Runway Vacated

I was taught the runway vacated call in the FAA system, only.

Actually having to taxi past a certain point before cleaning up the plane, that is universal at controlled airports, especially if there is an ILS.

I have been taught this call at my French airfield, and also that you should only make it once completely clear of the hold short line (“piste dégagée”). I also regularly make this call as a matter of habit, together with taxi intentions to the parking.

No regulatory reference for this either, sorry.

Jan_Olieslagers wrote:

Well, I have zero experience of all that, but I think if I were working the tower frequency I would only rely on what I could verify for myself and not be dependent on what any pilot says.

It doesn’t work that way. If it did every airport without ground radar would have to close when visibility is less than between 1-3 kilometers, depending on runway length and tower location.

Balliol wrote:

Thanks all, the FAA reference is useful but I’m sensing there is no EASA reference to be had.

7.6.3.1.2.2 If the control tower is unable to determine, either visually or via an ATS surveillance system that a vacating or crossing aircraft has cleared the runway, the aircraft shall be requested to report when it has vacated the runway. The report shall be made when the entire aircraft is beyond the relevant runway-holding position.

7.10.3.4 When necessary or desirable, e.g. due to low visibility conditions, a landing or a taxiing aircraft may be instructed to report when a runway has been vacated. The report shall be made when the entire aircraft is beyond the relevant runway-holding position.

Ps – I always teach any RT calls should be runway ‘vacated’ any not ‘clear of’ or contain ‘clear’ at all due to possible confusion with clearances (Tenerife disaster was the catalyst for this I believe)

Indeed, because “clear of” is wrong and “vacated” is right! See phraseology in PANS-ATM 12.3.4.7 (z): Runway vacated.

Indeed, because “clear of” is wrong and “vacated” is right! See phraseology in PANS-ATM 12.3.4.7 (z): Runway vacated.

That may well be, but here in FAA land the usual phrase is ‘clear of the active’. I don’t think I’ve ever heard ‘vacated’ (incidentally – I think ‘vacated’ would not sound very intelligible on the radio).

172driver wrote:

That may well be, but here in FAA land the usual phrase is ‘clear of the active’. I don’t think I’ve ever heard ‘vacated’ (incidentally – I think ‘vacated’ would not sound very intelligible on the radio).

Using the word “clear” on the radio is dangerous as it is easily confused with “cleared”. Over the years ICAO phraseology has been changed to not use the word “clear” (or “cleared”) except to refer to clearances. It appears that there are only three other uses of the word “clear” in radio phraseology:

“Clear of traffic” (after visually observation or TCAS confirms passing conflicting traffic)
“Sky clear” (in meteorological messages)
“Obstacle Clearance Altitude/Height” (in instructions for radar approaches)

In the FAA scene, I was taught “clear of active runway”, in 2006 for the IR in Arizona and in 2008 for the CPL (which was done in the UK, shortly before visiting DPEs were shut down).