A319
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 200; Flight Crew Total 18700; Flight Crew Type 4500
Confusion; Communication Breakdown
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation - Speed All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance
Chart Or Publication; Human Factors; Procedure
SEA Center controller assigned us to slow to .73 Mach. Got a frequency change to SEA Center 128.3. The 128.3 controller asked us our speed and we told her 310 kts. We had not intercepted 280 kts yet. She told us we were supposed to be at 280 kts. Note on Hawkz3 reads Speed restriction: Turbojet aircraft descend via Mach # until intersepting  280 kts. Maintain 280 until slowed by STAR. Flight continued without indicent.
We were assigned to descend 'via' the Hawker 3 arrival into SEA. There is a note on the Hawker 3 arrival which states '...max airspeed 280 kts when transitioning from Mach to IAS...' We were descending from cruise altitude on the Hawker 3 arrival north of BTG on an ASSIGNED speed of .73 Mach.
An A319 flight crew; descending via the HAWKZ RNAV STAR to SEA and maintaining assigned .73M; was criticized by Center for not being at 280 KTS when checking in with the next Controller. The chart; however; specifies flights are to descend via Mach number until 'intercepting' the required 280 KIAS until slowed by ATC.