Track or Heading
 

Could anyone explain what pilot should fly - HDG or track - after ATC said: "Maintain RWY heading after departure"?

Thanks :p

"Runway heading" means fly the heading of the runway taking no account of the wind.

"Straight ahead" means fly a heading that will track the extended centreline of the runway taking into account drift.

Further to cossack`s reply, "maintain runway heading" is no longer an approved phrase if indeed it ever was.

The instruction Chulman-control should have heard was " call-sign...after departure climb straight ahead etc."

If Chulman Control were to come to this side of the pond, then he / she would hear fly runway heading <G> or fly heading XXX. We don't do ground tracks because we try to do what everyone can do...

regards

Same in the big wide world of Australia....a VFR aircraft or an IFR aircraft conducting a visual departure can receive the instruction "maintain runway heading"

Scott,

I'm all for issuing clearances that can be flown (even easily flown if I'm in a good mood) but 'straight ahead' should be pretty easy on a runway with an ILS (although here in the UK we don't normally admit to any ILS having a back-beam)!

Wouldn't do do it for VFR of if there's no ILS though.

NLACG

Actually Stunty, you may be right for VFR aircraft to "fly runway heading" but I am pretty sure that you cannot use it for IFR aircraft as it becomes a problem for LSALT! They need to fly a radial.

:(

I think?

You are right. Used for an IFR aircraft it should be "maintain runway heading visual". I was just being simple/lazy.

LGB IFR departure clearance is "Maintain runway heading until 800' then...."

Julian.

Actually folks , the correct R/T is to :-

maintain a flight level

Continue a heading

Our company manuals advise us that
"Maintain RWY heading" means...
RWY Track in all countries (that we fly to, 50 odd) EXCEPT USA, Canada and Austrlia, where RWY heading is to be flown.


Now I'm confused

There's no practical reason to fly the runway QDM as a heading. There's every reason to fly the extended centreline. This needs sorting out, but not here! ICAO 8168 is the relevant document, at least in Icao contracting states, so why not raise it with ICAO?

Bearing in mind that terrain is a possible issue, this problem needs to be 'put to bed' pronto!

I dont see why there is confusion. The pilot is being told to fly a heading - just so happens that it is not in the form of a three digit number. So like any other heading given the pilot points the nose in the right direction according to the compass/DI and forgets about winds and tracks.

[ 14 December 2001: Message edited by: Stunty ]

Stunty, surely couldn't be a 'heading' because the terrain responsibilty (minimum radar vectoring altitudes) would not have been reached, so the aircraft could not be on a radar heading! So saying the phraseology is confusing. If I used the phrase 'continue runway heading' I would expect a 'centerline track' to be maintained. Hence the 'after departure climb straight ahead'. No-one wants an aircraft drifting off the centerline towards one on a reciprocal track joining downwind.

What would you know Kiwi.