FLT INSTRUCTOR ON IFR XCOUNTRY DSNDED BELOW ASSIGNED ALT DURING A DME APCH TRANSITION ARC.

Narrative

PROBLEM AROSE WHEN ON AN IFR XCOUNTRY TRAINING FLT FROM OSH (OSHKOSH) TO CWA (MOSINEE/CENTRAL WI) TO GRB (GREEN BAY) AND RETURN TO OSH. A CLRNC WAS RECEIVED. PRIOR TO ARR OF THE STE (STEVENS POINT) VOR ON VICTOR 63; IT WENT SOMETHING LIKE THIS: SMA ACFT; CLRED TO THE DANCI OM (ON THE ILS RWY 8 APCH AT MOSINEE/CENTRAL WI) VIA THE 17 DME ARC TRANSITION OFF THE AUW VOR; MAINTAIN 4000. WE PASSED THE STE VOR AND PROCEEDED DIRECTLY TOWARD THE AUW VOR TO INTERCEPT THE 17 DME ARC. AFTER WE WERE ESTABLISHED ON THE ARC; I MISTAKENLY TOLD MY STUDENT THAT WE WERE ALLOWED TO BE AT 3000 FT; THE PUBLISHED ARC ALT. AFTER CONTINUING ON THE ARC FOR A WHILE; THE STUDENT STARTED A DSCNT FROM 4000 TO 3000. I THEN STARTED TO WONDER IF THE ATC CTLR WANTED US AT 3000 OR NOT; SO I WAS GOING TO ASK OVER THE RADIO. THE ATC CTLR WAS BUSY TALKING TO OTHER ACFT AT THE TIME SO BY THE TIME I WAS ABLE TO COMMUNICATE; WE HAD ALREADY LOST 600 FT. I TOLD HIM THAT WE WERE DSNDING FROM 4000 TO 3000 AND THAT WE WERE ESTABLISHED ON THE ARC. HE THEN SAID THAT I WAS SUPPOSED TO MAINTAIN 4000 AND THAT I SHOULD CLB BACK UP. SO WE DID. AS WE WERE CLBING; HIS RADAR CONTACT WAS LOST; BECAUSE THEIR RADAR CANNOT REACH THAT AREA. WE LOST A TOTAL OF 700 FT BEFORE WE COMMENCED OUR CLB BACK UP. THE REST OF THE APCH AND TRIP WENT FINE. THE EVENT THAT WENT WRONG IS THAT WE DSNDED 700 FT BEFORE WE WERE SUPPOSED TO; BEING MISLED BY WHAT WAS PRINTED ON THE APCH PLATE AND THE CLRNC GIVEN BY THE CTR CTLR. TO ME IT IS MISLEADING HEARING THE WORDS 'CLRED TO DANCI INTXN VIA THE 17 DME ARC TRANSITION;' AND SEEING A PUBLISHED MIN ALT ON THE ARC TRANSITION. THIS GIVES YOU THE IDEA THAT ONCE YOU ARE ON A PUBLISHED SEGMENT OF AN APCH WITH A MIN ALT SPECIFIED; THAT YOU ARE ALLOWED TO BE AT THAT PUBLISHED ALT.