Unstable Approach with a Late Runway Change
You are cleared for a visual approach to runway 09 with a 12 kt tailwind component, but at 4 nm ATC changes you to runway 27. You are high and fast: 1,800 ft at 4 nm, 190 kt indicated, flaps 15. The runway is 2,400 m long and dry. Your captain says 'we can make it' and reaches for the speed brake. You have 90 seconds to touchdown. The company SOP requires a stabilised approach by 1,000 ft in IMC or 500 ft in VMC, and you are in VMC. The tower reports wind 270/18 gusting 28.
1. Assess the stabilised-approach criteria and decide whether to continue.
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The approach is not stabilised: at 4 nm you are at 1,800 ft (should be about 1,200 ft on a 3-degree path), 190 kt is well above the target approach speed, and flaps 15 is not the landing configuration. The tailwind-to-headwind change and gusts to 28 kt add energy and reduce the margin. Continuing would require a steep, fast descent with speed brake, which increases the risk of a long landing, a hard landing, or a runway excursion. The SOP stabilisation gate is 500 ft in VMC; you are already inside the point where a stable approach should be established. The captain's 'we can make it' is an authority gradient and plan-continuation bias. The correct decision is to go around, reconfigure, and re-approach, or request a different runway with a more favourable wind.
2. How would you communicate the go-around to the captain without undermining authority?
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Use a clear, assertive statement framed around safety and SOP: 'I am not comfortable with this approach; we are high and fast and outside stabilisation criteria. I recommend a go-around.' Use the aircraft's callouts and the SOP as the objective reference rather than personal opinion. If the captain hesitates, repeat the concern and state the intended action: 'I am going around.' Assertiveness is not insubordination; it is a required crew competency. After landing, debrief the event using a non-punitive approach, focusing on the decision point and the conditions that led to the late runway change. The aim is to preserve the working relationship while ensuring the safety outcome.