Missed Approach Decision-Making: When to Go Around and How

When is a missed approach required under 14 CFR 91.175(e)?

A missed approach is legally required whenever the conditions of 14 CFR 91.175(e) are triggered. The regulation states that each pilot — except military aircraft of the United States — shall immediately execute an appropriate missed approach procedure when:

• Operating under 91.175(c) and the requirements of that paragraph are not met when the aircraft is being operated below MDA; or upon arrival at the missed approach point, including a DA/DH where specified, and at any time after that until touchdown.
• During a circling approach, whenever an identifiable part of the airport is not distinctly visible at or above MDA — unless the loss of visual contact results only from a normal bank of the aircraft.

The word "immediately" is not rhetorical. The FAA does not build in a grace period for you to hunt for the runway or wait to see if conditions improve. The moment the conditions in 91.175(c) are not satisfied at the trigger point, the missed approach has begun. Continuing below minimums without the required visual references is a violation — and statistically, one of the most reliably fatal decisions in IFR flying.

What visual references are required before you can continue below DA or MDA?

The go/no-go decision is governed by 14 CFR 91.175(c), which establishes three simultaneous conditions that must all be met to continue an approach below DA or MDA:

• The aircraft is continuously in a position from which a descent to a landing on the intended runway can be made at a normal rate of descent using normal maneuvers.
• The flight visibility is not less than the visibility prescribed in the standard instrument approach being used.
• At least one of the specified visual references is distinctly visible and identifiable to the pilot.

That third condition — the visual references list — is the one candidates most often need to recite precisely for a DPE. Under 91.175(c)(3), at least one of the following must be distinctly visible:

One critical nuance: seeing the approach lights alone only permits descent to 100 feet above the touchdown zone elevation (TDZE). To descend below 100 feet AGL, you must also have the runway environment — specifically the runway, threshold, or touchdown zone — in sight. Approach lights are not a ticket to touchdown.

All three conditions of 91.175(c) must be continuously met from DA/MDA through touchdown. Losing any one of them — including flight visibility dropping below published minimums after you've already started descending — requires an immediate missed approach.

How do you identify the missed approach point?

The missed approach point (MAP) is defined differently depending on the type of approach, and knowing the distinction is foundational to legal IFR operations.

Precision approaches (ILS, GLS, LPV with DA): The MAP coincides with the Decision Altitude or Decision Height. You reach the DA on the glideslope — typically expressed as a barometric altitude above MSL — and make your go/no-go decision at that exact moment. If the visual references of 91.175(c) are not met, the missed approach begins immediately. You do not level off at the DA; you transition directly to the missed approach climb. The Instrument Procedures Handbook (FAA-H-8083-16B) distinguishes DA from DH: DA is referenced to MSL, DH to the height above the highest runway elevation in the touchdown zone. Both serve the same regulatory function.

Non-precision approaches (VOR, LOC, NDB, LNAV without vertical guidance): The MAP is a geographic fix — typically a navaid, a waypoint, or a timing point from the FAF — published on the approach chart. You descend to the MDA and then fly level at or above that altitude until reaching the MAP. At the MAP, if you do not have the required visual references, the missed approach begins. Unlike a precision approach, you may be flying level at the MDA for a period of time before reaching the MAP. This creates a different decision environment: you have time to scan for visual references, but you must not descend below the MDA while doing so.

Advisory vertical guidance (LNAV+V, LNAV/VNAV, LP+V): These approaches publish a DA and provide vertical guidance, but the approach may have published minima as LNAV or LNAV/VNAV. Always check the approach minima row you qualify for and identify your MAP accordingly.

How do you execute the missed approach — the 5-T sequence?

