Approach controller descended an arrival only to discover that descent authority was not given by th...

Attributes
ACN	954925
Time
Date	201106
Local Time Of Day	1801-2400
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Environment
Light	Dusk
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	Regional Jet 200 ER/LR (CRJ200)
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Final Approach
Route In Use	Vectors
Flight Plan	IFR
Person 1
Function	Approach
Qualification	Air Traffic Control Developmental
Events
Anomaly	ATC Issue All Types Airspace Violation All Types Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy

Narrative:

Air carrier X was on approach to ZZZ after being re-routed from an adjacent feeder leg. After accepting this aircraft and in the midst of severe weather; I assumed that I had control for descent because the previous aircraft I had worked was given to me with control for descent. It was only after my coordinator alerted me to this that I was informed that I only had descent on the one previous aircraft. I recommend that when coordination is given to me; especially during complex situations; that the phraseology; 'control on 'call sign' only;' be used. That will eliminate that misunderstanding that I had control on all of the arrivals.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Approach Controller descended an arrival only to discover that descent authority was not given by the previous Controller. Based upon the previous aircraft descent authority an assumption was made.

Narrative: Air Carrier X was on approach to ZZZ after being re-routed from an adjacent feeder leg. After accepting this aircraft and in the midst of severe weather; I assumed that I had control for descent because the previous aircraft I had worked was given to me with control for descent. It was only after my Coordinator alerted me to this that I was informed that I only had descent on the one previous aircraft. I recommend that when coordination is given to me; especially during complex situations; that the phraseology; 'Control on 'call sign' only;' be used. That will eliminate that misunderstanding that I had control on all of the arrivals.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.

Approach controller descended an arrival only to discover that descent authority was not given by the previous controller. Based upon the previous aircraft descent authority an assumption was made.