"turn on course" or "on course heading" ??

PlaneCrazy

Well-Known Member
What exactly does this mean? I departed KBUR runway 08 and tower cleared me for takeoff then turn on course but they never asked where I was going. I clairified with them before launching that I was going to be a right downwind departure but was I clear to depart in any direction I wanted without advising them?
 
What exactly does this mean? I departed KBUR runway 08 and tower cleared me for takeoff then turn on course but they never asked where I was going. I clairified with them before launching that I was going to be a right downwind departure but was I clear to depart in any direction I wanted without advising them?

Sounds like they were clearing you to head the way you told them you were going.
 
...or it could be that they didn't have any conflicting traffic no matter which way you were going so they really didn't need to know.
 
hmmm...They told me to turn on course without any Idea about where I was going. I guess there could have just been no other traffic aroud but I find that hard to believe at a fairly busy class C airport in the LA basin.:dunno:
 
might have something to do with the LOA they have w/ approach. it might state in the letter that departures are to be on course when they are switched to the departure controller. has to do with transfer of control.
 
Was this IFR or VFR? If IFR, it means to join whatever V/J/G route you asked for. If VFR, it means that if you said "NE to Fresno", then put the needle on the nose (or a corresponding DR courseline). Don't overthink it, they were being accomodating :p

And for the record, I have had departures (not on flight following or any kind of tracom advisory requirement) where their airspace was clean enough that they just told me this without caring.
 
You took off from a class C and clearance delivery didn't ask for a direction of flight or destination?
 
I landed at KBUR and once I contacted ground that asked what my intentions were. I said I would like to taxi back and depart to KVNY. They said ok standby... then they said "1882S cleared to KVNY, after departure turn on course"....that was it. So when I was ready for takeoff I contacted tower and said " 1882S ready for takeoff, right downwind departure" ...I decided to let tower know what my intentions were just so we were all on the same page and to C.M.A....I was just curious if I could have just taken off and gone any way I wished without advising them???
 
I'm pretty sure that he said he was cleared to take off with a turn on course prior to having told them his destination. He then clarified his intentions prior to taking the runway.

That's how I read the story...
 
I'm pretty sure that he said he was cleared to take off with a turn on course prior to having told them his destination. He then clarified his intentions prior to taking the runway.

That's how I read the story...


He told them he was going to VNY.

Not sure where the confusion was.
 
...after he was cleared to take off with a turn on course.



Me either. :D

I landed at KBUR and once I contacted ground that asked what my intentions were. I said I would like to taxi back and depart to KVNY.

To me it sounds like he informed ground after he exited the runway for the taxi back. Maybe a little clarification from the op will help me.
 
Yeah, you're probably right. I was just re-reading the first couple of posts. Didn't get all the way back down to that one.

:bandit:
 
Steve C got the story right! I just clairified with tower before takeoff so they would know what I was planning on doing....I guess I could have just as easily turned left if I wanted to since they didnt give me a departure direction...
 
PC,

Why would you have turned left? I'm not looking at a chart but from what I have read here, I assume a right turn would be the shortest turn towards your on course heading.

Always make things make sense in your head. For most scenarios, unless stated otherwise, the controller will expect you to do the thing that makes the most sense. In this case, if VNY is to the right, don't turn left just because they didn't specify a direction. If you told ground you were going back to Van Nuys and tower clears you for takeoff and to turn on course, take off and turn direct to Van Nuys or however you planned on getting there. Basically, "turn on course" means to do what you have to do to get on the routing towards your destination.

Greg
 
Steve C got the story right!

That is cool with me (Steve your old avatar worked better when things like this happened.), but op do you mind explaining this part.

I landed at KBUR and once I contacted ground that asked what my intentions were. I said I would like to taxi back and depart to KVNY. They said ok standby... then they said "1882S cleared to KVNY, after departure turn on course"....that was it.
 
That is cool with me (Steve your old avatar worked better when things like this happened.), but op do you mind explaining this part.


Well, basically I landed at KBUR and wanted to taxi back for a departure back to KVNY. Ground gave me my takeoff clearance which stated "cleared to Van Nuys airport, after departure turn on course. Contact tower on ???(118.7 I think) when you are ready to go." I aknowlaged the instruction and then contacted tower when I was ready. I said "Burbank tower, 1882S holding short of runway 8 ready for a right down wind departure to Van Nuys"...The reason I told them what my intentions were, was so if I had misunderstood them they would hopfully say something before I launched... I just wanted to make absolutely sure I wasnt going to get the dreaded "1882S advise when you have a pen to take down a number" speech!:D
 
Maybe you know this but from reading your story it seems you may not. Clearance delivery, ground, and local (tower) all communicate with each other. So if after landing at BUR you told ground you were headed to VNY next, that info was passed on to local even before you called ready for takeoff. So they did know where you were going and your authorization was to turn on course to VNY.
 
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