The standard missed approach execution follows a memory item sequence that keeps you from fixating on one task while the aircraft departs controlled flight. A widely taught framework is the 5-T sequence, adapted from the Instrument Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-15B):

1. 1
   Thrust — Apply full power simultaneously with the missed approach decision. Do not wait to establish a visual picture. Power comes first.
2. 2
   Twist — Set the missed approach heading or course in your CDI, HSI, or autopilot heading bug. Reference the published missed approach procedure on the approach chart.
3. 3
   Track — Fly the published missed approach course. If the missed approach requires a climbing turn, do not begin the turn until a positive rate of climb is established and at or above the DA/MDA — unless charted otherwise.
4. 4
   Talk — Notify ATC. "Missed approach" is sufficient; ATC knows what that means. State your intentions if you have them, but do not delay power application or aircraft control to talk first.
5. 5
   Trim — Adjust pitch trim for the climb configuration and clean up the aircraft: retract flaps on schedule per the POH, retract gear after positive rate (if applicable). Rushed flap retraction at low altitude in IMC is a significant hazard.

The order matters. Power and aircraft control always precede communication. An ATC call that delays power application by 3 seconds at 200 feet AGL in IMC is not worth making.

A practical note on the published missed approach procedure: you are expected to follow it unless ATC issues a different clearance. The published procedure keeps you in protected airspace. Deviating from it without ATC coordination puts you potentially outside obstacle clearance guarantees.

What is the difference between a published and an ATC-assigned missed approach?

The published missed approach procedure is what appears on the approach chart — a specific initial climb altitude, heading or course, and routing to a holding fix or next clearance point. You are expected to fly it unless ATC assigns something different.

ATC may issue a different missed approach clearance either before or after you report going missed. Common scenarios include:

• ATC clears you direct to a fix that differs from the published missed approach holding fix — this is normal in a busy terminal environment.
• ATC assigns a specific heading and altitude as part of radar vectors for a subsequent approach.
• ATC clears you for an immediate second approach — in which case you fly the published missed approach until re-established on the new approach course, unless ATC provides specific guidance otherwise.

One regulatory nuance: if ATC issues a missed approach clearance before you reach the MAP — for example, "Cessna 45X, execute missed approach, runway not available" — you are not required to wait until the MAP to comply with that clearance. However, the visual reference requirements of 91.175(c) govern descent below DA/MDA independently of what ATC says. If you receive a missed approach clearance but still have all required visual references and are in a position to land, you may continue. Conversely, if you do not have the required visual references, you must go missed regardless of what ATC says.

How do you communicate with ATC during a missed approach?

The AIM (paragraph 5-4-21) addresses missed approach communication. The standard phraseology is straightforward: report "missed approach" to ATC. Do not elaborate initially — ATC will provide further instructions or clearance.

The communication sequence should be:

1. 1
   Initiate the missed approach (power, pitch, configure) — aircraft control first.
2. 2
   Once positive rate established and aircraft under control, key the mic: "[Callsign], missed approach."
3. 3
   State your intentions if not covered by the published procedure: "[Callsign], missed approach, request vectors for the ILS 28L" or "[Callsign], missed approach, holding as published."
4. 4
   ATC will issue further clearance — radar vectors, re-sequencing, or clearance to an alternate. Read back altitude assignments and clearances.

In IMC during the initial climb, workload is high. Trim the aircraft, verify the climb is established, then talk. The FAA Instrument Procedures Handbook notes that failure to declare a missed approach to ATC promptly can result in traffic conflicts, particularly when other aircraft are on the same approach behind you. Report as soon as the aircraft is under control.

If you lose communications during a missed approach, 14 CFR 91.185 applies. Squawk 7600, fly the expected or filed routing, and proceed to your alternate if the destination remains below minimums.

What decision-making patterns distinguish disciplined IFR pilots?

The technical procedure is relatively straightforward. The harder problem is the decision-making environment that surrounds it. Two patterns account for the majority of continued-flight-into-IMC accidents on approach.

Pattern 1 — The "we're so close" fallacy. Descending through 500 feet AGL in IMC with no visual references, a pilot continues because the runway is "right there" — the airport is X miles ahead, the GPS is on centerline, and breaking off now feels like defeat. This thinking has a specific name in human factors research: plan continuation bias. The approach is almost done, and the sunk cost of having flown it — the fuel, the time, the workload — makes the missed approach feel disproportionately costly. It is not. What 91.175(e) demands is not a suggestion to consider going missed. It is a command.

