TNCM — Operation Guide for Pilots
TNCM may seem like a simple airport, but when traffic increases, the operation can become quite demanding. The single runway and the need to take a back-taxi after a few landings make every second of runway occupancy matters.
The main objective of this guide is to help both pilots and drivers maintain a fast, orderly and safe flow.
The Goal?
Keep traffic moving quickly, orderly and safely, without generating unnecessary workload.
Ground Frequency
- PUSHBACK — Avoid requesting it repeatedly
One of the most common and frequent problems during sessions with high traffic are repeated messages requesting pushback.
For example:
Pilot: Judgement 9, ready for pushback.
ATC: Judgement 9, Hold position.
And in less than a minute later:
Pilot: Judgement 9, ready for pushback
ATC: Judgement 9, Hold position.
And again:
Pilot: Pushback?
Avoid this.
If ATC has strongly indicated to you a:
“Hold position.”
Just wait.
It is not necessary to request pushback every few seconds. Since the controller already knows that you are waiting and resending the same message will not make the pushback authorized faster.
In TNCM, a HOLD POSITION can be used on the ground near the doors when one aircraft is rolling while another performs pushback, in order to avoid conflicts between both movements.
These messages may seem small, but when there are many planes doing the same, the frequency begins to fill with repeated requests and the Ground/Tower workload increases.
The right thing
Request pushback once.
If you receive:
“Hold position.”
Maintain your position and wait for ATC to assist you.
If a reasonable amount of time passes and you consider that there may be a problem, then you can call back appropriately. But it is not necessary to request it again every 20–40 seconds.
A hold doesn’t mean that ATC forgot about you.
It can mean that there is an arrival, a departure, another pushback or some other movement that has priority at that time.
TOWER — Departures and LUAW
One of the biggest sources of time loss in TNCM is the behavior of aircraft after receiving Line Up and Wait (LUAW).
When a pilot receives:
“Judgment 9, Line up and wait runway 10.”
Must begin to align with the track efficiently and continuously.
Avoid entering the track at 2–5 kt
It is quite common to see pilots who receive LUAW and begin to enter the track extremely slowly.
The plane ends up advancing at approximately 2–5 kt, takes too long to reach the correct position and keeps the runway busy for longer than necessary.
In an airport with a single runway and heavy traffic, those seconds accumulate.
If Tower is prioritizing fast exits, the pilot must help the flow.
It does not mean accelerating in an unsafe way or ignoring the limitations of the aircraft.
It means:
Roll towards the runway decisively, align correctly and be ready for take-off authorization.
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LUAW - What should the pilot do or what should I do as a pilot?
When you receive LUAW:
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Verify that you understood the clue.
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Enter the track without unnecessary delay.
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Align the plane quickly.
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Stop at the corresponding position.
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Keep an eye on Tower.
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Do not start takeoff until you receive the corresponding authorization.
Example:
Tower: Judgement 9, runway 10, line up and wait.”
Pilot: Line up and wait runway 10, Judgement 9.
The goal of this is for the plane to reach the waiting position quickly, and not for a slow taxi to make on the runway.
LUAW AND FAST DEPARTURES — Keep The Flow
When Tower uses LUAW, it usually does so to have an aircraft already positioned and ready to leave, allowing you to quickly take advantage of a window among other traffic.
Therefore, once you receive:
“Judgement 9, Cleared for takeoff runway 10”
Oh in the event that the separation is lost, and you are instructed to:
Judgement 9, Wind XXX at XX, cleared for immediately take off immediately execute it as quickly as possible, as this can still generate a G/A or as we normally know it a Go Around something that still becomes a workload
You are expected to start the take-off race without unnecessary delay.
The problem is not the LUAW, but the delay after authorization
In some sessions it has been observed that, after receiving take-off authorization, some drivers remain stopped for too long before starting the race.
Instead of starting takeoff quickly, it can take 20–30 seconds from authorization until they finally start moving.
This directly affects the flow.
If Tower is trying to work:
Exit 1 → Exit 2 → Exit 3
A delay of 30 seconds in a single aircraft may be enough to miss the opportunity to take out one or even more additional aircraft, depending on the situation.
Once authorized, start the take-off
If you are ready and receive authorization:
Judgement 9, runway 10, cleared for takeoff.
Don’t stay stopped for several seconds preparing the plane.
If your take-off procedure in the simulator requires applying power and releasing brakes, do it quickly and normally.
For example, if your technique consists of applying approximately 50% power, stabilizing and releasing brakes, that preparation can be done in a matter of seconds, not in 20–30 seconds.
It’s not about accelerating more than the safe. It is about eliminating a delay that does not contribute anything.
Why does 30 seconds matter so much?
Because Tower is not working only with the plane in front of it.
He is planning a complete sequence of outings.
For example:
AAL123 — take off
DAL456 — next
UAL789 — next
If AAL123 takes an additional 30 seconds to start its race, the entire sequence moves.
