Arrival procedures

Approach control

Facilities providing approach control often serve multiple airports in an area. Radar service is provided for both radar approaches (ASR and PAR) and vectors to non-radar approaches.

• Headings and altitudes assigned by approach are mandatory for separation.
• Turns to final approach are permitted only when issued by approach.

Standard Terminal Arrival (STAR)

Established IFR arrival routes for specific, larger airports, designed to simplify clearance delivery.

• Some procedures have mandatory speeds or crossing altitudes published, or information on what to expect.
• Aircraft on a STAR must be cleared to descend; obstacle clearance is the responsibility of ATC.
• Variations include RNAV and Type B, which use GPS or RNAV technology to attain 2nm and 1nm accuracy respectively.
• Different instrument approach types exist, with different arrival procedures, as many have multiple initial approach fixes.

standard departure and terminal arrival charts

• non-standard take-off minimums (Instrument Flying, 533)
  • NOS – listed in front of the packet
  • Jepp – per-airport
• instrument departure procedures (536)
  • with the approaches for the airport in NACO and Jepp
  • list requirements
  • illustrate the departure and where it ends (MEAD7.BLD is the Mead Seven departure, ending over BLD vortac)
  • transition routes lead to the enroute system
  • chart also includes a textual description for each runway
  • symbology is the same as enroute charts

standard instrument approach procedure charts (NACO format)

• briefing strip
  • city (how charts are indexed)
  • approach information – nav frequency, course, lengths and altitudes
  • approach name
  • ICAO identifier and airport name
  • requirements, lighting information, missed approach
  • radio frequencies
• plan view
  • top-down view of the approach
  • ADF, DME, or RADAR REQUIRED is printed in the top right corner for some approaches
  • effective date (vertical along the side)
  • minimum safe altitudes (MSA) listed in bottom right corner
  • navaids and frequencies are listed again
• airport plan
  • shows airport layout
  • FAF to MAP distance and times
• profile view
  • missed approach instructions, top corner
  • vertical depiction of the approach, from the initial fix on
  • shows glideslope intercept and minimum altitudes for the segment
• minimums
  • different minimums for different categories (some overlap)
  • list different approach options – straight-in, circling, etc

When briefing for an approach, it’s good to quickly read through the important information:

1. Approach and TDZE (Paine Field ILS 16 right approach, touchdown elevation 565)
2. Nav facility and frequency (IPAE, 109.3 – tuned, identified, course twisted, source selected)
3. Comm frequencies (Tower for 16R is 132.95, in standby)
4. Minimum safe altitudes (lowest safe altitude for the approach is 3400 in the NW quadrant)
5. If major obstacles exist, locate the highest point under the approach and missed (830 MSL tower under the missed approach path)
6. Minimums (DH is 781 feet, RVR greater than 2400)
7. Procedure (We’re northwest and we can expect vectors to the final approach course at 3100)
8. Missed (Missed approach procedure is a climb to 1300, then a climbing right turn to 3100 direct RITTS and hold.) Mentioning fuel available for the hold is also a good idea.
9. Runway data – landing distance and lighting available (We’re landing 16R, 9000 feet available, once we see the rabbit we can descend to 681.)