Yesterday I was cleared from center controller via a STAR but after a while they gave me vectors for separation and an altitude clearance. After another short while the ATC told me “resume own navigation via the STAR, direct to xxxxx (star waypoint)”. My question is, am I allowed now to descent past the clearance to comply with alt constraints on the STAR? His current clearance would make me bust the constraints.
Also on the same topic. If I am being vectored again on final approach and there has been no mention of speed whatsoever, can I reduce speed without clearance? It happened to me two days ago, I was being vectored to the IAF but there was no mention of speed. I came too fast on the IAF at 250kt (the 10000 feet speed limit) and it ended up a rough landing because of that. Should I had reduce speed on my own? I didn’t really do that because I thought it’s wrong. Would love if someone more experienced clarified me what exactly should I do with the speed in such cases. When can I start reducing speed?
As always in aviation the answer is “it depends”, in this case mostly on which country this happened in.
In general you can’t descend without a clearance, “rejoin the STAR” is not a descent clearance, so you cannot follow the vertical profile without a further descent clearance. Just give the controller a call and ask for descent.
As for the speed thing: The 250 below 10000ft speed limit in all airspace classes is a country specific rule that does not apply globally (in all airspace classes). In general you can manage your own speed unless a procedure, regulation, or ATC tells you what speed you need to fly at. So if there is nothing like that you can reduce “whenever” to “whatever speed you like” - if ATC wants you at a specific speed they will tell you.
I am not totalay in agreement with Lars. I mean if you got “resume own nav via the STAR” and that point contains an altitude, I mean you are allowed to decend to that altitude. Otherwise controller should have told you “remain you cleared altitude”
When it comes to speed normal is(was) to reduce to 180-200 when on ILS intercept course and remain that to 4-6 NM and then resume to final appr. speed.
But I am not shure to day, as I have been retired for more than 20 years, but that is what it was when I was active, and I more or less also do that in simulator to day.
No, not quite. Even in the US, that are known for sloppy ratio telephony, ATC will only allow you to descend according to a STAR-profile with the instruction “descend VIA ABCDE arrival”. Otherwise you are only cleared to follow the lateral part of that STAR. And: if in doubt, then ASK the controller without delay.
In Europe you will usually received explicit descent instructions, only in a few places do they have those “descend via”-instructions, and even then will they issue a stop-altitude, like “descend FL130 via ABCDE STAR”.