Narrative:

Due to a runway and some taxiway closures we were instructed to back-taxi on the takeoff runway and execute a 180 and call tower when ready to takeoff. Looking at the jeppesen airport (10-9) page it was not clear where to make the 180 turn. The captain made the turn close to the approach end of [the] runway and we began the takeoff roll. During the takeoff roll (somewhere near 80kts) we received an aural warning: 'short runway'. The actual runway length of [the] runway is [shorter]. We knew that it was a shorter than normal runway; and that we had lost some runway due to the 180 maneuver. We elected not to reject the takeoff. The long runway was closed. Additional taxiway closures forced us to back-taxi into position. When we looked at the 10-9 page it was unclear that there was an area prior to the [runway] threshold that we could have used to make the 180 turn and thus use all the available runway. This taxi circle was visible on the moving map portion of the application; but only if you were fully zoomed in. Even then; the red '[runway]' icon was over the top of this taxi circle obstructing it from view. Also; there was some language barrier as the ground and tower controllers were not easy to understand. I had to ask them to repeat the taxi instructions more slowly so they could be understood better. [Suggest] first; fix the 10-9 jeppesen page. It should be very clear where taxi lines are painted; especially if you have to do a maneuver that you seldom do. Tower or ground could have told us that there was an area prior to the threshold that we could have used to turn around more efficiently. We as a crew could have stopped what we were doing and asked more questions of ourselves and ground/tower controllers. Notes could be added to our company airport reference pages to point out this issue. ATIS could be more plain language than just taxi/runway closures; e.g.; 'plan to back-taxi and execute a 180 turn prior to the runway threshold.' crews could be trained better on the 180 maneuver (more frequently). Aerial or satellite photos of the area to be used to execute the 180 could be provided to crews.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A Widebody Transport First Officer reported that during a back-taxi on the takeoff runway it was not clear where to make the 180 turn.

Narrative: Due to a runway and some taxiway closures we were instructed to back-taxi on the takeoff runway and execute a 180 and call tower when ready to takeoff. Looking at the Jeppesen airport (10-9) page it was not clear where to make the 180 turn. The Captain made the turn close to the approach end of [the] Runway and we began the takeoff roll. During the takeoff roll (somewhere near 80kts) we received an aural warning: 'Short Runway'. The actual runway length of [the] Runway is [shorter]. We knew that it was a shorter than normal runway; and that we had lost some runway due to the 180 maneuver. We elected not to reject the takeoff. The long runway was closed. Additional taxiway closures forced us to back-taxi into position. When we looked at the 10-9 page it was unclear that there was an area prior to the [Runway] threshold that we could have used to make the 180 turn and thus use all the available runway. This taxi circle was visible on the moving map portion of the application; but only if you were fully zoomed in. Even then; the red '[Runway]' icon was over the top of this taxi circle obstructing it from view. Also; there was some language barrier as the ground and tower controllers were not easy to understand. I had to ask them to repeat the taxi instructions more slowly so they could be understood better. [Suggest] first; fix the 10-9 Jeppesen page. It should be very clear where taxi lines are painted; especially if you have to do a maneuver that you seldom do. Tower or ground could have told us that there was an area prior to the threshold that we could have used to turn around more efficiently. We as a crew could have stopped what we were doing and asked more questions of ourselves and ground/tower controllers. Notes could be added to our company airport reference pages to point out this issue. ATIS could be more plain language than just taxi/runway closures; e.g.; 'Plan to back-taxi and execute a 180 turn prior to the runway threshold.' Crews could be trained better on the 180 maneuver (more frequently). Aerial or satellite photos of the area to be used to execute the 180 could be provided to crews.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.