Definition
Every published instrument approach has an accompanying missed approach procedure that defines the safe escape path from the approach end. The procedure is mandatory: when the pilot reaches the Missed Approach Point (MAP) without the required visual references in sight, or determines the approach cannot be safely continued for any reason, the missed approach must be executed exactly as published unless ATC issues alternate instructions.
The regulatory triggers for executing a missed approach (FAA §91.175(c)): visibility less than the published minimum at the MAP, the runway environment not distinctly visible, the aircraft not in a position from which a safe landing can be made using normal maneuvers and a normal rate of descent. Any one of those triggers requires the missed approach. The decision must be made at or before the MAP / Decision Altitude (DA) / Minimum Descent Altitude (MDA) — once past those points, continuing is a regulatory deviation.
A standard missed approach procedure includes: an immediate climbing segment (often "climb to X feet" with a published climb gradient — typically 200 ft/NM minimum), a turning segment ("turn LEFT direct to ABC VOR"), a holding segment ("hold at ABC VOR" — the missed approach holding fix), and a published holding pattern at that fix. Some procedures specify altitude restrictions or speed restrictions during the climb. RNAV missed approaches use waypoint-defined paths instead of ground-based fixes.
The execution sequence: at the MAP without runway in sight, the pilot calls "going around" or "missed approach," simultaneously applying full power, configuring for climb (flaps to takeoff position, gear up after positive rate, retrim), and beginning the published track. ATC is notified of the missed approach. The aircraft enters the missed approach hold, where the pilot can take stock of options: re-attempt the approach, divert to alternate, request a different approach. Single-engine missed approach in twins is a high-workload scenario specifically trained because climb gradient may be marginal at MTOW with one engine inoperative.
The operational reality: most pilots execute very few real missed approaches across a career — visibility minimums are usually met or the flight is cancelled before launch. But when the missed approach is needed, the pilot must execute reflexively. Recurrent training, type-rating proficiency checks, and IPCs all include missed-approach demonstrations specifically to keep the procedure proficient against the rare-but-critical event.
Why It Matters for Flight Schools
For instrument training, the missed approach is one of the highest-failure-rate items on practical and skill tests. The decision-point discipline (going around at minimums when uncertain, rather than continuing the approach hoping the runway will appear) requires a deliberate, drilled-in habit — pilots who haven't internalized it default to continuing the approach, sometimes with fatal results.
The second teaching point is the 'go-around immediately' reflex. A common student error is to continue the approach for several seconds past the MAP "to see if the runway appears," then execute the missed approach late and below minimums. The correct technique is decision at or before the MAP, not after. Schools that grade students rigorously on missed-approach decision timing — measured by the lesson-grading data — produce graduates who carry the discipline to the line.
How Aviatize Handles This
Aviatize's training management module structures missed-approach proficiency as a measurable competency element. Each instrument approach lesson grades the missed approach (when flown) against CBTA observable behaviors: "Application of Procedures" (correct procedural execution), "Problem Solving and Decision Making" (timely missed-approach decision at MAP), "Workload Management" (managing flight path, communication, and configuration changes simultaneously), and "Aircraft Flight Path Management — Manual Control" (climb gradient and lateral navigation).
Programme-wide reporting captures the rate at which students execute go-arounds during training (a healthy training programme intentionally produces missed-approach situations to develop the skill) and the timing accuracy of the decision (early or late relative to MAP). The data supports both individual remediation and instructor calibration on a measurable basis.