Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 100; Flight Crew Total 10300; Flight Crew Type 7500
Distraction; Situational Awareness
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation - Speed All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Inflight Event / Encounter Unstabilized Approach
Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Executed Go Around / Missed Approach
Human Factors; Procedure
Approach to ILS following an airbus that showed approx 3 miles ahead of us on final; approach asked us to hold 180 to ZZZZZ. Our final approach speed was Vref 111. Following the airbus into the FAF; the first officer and I were discussing our separation and closure rate on the Airbus. At the FAF I called gear down flaps 20 and started to slow to 130 knots. Below 162 knots I called for flaps 30 landing checklist. About the same time tower asked us if we could speed up 10 knots. The first officer and I discussed briefly if this was possible and told tower no; we had to slow down. We were also talking about our separation with the airbus and @ 1000 feet AGL the first officer made the 1000 feet call with 5 knots fast. Shortly after we got a too low flaps GPWS warning two times. I looked over at the flap handle and it wasn't in the flaps 30 position. I made the comment flaps aren't at 30 and called go around while initiating the go around. During the go around; tower asked us for the reason of the go around. We stated unstable approach. Went back around and came in for another ILS uneventful. While ultimately we made the mistakes; approach and tower need to stop treating all aircraft the same. A light weight 757 with and approach speed of 115 knots is not the same as a max weight MD with an approach speed of 165-170 knots. Asking crews to adjust speed inside the final approach fix is unsafe and can disrupt checklists. I think that tower asking us to speed up during an important phase of the landing checklist; disrupted our attention and we missed the flaps 30 landing checklist as a crew. During a go around tower doesn't need to know the reason why immediately when crews are at their busiest. They can wait until the flight is stable on downwind.
B757 Captain reported being asked by ATC to speed up ten knots after the FAF at the same time he called for flaps 30. The First Officer apparently did not hear the call and the omission was not discovered until the GPWS calls out 'too low flaps' and a go-around is initiated.