Definition
An ATC clearance issued to a landing aircraft instructing the pilot to land on a designated runway and stop before reaching an intersecting runway, intersecting taxiway, or other published hold-short point. The clearance specifies the available landing distance and must be accepted or rejected by the pilot before landing.
Plain English
Air traffic control is telling you to land on this runway and bring the aircraft to a stop before a specific point on the runway, so you don't enter another runway or area being used by other traffic.
Context Anchor
Heard from the control tower during landing at a towered airport, especially when another aircraft or vehicle needs to use a crossing runway or nearby surface.
Derivation
Clearance comes from the idea of making a path “clear” for someone to use. In aviation, a clearance is permission from air traffic control to do something, but only under the limits stated in that clearance. Here, the limit is to land and remain short of a specific point.
Why Pilots Care
Allows safe, simultaneous use of intersecting runways while preventing runway incursions and maintaining separation.
Grounding Statement
Picture a marked point ahead on the runway as the farthest place your aircraft is allowed to reach after landing.
Intuition Check
Do not read “hold short” as “slow down near that point.” In this clearance, it means the aircraft must not pass the named point unless air traffic control later gives a different clearance.
Example Sentence 1
Tower issued a land and hold short clearance for Runway 27, holding short of Runway 33, with 4,500 feet of available landing distance.
Example Sentence 2
After accepting the land and hold short clearance, the pilot adjusted the landing rollout to meet the hold-short point.