Meaning of ATC flashing white signal

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Erturk Kocalar

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airturk
Student pilot here. If ATC sends me the flashing white light signal, what should I do?
All document says the same thing ("return to starting point on airport"). I am not clear what this means though.​

Do I taxi back to my initial spot I called ground, or back to the runway hold spot I called tower?
Am I allowed to use any taxiways?

Thank you very much,
 
The Flashing White Light! Basically you'd taxi back to where you started from, the ramp, your hangar, your tie down spot, etc.


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Thanks for the explanation. Clear now.

To add to midlifeflyer's question, is it used after landing?
 
midlifeflyer said:
Mark, in what types of situations is it used?
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Could be for any reason, like your wife has arrived :eek: but you mistress :blowingkisses: is aboard and wife wants you to return!

Could be radio problem with your plane, fuel cap left off, tie down rope still attached to tail etc.

Hardly ever used light gun when I worked ATC and never a flashing white FWIW.
 
My favorite is the red/green alternating - exercise extreme caution.. would I not already be doing that if I was NORDO at a towered airport?
 
Erturk Kocalar said:
Thanks for the explanation. Clear now.

To add to midlifeflyer's question, is it used after landing?
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So after landing, you really expect the tower to want you to "return to starting point on airport"? You just got there!!! Your starting point would be on the runway where you touched down!!!!
 
SkyDog58 said:
So after landing, you really expect the tower to want you to "return to starting point on airport"? You just got there!!! Your starting point would be on the runway where you touched down!!!!
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No no! You'd have to takeoff and fly back to your departure airport. Ghesh...
 
so do you have to go all the way back to your first flight lesson?
 
mscard88 said:
No no! You'd have to takeoff and fly back to your departure airport. Ghesh...
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No no!! A tower can only control its airport, so the "return to starting point on airport" can only refer to that airport. Therefore, if after landing, an aircraft gets the flashing white, it would have to return to its starting point on that airport. How can you not understand this?
 
SkyDog58 said:
No no!! A tower can only control its airport, so the "return to starting point on airport" can only refer to that airport. Therefore, if after landing, an aircraft gets the flashing white, it would have to return to its starting point on that airport. How can you not understand this?
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Silly man. Towers coordinate with other towers. Therefore you go back from where you came.
 
mscard88 said:
Silly man. Towers coordinate with other towers. Therefore you go back from where you came.
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But if you are NORDO, how does the tower know where you came from? You certainly can't tell them.

Silly man? That's funny coming from the guy with Gump as his avatar.
 
SkyDog58 said:
No no!! A tower can only control its airport, so the "return to starting point on airport" can only refer to that airport. Therefore, if after landing, an aircraft gets the flashing white, it would have to return to its starting point on that airport. How can you not understand this?
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Taxi to the runway touchdown zone?
 
SkyDog58 said:
But if you are NORDO, how does the tower know where you came from? You certainly can't tell them.

Silly man? That's funny coming from the guy with Gump as his avatar.
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Tower knows all. Big brother and all that ya know.
 
Matthew said:
Wouldn't that call for the alternating red and green?
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Well see, the wife has probably persuaded the tower to flash the white light thinking you won't know she and her attorney are waiting at your hangar for you.

But yeah, if you had a buddy that was a controller in the tower, you'd hopefully get that light signal instead.
 
OP may have gone back to the time when he didn’t discover POA


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SkyDog58 said:
But if you are NORDO, how does the tower know where you came from? You certainly can't tell them...
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The gummint knows everything.
But if they privatize ATC this WILL be a problem. :eek:
 
Erturk Kocalar said:
Do I taxi back to my initial spot I called ground, or back to the runway hold spot I called tower?
Am I allowed to use any taxiways?
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Don’t worry about this. A flashing white light will never happen to you as an actual pilot. It only matters on the knowledge test, and for that purpose just remember the few words written about it in your exam-prep book.

Edit: and why does your PoA profile say “This member limits who may view their full profile.” ?
 
When studying for various FAA exams, I used to create different scenarios to remember the light signals. The one I came up with for the flashing white light is if you lose radios after taxing for departure. Say you do your run-up and then contact tower for clearance to takeoff and the radios fail. I squawk 7600 and the tower flashes me two white lights so I am cleared to taxi back to where I came from so I can try to get my radios fixed.
 
I suspect the meaning is pretty much "Get out of the movement area."
 
It's like when they flash the lights in the bar at closing time. ATC is basically telling you, "You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here" :)
 
Are the lights battery powered so they could be used in the event of a power failure in the tower, or...?
 
The old style light signals were monsters that were hung on a cable and 110 powered. I noticed a few years back when I was in the DCA tower (one of the few that doesn't have the cheezy walnut formica counters) that they had a lighter, handheld, rechargeable unit that sits in the charger when not in use.
 
I bet Henry Ford didn't write "your" right!
 
Palmpilot said:
I bet that substituting "your" for "you're" is predominantly a 21st century phenomenon! :eek:
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I feel so happy helping to fund the hundred of billions we've spent on education in this country.
 
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