2 February 2026
‘Hold short’. What does that mean to you as the pilot of an aircraft taxying towards the runway being given that instruction by the tower?
It’s not an idle thought. The CAA has seen fit to highlight an Occurrences report where the phrase ‘hold short of the runway’ led to an unintended runway incursion and a go‑around by another aircraft.
“For this incident the pilot mis-interpreted instructions issued by the tower, although the layout of the taxiway/runway at this specific airfield may have been contributory factors in causing an element of confusion for the pilot,” says the report.
“Having completed their power checks at the holding point the pilot advised the tower they were ready for departure. The tower responded with the instruction to ‘hold short of the runway’ due to traffic established in the circuit.
“However, the pilot interpreted this as an instruction to hold short of the threshold and taxied to the portion of runway promulgated as not suitable for take-off or landing. Consequently, the aircraft was now located in a position that it infringed the runway protected area resulting in the pilot of another aircraft established on final approach electing to fly a go-around.
“With the aircraft effectively lined up on the runway, contrary totower instructions and causing an inbound aircraft to abort its approach, the controller stated to the pilot that they did not ask them to line up and thus, due to the safety implications an MOR was submitted.”
However, it wasn’t a simple case of a pilot not sticking to instructions, and the CAA’s Subject Matter Expert (SME) reviewed the incident.
The SME wanted to ascertain whether the pilot thought the controller used non-standard phraseology or was there confusion over the airfield taxiway signage etc?
It was once the pilot had taxied to the holding point that the problem occurred, having been instructed to ‘hold short of the runway’, continues the review.
“As outlined in CAP413, within the section on Standard Words and Phrases, a ‘hold short’ is defined as ‘only used in limited circumstances where no defined point exists (e.g., where there is not a suitably located holding point).’
“However, at the airfield this incident occurred there is a designated holding point for the Runway. Consequently, based upon this rationale the pilot thought they had been issued with an instruction to taxi beyond the holding point and (literally) hold short of the runway.”
Having assessed the MOR, pilot report and studied the airfield plate, the SME determined that the instruction to ‘hold short of the runway’ may ultimately have been confusing.
Fortunately the pilot, ‘demonstrated a positive attitude’ – CAA-speak – and undertook a ground school session with a Flight Instructor at the airfield concerned. This session focussed upon reviewing the incident, analysing pilot action and identifying the mistake.
As a result, the CAA determined that any further regulatory action would be inappropriate. The MOR was subsequently closed with a letter containing guidance and an explanation regarding how the runway protected surface area is designated.
