Interesting Article From LA ARTCC

[hammdo]

https://laartcc.org/article/a-controllers-guide-to-instrument-approaches
 

My CFII sent me this (he flys for SouthWest)

-Don

[Andy95W]

That’s a really good article, thanks for posting.  I was able to save it as a PDF, it’s a lot easier to read that way.  Thanks, Don!

[MikeOH]

Good read, but keep in mind this is a site for VATSIM; it is NOT an FAA or government site!

Note the disclaimer at the bottom of the page:

 

[flyboy0681]

This paragraph piqued my interest: "The phraseology for a visual approach clearance is pretty simple. At uncontrolled airports, the controller can't assign a runway, so it's "cleared visual approach to Big Bear Airport." At an airport with a tower, a runway should be assigned and the phraseology is "cleared visual approach runway two four right."

A few weeks ago I flew into Smyrna Tennessee on an IFR flight plan. The controller cleared me for the visual approach, but no runway assignment was given. Just as quickly, he told me to contact the tower. The tower told me that I was number two for runway 19 and cleared to land and make left traffic. This totally threw me off my game because I had to scramble to figure out which of the intersecting, diagonal runways was 19 in relation to where I was. 

Assuming that the passage that I highlighted is based on actual procedure, should he have told me which runway I was going to be using so that I could prepare myself ahead of time? I have been assigned a lot of visual approaches over the years, but this was the first time that I was thrown into the pattern.

The airport doesn't have an ATIS, just AWOS, so I didn't know which runway was in use. In hindsight I should have monitored the tower frequency, but I was expecting the controller to tell me "cleared for the visual approach runway one niner".