And while a plane remains stopped:
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The next one can’t take advantage of the exit.
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Tower has to wait longer.
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The line of exits increases.
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Approach may have to adjust arrivals.
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The frequency may begin to fill up.
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Track capacity is lost.
Therefore, a small individual delay can become a flow problem for the entire airport.
IMPORTANT
This does not mean that you must start take-off before receiving authorization.
Nor does it mean that you should perform unsafe procedures or skip the necessary checks.
The idea is very simple:
If you are already in position, you are prepared and Tower authorizes you to take off, do not delay unnecessarily to start the race.
In Princess Juliana (TNCM), where they seek to maintain a sequence of quick exits, those seconds really count.
In a nutshell
LUAW: come in and get ready.
Takeoff clearance: start the race without unnecessary delay.
30 seconds of waiting after authorization = 30 seconds that Tower loses to continue the sequence.
If Tower is working “exit → exit → exit”, it helps to maintain that rhythm.
The back-taxi problem
Here is one of the most important features of TNCM.
After landing, depending on the available departure and Tower instructions, an aircraft may need to take a back-taxi.
This means that the plane continues to occupy the runway as it turns and returns through it.
Therefore:
A plane that is doing back-taxi is still track traffic.
It should not be considered simply as a plane that has “already landed.”
After the touchdown:
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Decelerates efficiently.
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Follow all Tower instructions to the letter.
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If back-taxi is required, be prepared to do so immediately when you are authorized.
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Do not leave the track in an improvised way.
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Keep a constant listening to the frequency.
If Tower indicates:
“Judgement 9 Back-taxi runway 10, contact ground when off the runway, please expedite”
The pilot must understand that the operation still affects the following arrivals and departures.
One of the particularities of TNCM is the use of the back-taxi.
After landing, it may be necessary to turn and return to the runway in order to leave it.
This is where the area shown in the letter is especially important.
Use the allowed area for the turn
When Tower tells you back-taxi, it is not necessary to automatically assume that you must get to the end of the track.
The map shows the area where the turn can be made to return to the track.
Therefore, when possible and ATC indicates it:
Land → slow down → turn in the allowed area → return by the runway → abandon as soon as possible.
This considerably reduces the time you stay occupying the RWY.
Don’t go to the end of the RWY unnecessarily
This point is especially important when there is a lot of traffic.
If a plane lands and continues to the end of the runway before starting your back-taxi, you will be occupying the runway for longer.
In the meantime you can be waiting:
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An exit.
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Another plane in LUAW.
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Another arrival.
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A row of aircraft behind in approach.
Therefore, when the back-taxi is authorized and the situation allows it, use the allowed turn zone and return to the track as soon as possible.
It is not about inventing a way out or making a turn where it does not correspond.
For the tower the back-taxi must be considered before authorizing the landing, especially when there is traffic behind.
Example:
Situation
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A320 at the end.
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B737 waiting to leave.
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Another B737 behind the approaching A320.
The A320 lands and needs back-taxi.
If Tower immediately authorizes the next plane to land without considering how long it will take for the A320 to clear the runway, it may end up accumulating traffic unnecessarily.
Therefore, Tower must think of several moves in advance.
Key question:
When will the track really be free?
No:
Has it touched land yet?
But:
When will you be off the track and available for the next move?
That difference is fundamental in TNCM.
PRIORITY: MAINTAIN FLOW
When there is an exit line, Tower may need to prioritize a quick exit before allowing the arrivals queue to continue getting too close.
This does not mean that arrivals are ignored.
It means that Tower must find the right time to insert an output without creating conflicts or blocking the track.
For example:
Arrival → departure → arrival → departure
Can be much more efficient than:
Arrival → arrival → arrival → departure
Of course this if the conditions allow an exit between arrivals.
How to help the ATC?
In a lot of heavy traffic, pilots are also part of the system.
Small individual delays can become large delays when they are repeated many times.
Helps flow:
- Read and execute the instructions quickly.
- Maintain a reasonable taxi speed.
- Get ready for LUAW before receiving it.
- Make sure you don’t take unnecessary time to line up.
- Have the cards/routes ready.
- Constantly listen to the frequency.
- If you need clarification, ask immediately.
- After landing, quickly follow Tower’s instructions.
- Avoid all this:
- Roll at 2–5 kt without need.
- Stay stopped waiting for instructions that have already been given.
- Make back-taxi without authorization.
- Change plan on your own initiative.
- Ignore the traffic that comes behind.
- Occupy the track longer than necessary.
Princess Juliana 
The goal is not simply to move planes.
The goal is to get that:
Arrivals enter → land → clear quickly → departures take off → and the next plane is already prepared.
When pilots and ATC understand this, TNCM ceases to be a chaotic track and begins to function as a coordinated operation.
Speed, yes. Hurry, no.
Flow, yes. Spam, no.
Efficiency, always within security :).
First of all, I don’t know which category to put this beautiful guide into.
