Small Aircraft; Low Wing; 1 Eng; Fixed Gear
Flight Crew Student
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 90; Flight Crew Total 180; Flight Crew Type 90
Training / Qualification; Confusion; Communication Breakdown
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Ground Incursion Runway
Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert
Human Factors
I'm a flight student and I was doing a solo flight in the pattern at IWA for training purposes at night. I did already do about 4 patterns with no problems so far when they cleared me to land on Runway 30R. I answered it and about 1 minute later; I thought Tower asked me to change runways for 30C. I answered it again. They didn't correct me on my readback so I thought everything was fine and I was really cleared for 30C. When I did my next pattern they told me I made a deviation and they asked me if I could call them after my flight. I did this of course and they told me that I was not supposed to land on Runway 30C. It was kind of a surprise for me because I thought I did the right thing by answering the clearance. I decided to listen [to] everything. First of all; I heard I was cleared for Runway 30R which I answered at a decent way. Next thing that I heard was where it went wrong. I heard them saying that there was an aircraft taking off from Runway 30C and I had to be careful with wake turbulence. I understood this wrong and answered them by saying 30C cleared to land; so that was a really big mistake of me; but now comes the annoying part. The only thing I heard while listening to the tape I was saying back was the end of my callsign. Lots of times I have heard pilots say just their callsign if they acknowledge something. Even instructors do this sometimes so I think I broadcast just this part and because this is some sort of a normal way to read something back; Tower must have suspected nothing. To be really honest; I have never answered any calls by saying just the end of my callsign because we don't learn to do it that way. I'm not sure if Tower really didn't get my whole call but if they did they must have heard I gave them back the wrong clearance. On the other hand; I recognize that I was wrong by landing on the wrong runway.
A Student pilot landed on IWA Runway 30C after misunderstanding ATC's comment about traffic on that runway as he was approaching Runway 30R.