Readback: December 2014

During a flight originating in Allegheny County, ATC amended our flight plan on a VOR/DME-equipped (no GPS, at least not in the equipment suffix) aircraft: KAGC AGC073 HOMEE JST300 JST SEG...The change is easy to execute-depart, intercept AGC073 which leads to HOMEE, then fly JST300 to JST-but came a bit as a surprise, because the system would not accept a flight plan that includes intercepting radials (the AGC073 and JST300 components) instead of radial and DME fixes. In talking to FSS their and our assumption was that the AGC073 component was a local ATC operational addition to route us out of busy airspace more precisely.We were wondering if there is a way (or trick) to include such intercept element when filing a flight plan.

Key Takeaways:

• **Pilot-in-Command (PIC) retains ultimate responsibility for safety:** Pilots must confirm terrain/obstruction clearance, even when given ATC vectors, and clarify ambiguous ATC instructions regarding altitude or pattern entry rather than making assumptions.
• **Flight plan filing systems have limitations for complex routes:** Intercepting radials generally cannot be filed directly; pilots can use workarounds like creating custom radial/DME fixes or anticipate ATC issuing SID elements implicitly.
• **Constant Descent Final Approach (CDFA) is a highly beneficial technique:** CDFA promotes stabilized non-precision approaches, making them safer and more consistent with other approach types, though it requires extra planning and discipline.

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