Monitored Approach

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Article Information
Category:	General
Content source:	Flight Safety Foundation
Content control:	EUROCONTROL

Shared/Monitored Approach

Description

A shared or monitored approach is a specific procedure for pilot task sharing designed to facilitate the safe transition from instrument to visual flying during an instrument approach.

Flight Safety Foundation (FSF) Approach-and-landing Accident Reduction (ALAR) Briefing Note 7.3 — Visual References summarises the operating policy as follows:

• "Regardless of who was the PF for the sector, the FO is always the PF for the approach;

• "The CAPT is PNF and monitors the approach and the acquisition of visual references;

• "Before or upon reaching the DA(H), depending on the company’s policy:
  • If visual references are acquired, the CAPT calls “landing,” takes over the controls and lands; or,
  • If visual references are not acquired, the CAPT calls “go-around,” and the FO initiates the go-around and flies the missed approach.

"Whatever the decision, landing or go-around, the FO maintains instrument references for the complete approach and landing (or go-around and missed approach).

"Depending on the FO’s experience, the above roles can be reversed.

"This operating policy minimizes the problem of transitioning from instrument flying to visual flying and, in a go-around, the problem of resuming instrument flying. Nevertheless, this operating policy involves a change of controls (i.e., PF/PNF change) and requires the development of appropriate SOPs and standard calls.

"Depending on the company’s operating philosophy, this technique is applicable to:

• CAT II/CAT III approaches only (for all other approaches, the PF is also the pilot landing); or,

• All types of approaches (except automatic landings where the CAPT resumes control earlier, typically from 1,000 feet radio altitude to 200 feet radio altitude)."

The briefing note continues with a discussion of the implementation of the monitored approach procedure, including pilot actions, standard calls, recovery from a deviation and loss of visual references after DA/H or MDA/H.

Further Reading

Flight Safety Foundation

• ALAR Briefing Note 7.3 — Visual References

The Flight Safety Foundation ALAR Toolkit provides useful training information and guides to best practice. Copies of the FSF ALAR Toolkit may be ordered from the Flight Safety Foundation ALAR website http://www.flightsafety.org/current-safety-initiatives/approach-and-landing-accident-reduction-alar