Pattern 2 — The unstabilized approach continued to minimums. AC 91-79A provides stabilized approach criteria that the FAA uses as the industry standard reference. For instrument approaches, a stabilized approach requires that by 1,000 feet AGL in IMC (500 feet AGL in VMC), the aircraft is on the correct flight path, configured for landing, at the target approach speed within ±10 knots, with a stable descent rate not exceeding approximately 1,000 fpm. An approach that is not stabilized at those gates should be abandoned — not because a rule requires it, but because continuing an unstabilized approach statistically leads to runway excursions, hard landings, and loss of control. The go-around from 1,000 feet AGL is far safer than the one from 50 feet.

The professional standard — taught in airline operations and increasingly in GA training — is the briefed go-around decision: before the approach, brief specific conditions that will trigger a go-around, and commit to that brief. "If I am not stabilized by 1,000 feet, I will go missed." Saying it aloud before the approach makes it a plan, not a reaction.

How does a circling approach missed approach differ?

A circling approach missed approach is operationally more complex than a straight-in missed approach. The regulatory trigger is different, the geometry is unfamiliar, and the aircraft may be in an unusual position relative to the published missed approach course when the missed approach begins.

Under 14 CFR 91.175(e)(2), the circling missed approach is required whenever an identifiable part of the airport is not distinctly visible at or above MDA — except when that loss of visual contact results only from a normal bank of the aircraft in the circling turn. If you lose sight of the airport in IMC during the circling maneuver, the missed approach begins immediately.

The execution differs from a straight-in:

1. 1
   Apply full power and establish a positive rate of climb immediately.
2. 2
   Turn toward the landing runway — this keeps you within the protected circling area, which is drawn around the airport. Turning away from the airport may put you outside obstacle clearance protection.
3. 3
   Climb on the runway heading or the most direct path back to the missed approach fix. The Instrument Procedures Handbook specifies that you should make a climbing turn toward the runway first, then when established on the missed approach heading, proceed to the fix.
4. 4
   Once at or above the missed approach altitude, navigate to the published missed approach fix and hold as instructed.

Circling approach missed approaches account for a disproportionate share of approach accidents because pilots attempt them at night, in deteriorating conditions, and at low altitudes that leave no margin. The circling MDA is already above the straight-in DA for most approaches — the protection margins are narrower, and disorientation in the circling turn is a genuine hazard. If circling conditions are marginal, brief the missed approach before beginning the circle, and commit to executing it without hesitation.

What scenarios does the DPE test on the missed approach?

DPEs test missed approach decision-making at several points during the instrument checkride:

DPEs also commonly ask oral questions that require you to recite the 91.175(c) visual references list. Memorize the list and be able to distinguish which references permit descent all the way to landing versus which require additional visual contact.

What ACS tolerances apply during the missed approach?

The FAA Instrument Rating ACS (FAA-S-ACS-8C) establishes performance standards for the missed approach skill elements. These are the tolerances the DPE applies when evaluating your execution:

The +100/-0 altitude tolerance on the initial missed approach altitude deserves emphasis. You must not climb through the assigned altitude, and you must not undershoot it. In practice, the DPE is watching for three things: that you establish a positive climb immediately, that you track the correct course or heading, and that you level off at the assigned altitude without busting it in either direction.

This article was researched from FAA primary sources (14 CFR 91.175 via Cornell LII, AIM 5-4-21, AC 91-79A, Instrument Procedures Handbook FAA-H-8083-16B, Instrument Flying Handbook FAA-H-8083-15B, and Instrument Rating ACS FAA-S-ACS-8C) and citing current regulations — drafted by MockDPE. Last updated: May 2026. If you spot an inaccuracy, email corrections@mockdpe.org.