Quote:
Originally Posted by kevmor99  He said a friend of his was recently busted for entering class B on a heading they assigned him. Seems like they'd rather have you avoid class B even if they direct you towards it (and if you can't clarify), if they don't give you the clearance. |
Without documentation, anecdotes aren't reliable guides because critical details are often lost. Seems unlikely to me that a controller would give you a heading and altitude that he intends to take you into Class B and then suddenly change his mind.
You need to have a clearance to enter Class B, but there is no description of the language that constitutes a clearance. For instance, "Taxi to runway 18" is a clearance, even though it doesn't contain the word "cleared." "Please enter the Class B airspace" would likewise be a clearance.
The heading/altitude thing would depend on context and I could envision ambiguous circumstances. The whole issue came up as a defense from a violation, so I don't recommend depending on it as a standard operating procedure. However, the ruling is available to you if there's a dispute.
I do think that hearing "cleared into" is the safest policy, but if the pilot and controller both forget when the intent is obvious (which happens a lot), the odds of repercussions are low.