What verbal cue is used to indicate authorization to cross an active runway?

• A. CROSS
• B. STOP
• C. CLEAR
• D. YIELD

Answer: (A)

In taxi operations, crossing an active runway requires explicit clearance from ATC. The cue that signals you’re allowed to cross is the word Cross used in the clearance, for example “Cross Runway 27.” That exact instruction tells you to proceed across the runway path.

Stop or hold short would be indicated by a clearance to stop or “Hold short of Runway [number],” not by crossing. Yield isn’t the clearance to cross; it relates to giving way between traffic. While other clearances use the word clear in different contexts (like a runway being clear or a plane cleared for takeoff), the direct authorization to cross an active runway is conveyed with the instruction to cross.