Narrative:

What does 'cleared on course' actually mean? Departing ewn today off of runway 22 we were cleared to fly the runway heading. After talking to cherry point for a few minutes we were given a climb and 'cleared on course.' we read back the altitude and 'cleared direct widge'; since that was the next fix on V139. Immediately after that we were then told to contact washington center. I asked washington center where they would like us to go. They said; 'standby;' we continued on to widge. Then they cleared us to flo for the rest of our route. Our original filing was ewn.V139.flo... In the past I have taken off of runway 4. We had been given 'cleared left turn on course.' we've selected direct ewn and through normal FMS course scalloping we miss the fix by a couple of miles and joined V139 south of ewn. Today was different as we were on a divergent course with V139 when we were given 'cleared on course.' are we supposed to proceed direct widge? Are we supposed to take a 30 degree intercept? What is cherry point expecting of us? In order to clear up this matter; possible suggestions for clearances could be: 'cleared direct widge'; 'turn ... Degrees left/right and join V139'; 'fly heading ... To join V139'; or anything a little less ambiguous than 'cleared on course.' a search of the fars; aim; and other internet resources shows a lack of agreement between pilots and controllers on this issue. Perhaps it is due to this not being standard phraseology.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: An Air Carrier departing from EWN reported confusion regarding ATC's 'cleared on course' phraseology. The reporter noted the phrase is not standard and leaves room for various interpretations.

Narrative: What does 'cleared on course' actually mean? Departing EWN today off of Runway 22 we were cleared to fly the runway heading. After talking to Cherry Point for a few minutes we were given a climb and 'cleared on course.' We read back the altitude and 'cleared direct WIDGE'; since that was the next fix on V139. Immediately after that we were then told to contact Washington Center. I asked Washington Center where they would like us to go. They said; 'standby;' we continued on to WIDGE. Then they cleared us to FLO for the rest of our route. Our original filing was EWN.V139.FLO... In the past I have taken off of Runway 4. We had been given 'cleared left turn on course.' We've selected direct EWN and through normal FMS course scalloping we miss the fix by a couple of miles and joined V139 south of EWN. Today was different as we were on a divergent course with V139 when we were given 'cleared on course.' Are we supposed to proceed direct WIDGE? Are we supposed to take a 30 degree intercept? What is Cherry Point expecting of us? In order to clear up this matter; possible suggestions for clearances could be: 'cleared direct WIDGE'; 'turn ... degrees left/right and join V139'; 'fly heading ... to join V139'; or anything a little less ambiguous than 'cleared on course.' A search of the FARs; AIM; and other internet resources shows a lack of agreement between pilots and controllers on this issue. Perhaps it is due to this not being standard phraseology.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.