What to read back

[ChristophPreinfalk]

Quick (hopefully simple) question: For reading back, I think I'm doing a bit too much. E.g. for the Mini Route, when I get the Bravo clearance, the controller says a whole lot of useful stuff. I think I don't have to read back things like "cleared for the Mini Route" and things like that. I think I just have to read back the altitude and heading, right? What about things like "head towards the Santa Monica VOR, maintain 2500, report when over Santa Monica tower"? Do I just read back "maintain 2500", or am I supposed to read back everything?

Also, when I'm approaching an airport and I check in "5 miles north of torrence" and then the controller tells me "blah blah blah ... report when midfield ... blah blah blah", do I read back the "will report the midfield" bit?

I just feel I'm taking up too much bandwidth when I read back too much, even though reading back too much is probably technically not incorrect.

Thoughts?

[julio.elizalde]

Whenever able, you should read back as much of the instruction as possible with your callsign. This insures that the controller has verified that you understand what you're supposed to do. In the RW, this is crucial because if the pilot makes an error and it causes a serious incursion or even an accident, the tapes will be the first place the authorities turn. Say if something bad happened, the tapes could show that the pilot incorrectly read back their instructions and the controller never made them aware of it. In that scenario, the controller would be to blame (and would probably be promptly disciplined or fired). On the other hand, if the pilot gave an accurate read back, then only the pilot would be accountable for the deviation or error.

Yes, for the examples you mentioned, you should be reading back everything.
"Cessna 34W, Santa Monica Tower. Proceed to the SMO VOR to join the mini route southbound. Report overhead at 2500. Remain outside of the Los Angeles Class Bravo at all times."
"Proceed to SMO for the miniroute, we'll report overhead at 2500 and will remain outside the Bravo at all times. Cessna 34W."

Yes, for pattern entry instructions you should be reading it back to make sure you got it right. Remember, this is not just for the controller, this is for you to have your facts checked out by the controller. I'd much prefer to have a controller correct me than to have a number to call after screwing something up royally.

The other day there was a liveatc recording of a JetBlue pilot getting an instruction wrong 4 times in a row after landing at JFK. The controller corrected him every time and after the pilot eventually taxied to his gate, he called the tower back and apologized. The tower controller understood his embarrassment, but said that so often when pilots land at JFK, their brains shut off. Since landing is the most difficult stage of many flights, many pilots feel that they've completed their goal and relax at a critical moment of the flight - taxiing to the gate, often through departing/arriving aircraft that are taxiing, taking off, landing, etc. The tower controller said he's most on guard with arriving pilots because of this. Remember, often you're crossing runways that are active for departures and the most catastrophic damage can be done if ATC instructions aren't followed. All good lessons for both controllers and pilots.

To sum up, read it all back, because if you get something wrong, you could do something that could result in a very dangerous situation. Also, always be sure to include your callsign to make sure the instruction was in fact for you.

[Pieces]

From a very technical standpoint, you don't have to read anything back. Don't ever do this, but as far as regulations go there is nothing that says what a pilot must say in response to a clearance other than "Roger" or "Wilco". (If I am wrong here, someone please correct me. I've looked through the regs (FARs, not ATC regs) and didn't find anything, and I've read some articles that supported this). But, like I noted, not reading clearances back is a very bad idea and the controller will almost certainly berate you until you say the right things back. The most important part of communicating with ATC is being understood, and understanding. Reading back clearances is a very clear and efficient way to indicate you have a correct understanding of what you need to do.

Therefore read back what you need to show that you have the entire message understood and correct. You should always read back runways, headings, altitudes, frequencies, etc. Usually, numbers need to be read back. Exceptions would be wind and altimeter settings, though I occasionally read back altimeters. Its also good to read back fix instructions as well, because that shows understanding of what you need to do.

So in your SMO example I would read back "Direct Santa Monica, 2500, report over the field". This shows that you know what you need to do now, and what you need to do next. There is no ambiguity. In your "report mid-field" example, I would read back "I'll report mid-field", again showing understanding and compliance.

So, to recap (and someone please confirm, or tell me to shut up) the goal is to show understanding and eliminate errors as briefly as possible.

[ChristophPreinfalk]

Julio and Reece,

Excellent, thank you for your detailed answer! It's good to know that reading back everything is actually meaningful and encouraged, I will continue to do that.

Interesting about that JFK controller and the JetBlue pilot!

[Ryan Geckler]

From a very technical standpoint, you don't have to read anything back. Don't ever do this, but as far as regulations go there is nothing that says what a pilot must say in response to a clearance other than "Roger" or "Wilco". (If I am wrong here, someone please correct me.

Runway assignments, hold short instructions, and LAHSO instructions are mandatory.