A missed approach procedure is only valid for at the DH or missed approach point. Once you go past that mark, it changes things. I remember some of the charts we had for AK had notes such as "a go around initiated after the missed approach point is unlikely to be successful" and sometimes even less optimistic than that. Some just say "a go around commenced after the MAP will not provide standard terrain obstruction clearance." (the JEPP charts for JNU were fairly pessimistic as I recall).
I'm going to go piece by piece on some of this stuff now.
So, its the magical time of year, where the FAA decides that after a winter of chaos, they will "refresh" us on some techniques. Most of the controllers are livid right now over a way the supes want us to issue this clearance, here's the scenario.
N123 is at an airport on an IFR clearance, requests multiple practice approaches and touch an gos. He is currently missed and states that after this approach he would like a clearance back to home. What do you do?
What me, and 99.9999999% of all the controllers in the room agree upon, is that "upon completion of this approach, fly the published missed, expect climb and maintain X altitude". Where the X altitude is an appropriate altitude that would allow us to issue a clearance for his trip home. N123 would then be expected to fly the approach, do his touch and go/low approach (whatever he wants), go missed then climb to the altitude ATC assigns.
I personally don't like this clearance, I'll get back to it.
What the supes say is that, we can issue his departure clearance to him on his approach, as once he crosses the end of the runway he becomes a departure aircraft so therefore we can assign him his departure clearance. Which we disagree with for several reasons:
1) An aircraft conducting an IFR approach ‘owns’ the entire approach, which includes the missed approach, so he has the prerogative to fly it if he wants. (IE we cant tell him to not fly it, and then fly something else instead, unless they are alternate missed approach procedures.)
Then issue your clearance as an alternative missed approach procedure. At least it sounds to me like you can tell him not to fly it and to fly something else instead?
2) Departure procedures are flight checked for aircraft that are on the ground at the airport, not airborne already conducting an approach.
If your clearance has to do with a departure procedure, he'll be fine since he'll be ABOVE it.
If an aircraft is flying an approach and flies overhead the airport, it's not like a departure procudure is going to reduce your terrain clearance. You are starting overhead the runway at a higher altitude and climbing immediately. You are well withing all parameters required (if there is a distance past threshold you need to be it'll be in the DP). It's basically like you got a big boost in climb for a few hundred feet (or more) on a normal takeoff. This is why the missed approach has a lower climb gradient requirement than the ODP.
3) The AIM clearly states that an aircraft shall declare missed not later than DH, however in the real world, I would expect that its possible for an aircraft to declare missed even after they’ve touched down (ie we just landed and “oh ^&*% there’s a truck on the runway”).
As far as I'm concerned (and I do believe it's in the books somewhere) a touch and go (such as your truck on the runway analogy) is a landing and a departure, not a missed approach. So the climb rate you adhere to depends on what you're doing. If you're doing an approach and going missed you need the missed approach climb angle. If you are doing a touch and go it's departure procedure.
After the missed approach point you are conducting a "go around" and not a missed approach. After touch down it's a touch and go, even if it's because of a truck.
The reason that point is in the AIM is because that's when your missed approach procedure guarantees clearance. You cand use whatever terminology you want for a go around after that, but it's not going to make the missed approach procedure change what it is.
I'm a lot more concerned with the idea of someone starting a missed approach after the missed approach point than I am someone starting a departure procedure from a low approach4) Lastly, by assigning the departure clearance, you’re also authorizing that aircraft to fly any departure procedure that applies to the airport. Everything from the ODP to a full graphical SID. Can we really expect a pilot, in potential IFR conditions, to dig through his flight bag, and find the ODP/SID, and then figure out how to fly that, as he’s shooting final in low IFR? I just don’t feel that its safe.
If he says he intends to go missed it's an alternate missed approach. If he wants to do a touch and go it's his responsibility to comply with the ODP anyway. If he doesn't want to worry about the ODP he has to go missed at the missed approach point. The key here is that you want to get the instructions to him BEFORE he's on final in low IFR. You can always ask for clarification if you aren't sure if he's going to do a touch and go or not.
So here’s the question; as an IFR pilot shooting and approach, in this scenario, what would YOU expect?
Issue the instructions as an alternate missed approach procedure. I heard controllers specify this as well.
I'm going to go back to this paragraph now.
What me, and 99.9999999% of all the controllers in the room agree upon, is that "upon completion of this approach, fly the published missed, expect climb and maintain X altitude". Where the X altitude is an appropriate altitude that would allow us to issue a clearance for his trip home. N123 would then be expected to fly the approach, do his touch and go/low approach (whatever he wants), go missed then climb to the altitude ATC assigns.
With your clearance, N123 can ONLY go missed at the missed approach point (consider the reasons I gave earlier). If he lands, he needs another clearance becuase the missed is no longer a valid procedure. This includes a touch and go. If he does a low approach it's not really a missed anymore either so he's violated his clearance there as well. Also, why are you giving him an "expect" altitude if you don't want to give him the clearance anyway?
I would like to hear something more like "N123, upon completion of this approach, fly the published missed, climb and maintain 5000. Reaching 5000 cleared direct LAX (or to LAX as filed etc)" If you can't issue the altitude yet, just tell me to expect the altitude and the clearance reaching that altitude. If you can issue the altitude and not the rest yet, tell me to expect it at the altitude.
The thing I really don't like about your clearance is you told me to expect the altitude, but not what to expect otherwise. I don't know if that altitude is your MVA or not or how you plan on clearing me. The other way I've heard this clearance given is "on your missed approach, fly heading 360, climb and maintain 5000. Expect vectors direct ______" (or on course etc). Now it's an alternative missed approach instruction as well.
Something else that has occured to me as I read your clearance to myself. PLEASE do not use the phrase "expect climb and maintain 5000" There is too much opportunity for me to not hear "expect" or for me to think you started to tell me to expect it and then changed your mind and decided to tell me to do it. Tell me "expect 5000" or "climb and maintain 5000."
As an aside, in the case of a jet, once we get our thrust reversers deployed, we're running over whatever it is in front of us. If it's bigger than us, we'll have to just go off the side. There's no going around at that point. The risks of a reverser not restowing are too high (at least in the case of the one I fly it's forbidden to attempt a touch and go if you deploy a reverser). And realistically, once we get the mains down and the spoilers pop, the chances of us clearing whatever it is we didn't like seeing on the runway are quite small anyway.
It's 1am AKDT, so hopefully this makes as much sense to everyone here as it does in my head... My point is, word your clearances so we are all on the same page. Word it as an alternative missed and give a conditional statement for the next clearance (the "reaching 5000 cleared direct ____") means that you haven't issued the departure clearance until that altitude anyway, before that is part of the missed, right?