Prepare for: Towered Airport Operations
Flying at an airport with an operating control tower: ground and tower calls, runway crossings, light gun signals and avoiding runway incursions.
Your CFI's syllabus and your airplane's POH come first. This page is a general study aid to help you show up prepared.
What you'll do
- Listen to the ATIS first and have the information code ready for your first call.
- Call ground for taxi. Read back every runway assignment, hold-short instruction and runway crossing clearance.
- Never cross or enter any runway without a clearance that says so, and stop at every hold-short line you aren't cleared past.
- At the run-up area, call tower when ready for departure; read back the takeoff clearance with the runway number.
- Flying in, call tower about 10 miles out with your position, altitude, intentions and the ATIS code.
- Know the light gun signals in case your radio fails, and keep the airport diagram out the whole time on the ground.
- Private requirement (61.109(a)(5)(iii)): 3 solo takeoffs and landings to a full stop, each with a pattern, at an airport with an operating control tower.
The standard you'll be held to
Quoted from the current FAA Airman Certification Standards for each level that tests this.
Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C)Task PA.III.A · Communications, Light Signals, and Runway Lighting Systems
- Select and activate appropriate frequencies.
- Transmit using standard phraseology and procedures as specified in the Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM) and Pilot/Controller Glossary.
- Acknowledge radio communications and comply with ATC instructions or as directed by the evaluator.
Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C)Task PA.III.B · Traffic Patterns
- Identify and interpret airport/seaplane base runways, taxiways, markings, signs, and lighting.
- Comply with recommended traffic pattern procedures.
- Correct for wind drift to maintain the proper ground track.
- Maintain orientation with the runway/landing area in use.
- Maintain traffic pattern altitude, ±100 feet, and the appropriate airspeed, ±10 knots.
- Maintain situational awareness and proper spacing from other aircraft in the traffic pattern.
Prepare the night before
- Read the radio communication lesson and write your first ground and tower calls on a kneeboard.
- Print or download the airport diagram and trace your taxi route before you go.
- Listen to the tower frequency (for example on LiveATC) to hear the rhythm of the calls.
Common mistakes
- Crossing a hold-short line without a clearance.
- Reading back clearances without the runway number.
- Saying 'roger' to an instruction you didn't understand. Ask 'say again'.
Questions to ask your instructor
- Which towered airport will we use for the 61.109 solo landings?
- Can we practice a radio failure arrival with light gun signals?
- What should I say if I get lost on the taxiways?
Related lessons
Radio communicationPrivate Pilot course · 10 min read
Runways, markings, signs and lightingPrivate Pilot course · 10 min read
Check yourself
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