Josh wrote:
and the form is to advise ATC on taxi – " xxx request taxi, able Bravo"
I like that! Will use that next time. I’m sure ATC will appreciate pilots thinking ahead like that, esp. when it’s busy.
Jan_Olieslagers wrote:
I am sure they will accept a reasonable polite objection.
They certainly do – and you should never accept a request out of fear your objection might be, well, objected…
Shorrick_Mk2 wrote:
I think intersection takeoffs are less stressful than when you are orbiting end of downwind and slotted in at the last minute on a high key approach between fast jet traffic and told to expedite as there is a 777 heavy barrelling down the ILS behind you….
Indeed 
– but more so for PAX, I found last week. Exactly the situation you described above, yet with ANA’s dreamliner clearly visible on final behind me in EDDL when I was just turning in from base. They were over the threshold first time I dared to look after clearing the runway. My PAX was really concerned, though later I told her what Jan added below. Incidentally, the next inbound traffic was the newly scheduled Emirates A380 that now visits Düsseldorf daily.
Jan_Olieslagers wrote:
I’d rather have the heavy behind me (not too near, though) then before me – wake turbulence is just as invisible.
Don’t care as long as I have the distance to take-off
I am usually the one requesting it to avoid taxiing for a long time 
Once in ELLX I made a silly mistake and went to the wrong holding point (supposed to be G for 06 and F for 24).
ATC asked me if I was OK in terms of TORA. Not being sure if what was left was enough (so probably under 700m for the PA28-161) he let me backtrack a bit.
At a large airport, you know that it’s likely that you’ll be asked if you can take an intersection. So before calling for taxi, (in fact probably before calling for startup or clearance delivery) you should take a look at the taxi chart and figure out, not just your most likely route, but also which intersections you’d be happy with.
If you require calculations to be done, then you shouldn’t be happy with it, when there is no necessity ;) If you can’t look at the taxi chart and say with confidence that there is plenty of room, and actually need to do some calculations, then don’t accept it. It’s obviously tight, and there is no need to do something too tight.
If you get thrown something by ATC what you weren’t expecting, then ask them what the TODA is before making a decision. While taxiing isn’t the time to be trying to figure that out.
Not being sure if what was left was enough
Ask what distance is available. They’ll tell you.
Aviathor wrote:
Ask what distance is available. They’ll tell you.
Oh, that they did !
But I was not sure the figure they gave was enough
The runway is 4km long and the normal intersections give you something around 3.5 km for 06 and maybe slightly below 2km for 24 so I never do perf calculations for a touristy flight around the country.
Departing from an intersection introduces the risk of departing in the wrong direction.
That’s why ATC will initially give you a lineup clearance, and only when the controller see you’re lined up in the correct direction they will clear you for takeoff.
At large airports I usually ask for a departure from an intersection. It saves a lot of taxi time.
I like the “xxx request taxi, able Bravo” phraseology Josh suggested.
It’s already been suggest but just to clarify a point – It is useful to work out (especially at larger airport where it is likely to help and be offered) the shortest intersection which you could take. That way you already know when ATC offer something else either ‘yes’ or ‘no’. This is pretty much what airline traffic does (differing between operators), working out performance for the most restrictive likely intersection and then anything longer is performance in hand.
PapaPapa wrote:
Don’t care as long as I have the distance to take-off
I am usually the one requesting it to avoid taxiing for a long time
So do I. “request Bravo” is what I would say.
lenthamen wrote:
Departing from an intersection introduces the risk of departing in the wrong direction.
Interesting observation, never considered that. Good point, though.
One more thing to consider when accepting an intersection t/o is the wake turbulence separation. This may have unintended consequences. If you are halfway down a 7000ft rwy, then your t/o roll will put you right into the wake of the preceding jet. ATC of course know this and make you wait – BUT, there are already other jets lined up at the hold, so the next one goes first – and you are at the back of the queue again…. rinse and repeat…. This happened a lot to me some years ago when regularly flying out of LEMG (that was when they still had no GA restrictions) and I ended up refusing the intersection takeoffs, as it was quicker to taxi full-length and then join the jet queue.
Nobody has yet raised the best reason for taking the full length available – what happens if you have an engine failure directly after take off? If you’ve taken off from an intersection, chances are you’re landing off field. If you take off full length, you have the option, during the first 3 – 400 feet of climb, to be able to cut the engine and land back on the runway….
So I’ll gladly go full length if I’m the only one looking to depart but if it’s to help ATC, I’ll consider the location beyond the airport just in case I do have an engine failure after take off – Hamburg for example, I’ll NOT take an intersection departure if I can help it because opportunities for a forced landing from, say, 300 feet are restricted; in Muenster (EDDG) it’s a whole different ball game….
