CAPT OF A PIPER PA31; NAVAJO; TURNED AND CLBED AFTER OBSERVING MIL BLACKHAWK HELI'S WITHIN 500 FT OVERHEAD ON SHORT FINAL TO LAND. AT THE SAME TIME THE TWR CTLR RECOGNIZED THE MISTAKE OF RPTR'S APCHING TO LAND RATHER THAN GOING AROUND AS INSTRUCTED.

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ON SEP/THU/00; I WAS FLYING A NAVAJO; ARRIVING AT NASHVILLE; TN; (BNA) AT APPROX XA45. WE WERE APCHING FROM THE SE ON AN IFR FLT PLAN. THE WX WAS GOOD VFR (CEILING 25000 FT; VIS 10 SM). THERE WERE 2 PLTS ONBOARD A PART 91 CPR PAX FLT. BNA WAS LNDG ON RWYS 2L; 2R; AND 2C. I HAD THE ARPT IN SIGHT; AND WAS TOLD TO PROCEED STRAIGHT FOR THE END OF THE RWY. WE WERE APPROX 5 MI OUT; ON A R DOGLEG TO THE RWY. WE WERE CLRED FOR A VISUAL APCH; AND TOLD TO CONTACT THE TWR. THE COPLT CALLED THE TWR WITH A VISUAL APCH; AND WE WERE CLRED TO LAND ON RWY 2C. WHEN WE WERE APPROX 1 MI OUT; I THOUGHT I SAW AN ACFT ON THE RWY. IT WAS HARD TO TELL AS THE SUSPECTED ACFT WAS ON THE WIDE; WHITE THRESHOLD STRIPES ON THE RWY. I ASKED THE COPLT IF HE THOUGHT THERE WAS AN AIRPLANE ON THE RWY. HE WASN'T SURE. AT APPROX 1/4 MI WE SAW THAT IT WAS DEFINITELY AN AIRPLANE ON THE RWY; AND IT WAS NOT MOVING. AT THIS POINT; WE WERE TOO CLOSE FOR HIM TO TAKE OFF IN FRONT OF US; AND I DIDN'T WANT TO LAND IN FRONT OF HIM. I INITIATED A GAR; AND CALLED THE TWR. THE TWR RESPONDED WITH 'GAR TO THE L.' WHEN I HEARD THIS; I LOOKED TO THE L RWY 2L AND SAW THAT I WAS IN A POS TO LAND (THEY ARE OFFSET; RWY 2L STARTS FARTHER N THAN RWY 2C) AND THAT THE RWY WAS CLR. I UNDERSTOOD THE LCL CTLR AS CLRING ME TO LAND ON THE 'L.' I RESPONDED WITH 'CLRED FOR THE L.' WHILE MANEUVERING TO LAND ON RWY 2L; WE SAW A FLT OF 3 MIL BLACKHAWK HELI'S APCHING FROM THE W. I QUERIED MY COPLT AS TO WHETHER WE WERE CLRED FOR RWY 2L; HE THOUGHT WE WERE CLRED TO LAND RWY 2L. I THOUGHT THE BLACKHAWKS WERE GOING TO PARALLEL THE RWY. I WAS FLYING THE AIRPLANE; LINING UP WITH THE RWY. WHEN I LOOKED BACK AT THE HELI; I SAW THAT HE WAS DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF US; APPROX 500 FT ABOVE US. AT THIS POINT; THE LCL CTLR TOLD US TO 'GAR TO THE L; YOU HAVE A BLACKHAWK ABOVE YOU.' I MADE AN IMMEDIATE CLBING L TURN WHILE MAINTAINING VISUAL SEPARATION ON THE LEAD HELI. WE JOINED THE L DOWNWIND; AND LANDED ON RWY 2C. WHILE TAXIING IN; I WAS ASKED TO CALL THE TWR. I CALLED THE TWR; AND SPOKE TO THE LCL CTLR. HE ADMITTED THAT HE DIDN'T KNOW THE ACFT WAS STILL ON THE RWY. HE DIDN'T KNOW IF HE HAD CLRED IT FOR TKOF; IF THE ACFT HAD NOT HEARD HIM; OR WAS HAVING SOME KIND OF DELAY. WE ALSO DISCUSSED THE MISUNDERSTANDING WHEN HE TOLD ME 'GAR TO THE L.' I THINK THE INITIAL PROB WAS THE ACFT ON THE RWY WHILE WE WERE CLRED TO LAND. WE WERE NOT TOLD OF THE ACFT HOLDING IN POS. I SHOULD HAVE ASKED THE TWR AS SOON AS I SUSPECTED AN ACFT ON THE RWY. IF I HAD; THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN TIME TO SORT IT OUT. THE CTLR SHOULD HAVE USED BETTER LANGUAGE FOR HIS GAR INSTRUCTIONS. HE HAD TFC FOR RWY 2R AND DIDN'T WANT ME TO TURN R. IF HE HAD SAID 'GAR; HEADING 270 DEGS' THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN NO MISTAKE. I HAVE HEARD (AND SAID) MANY TIMES 'CLRED FOR THE L' WHEN CLRED TO LAND. NON-STANDARD PHRASES PLAYED A PART IN THIS INCIDENT.