The term 'final' may have a correct definition according to the AIM, but
why would the controller care whether you fly a straight-final or an
angled-final unless there is a traffic conflict? In that case, the
controller should have issued a traffic alert and to maintain visual
separation. In the absence of any such alert, I can only assume that the
controller was just having a bad day.






Ron Rosenfeld wrote in
:

On Mon, 9 Aug 2004 22:15:54 GMT, "Jim Cummiskey"
wrote:

I fly directly towards the numbers. My heading was approximately 240
(hence, I'm ~30 deg off of the extended centerline).

At 5 miles from the airport (still offset from the centerline), I
report "5 mile final." She questions my position and gets all snippy
(indeed, darn right rude) that I am "not on final" since I am not on
the extended centerline. She patronizingly cautions me to be "careful
about this."

I would NOT report five mile *final* unless I were on the extended
centerline. And if I were in the air, and someone reported five mile
final, I would be looking for the a/c along the extended centerline --
not 2.5-3 miles North of the extended centerline.

In your situation, I would either have done a dog leg to join the
extended centerline five miles out, or requested a base entry.


--ron