Welcome Guest. Sign in or Signup

2 Answers

Civilian use of “initial” on the radio

Asked by: 3295 views FAA Regulations

Just curious if anyone knows if use of the military position call "initial" is actually valid at civilian airports.  We have ex military pilots that use this term at an uncontrolled field.  I think they mean they are on a long straight-in final, but I'm really not sure.  Neither are many other non-military pilots.  I looked in the FAA's Pilot Controller glossary, and there is no mention of the term in there.  Anywhere else I could look?

I'm not asking about the IFR initial approach fix.

Thanks,

mike

Ace Any FAA Written Test!
Actual FAA Questions / Free Lifetime Updates
The best explanations in the business
Fast, efficient study.
Pass Your Checkride With Confidence!
FAA Practical Test prep that reflects actual checkrides.
Any checkride: Airplane, Helicopter, Glider, etc.
Written and maintained by actual pilot examiners and master CFIs.
The World's Most Trusted eLogbook
Be Organized, Current, Professional, and Safe.
Highly customizable - for student pilots through pros.
Free Transition Service for users of other eLogs.
Our sincere thanks to pilots such as yourself who support AskACFI while helping themselves by using the awesome PC, Mac, iPhone/iPad, and Android aviation apps of our sponsors.

2 Answers



  1. Chris on Mar 08, 2014

    Typically they are performing an overhead pattern when they call initial, not a straight in. Can’t help with the validity question.

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  2. Michael Lepkowski on Mar 12, 2014

    AIM 5-4-27 Overhead Approach Maneuver. As stated, when they say “Initial”, or more appropriately “request the Initial” with ATC, they are asking to fly an overhead pattern. The Overhead is developed specifically for the airport. Typically, they will fly at an altitude above normal TPA, straight down the runway, then “Break” at midfield, making a 180 degree turn to join the downwind, then another 180 to land.

    The “Initial” is the begging of the overhead maneuver. Military pilots like it because it allows you to fly as fast as possible to the runway, then drop in.

    Insofar as they follow 91.126 direction of turn for that airport, it’s valid.

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes


The following terms have been auto-detected the question above and any answers or discussion provided. Click on a term to see its definition from the Dauntless Aviation JargonBuster Glossary.

Answer Question

Our sincere thanks to all who contribute constructively to this forum in answering flight training questions. If you are a flight instructor or represent a flight school / FBO offering flight instruction, you are welcome to include links to your site and related contact information as it pertains to offering local flight instruction in a specific geographic area. Additionally, direct links to FAA and related official government sources of information are welcome. However we thank you for your understanding that links to other sites or text that may be construed as explicit or implicit advertising of other business, sites, or goods/services are not permitted even if such links nominally are relevant to the question asked.