Which statement correctly describes Hold For Release (HFR) instructions?

• A. issued in the order in which the requests were made
• B. forwarded to the receiving facility
• C. used to inform a controller that a departure clearance is not valid
• D. used to sequence a departure by assigning departure clearance items

Answer: (C)

Hold For Release means the departure clearance is held in a pending state and is not active until a release is issued by the appropriate authority. This lets the control facility coordinate timing, sequencing, and runway occupancy before the aircraft can proceed under that clearance. In other words, the controller is informing you that the clearance isn’t valid yet and must be released to become active.

This isn’t about the order of requests, nor about forwarding the clearance to another facility, nor about using the clearance to sequence departures with specific items. It’s specifically about the active/valid state of the clearance being dependent on a release.