Coupled Approach

(See also Autoland Approach) A coupled approach is an instrument approach performed by the aircraft autopilot which is receiving position information and/or steering commands from onboard navigation equipment. In general, coupled nonprecision approaches must be discontinued and flown manually at altitudes lower than 50 feet below the minimum descent altitude, and coupled precision approaches must be flown manually below 50 feet ALG. Note: Coupled and autoland approaches are flown in Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and Instrument Flight Rules (IFR). It is common for carriers to require their crews to fly coupled approaches and autoland approaches (if certified) when the weather conditions are less than approximately 4,000 Runway Visual Range (RVR). (FAA4)