided by my employer if something goes wrong) but pleasing ATC and other traffic, or sticking to the procedures and slowing down airport traffic. Not always easy.

Last Edited by what_next at 07 May 06:29
EDDS - Stuttgart

In my tower days I asked the crew “if possible vacate at the end, C4, B6,…” And this came always together with the landing clearance. No transmissions were made until I saw the reversers being stowed or observing taxi speeds.

No instructions but requests…

EBST, Belgium

ATC at these airports is probably more familiar with 2-crew operations, and have less comfort with the focus a single pilot needs to have when about to touch down.

EGTF, LFTF

It is well worth briefing your expected taxi route and thinking of the most economical runway exit.

I include this as part of the approach briefing.

One has to be careful, though. If the apron is located near the distant end of the runway in use and there is a parallell taxiway, ATC would probably not want you to take the first possible exit after landing with a SEP as you would then need to taxi against the flow of departing aircraft.

ESKC (Uppsala/Sundbro), Sweden

I always try to do as much as preparation before takeoff and during the flight I re-check STAR, approaches and taxiways – you can memorize a lot and exiting runway at proper exit is not so hard to do (while taxing can be ). I believe exits are always marked somehow logically in some order. BTW few days ago at Ljubljana LJLJ I got taxing instructions during final apporach – it was sunny day and I don’t think ATC whould do that if you’re on IFR approach in IMC.

Last Edited by Emir at 07 May 07:33
LDZA LDVA, Croatia

Being as much prepared as possible sounds easy, but while approaching a ‘big’ airport I assume that is mostly impossible to have a full picture of the structure and the taxiways in your mind. Personally speaking I prefer having a full picture of the approach including the missed approach in my mind rather than having the taxi charts ready to recapitulate.

Specifically in EDDH on the other side it becomes clear while preparing the approach that for a ‘small’ aircraft (SEP/MEP) only a long landing on RWY15 makes sense since the whole APRON-area is far away in the south. Touching down at the threshold 15 doesn’t make sense at all obviously. Even the airliners are using extremely reduced breaking power for slowing down on 15 approaches. Similar to RWY 14 and vacating H1/H2 in LSZH. So when approaching the first time into EDDH I already asked ATC proactively whether a long landing (whatever the definition might be) would be appropriate which as acknowledged by TWR.

What I do not agree with is that I as a pilot have to take care for the traffic flow behind me. For the controller it’s easy to assume that while doing a regular ILS approach I will not touch down half way down of the RWY but within the designated area. So it is supposed to be ATC’s job to propose an alternative solution which the PIC than has to agree with. I lieu of any of these measure it must clear for ATC that taxing down the RWY for 2000 meters takes me some time.

Yes EDDH ist special but when you see where is the GA Apron, the best taxiway from 15 is Tango. I brief this for landing too where to exit. But the moment to tell you is quit late. I also get a taxi instrucktions short after vacate 23 at P with high speed, OSKAR, KILO, VICTOR, fullow me blabla. I said “sorry my copilot was aslepp, say again” ;-) they alway think we are not busy!
But here it is easy, on 33 exit via L (yes you can), on 23 landing/touchdown at the cross an exit P, on 15 long landing and T, 05 you can leave early what is possible fast M/N/O. But speed is everything…

EDAZ

What I do not agree with is that I as a pilot have to take care for the traffic flow behind me. For the controller it’s easy to assume that while doing a regular ILS approach I will not touch down half way down of the RWY but within the designated area. So it is supposed to be ATC’s job to propose an alternative solution which the PIC than has to agree with.

Fine, but this means that ATC will stop squeezing in SEPs in a tight flow, the slot regime will get worse and we end up waiting more and more. We have to be well prepared and act professionally if we want to be welcome at a big airport. Otherwise the situation like in EDDM or EDDF will be found in more and more places. I did my PPL and IR at a large and busy airport and got a good insight into what calls ATC have to make to accommodate SEPs.

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