History of Flight
On July 7, 2016, at 2042 mountain daylight time (MDT), Delta Air Lines flight 2845, an Airbus A320 (registration N333NW), landed on runway 13 at Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota. The airplane was not damaged and there were no injuries. The flight was a regularly scheduled passenger flight from Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport (MSP) to Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP), operating under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121.
The flight crew reported routine takeoff, climb, cruise, and initial descent until nearing the Rapid City area. The captain was the pilot flying; the first officer (FO) was the pilot monitoring. Prior to arrival, the captain briefed the ILS32 approach and also the RNAV/GPS14 approach. The FO obtained weather for RAP, including wind from 140 degrees at 4 knots.
At 2029:29, the airplane was descending through flight level 235, and the crew contacted Ellsworth Radar Approach Control (EA). The controller cleared the flight to descend to 5,300 feet and to expect a visual approach to runway 14. The crew discussed the need to descend more rapidly. The captain demonstrated a technique for setting up the Flight Management System (FMS).
At 2034:58, the airplane was abeam RAP, and EA instructed a heading of 300 degrees for a downwind leg. EA and RAP tower controllers discussed on landline that the airplane was high and fast. At 2035:18, the captain noted excessive speed and switched back to open descent. At 2036:30, the captain called for gear down and flaps one.
At 2037:15, EA instructed a turn to 230 degrees for the base leg. The FO advised they were "a little high" and requested an extended downwind leg, which was approved. At 2039:12, the pilot advised he could accept a turn and had the field in sight. EA cleared the flight for a visual approach to runway 14 and cautioned about Ellsworth Air Force Base six miles northwest of Rapid City Regional.
The captain selected a direct radial to ZUDIM intersection (final approach fix for the RNAV GPS 14 approach) and armed the approach. The airplane captured the approach about 5 miles from ZUDIM. The FO observed the navigation display showing the correct navigation line.
At 2040:10, the pilot asked about contacting tower; EA instructed to switch. The captain disengaged the autopilot and directed the FO to clear the flight director. The airplane began a rapid descent from 4,600 feet about 3 miles from the RCA runway threshold, landing at RCA. The captain reported not observing PAPI lights at about 500 feet agl but remained focused on the visual approach. At 2041:25, the captain stated "confirmed stable." As they approached the runway, the captain retarded thrust levers to idle, at which point they realized they were landing at RCA. The landing on runway 13 was described as "uneventful" by both crewmembers. They cleared the runway onto taxiway D and notified RAP tower.
At 2042:24, RAP tower notified EA that DAL2845 had landed at RCA. EA contacted RCA tower to handle the wrong airport landing. The RAP tower controller stated he was watching the airplane on radar but was entering traffic count information at the time of landing.
Personnel Information
The captain, age 60, held an ATP certificate with type ratings on Airbus A-320, A-330, and Boeing 747. He had approximately 25,800 hours total time, with 2,980 hours in the A320. He was originally hired with Republic Airways in 1986, which merged with Northwest and later Delta. No prior accidents or enforcement actions were found. His previous experience flying into RAP was December 2014.
The first officer, age 51, held an ATP certificate with A-320 type rating. He had approximately 7,600 hours total time, with 2,324 hours in the A320. He had never flown to RAP or RCA before. No prior accidents or enforcement actions were found.
Aircraft Information
N333NW, construction number 0329, was an Airbus A320-211 manufactured in 1992. Maximum ramp weight 170,635 pounds, seating 160 passengers plus crew. No relevant mechanical, systems, or maintenance issues were recorded.
The airplane was equipped with an Electronic Flight Instrument System (EFIS) including Primary Flight Displays and Navigation Displays. The crew operated the ND in Rose NAV mode, which displays a compass rose, aircraft position relative to the flight plan, and runway identifiers. Delta documentation states this mode is useful for orientation when being vectored near an airport.
Meteorological Information
RAP weather observation at 20:58 indicated clear skies, 10 miles visibility, light winds from 170 degrees. Sunset was at 20:38, end of civil twilight at 21:13. The sun was about 1 degree below the horizon at the incident time.
Aerodrome Information
Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP) is located 8 miles southeast of Rapid City, elevation 3,204 feet msl, with runway 14/32 (8,701 ft by 150 ft, concrete). Runway 14 has HIRL, REIL, and PAPI with 3.00-degree glide path. An FAA tower operates from 0600 to 2200 local time; it was in operation at the time.
Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA) is located 5 miles northeast of Rapid City, elevation 3,276 feet msl, with runway 13/31 (13,497 ft by 300 ft, concrete). Runway 13 has PAPI, HIRL, ALSF-1, and REIL. A US Air Force tower operates from 0800 to 2100 local time; it was in operation. The airport also has a military beacon.
Delta Air Lines' operational specific pages (10-7 chart) for KRAP include a special note: "Ellsworth AFB lies northwest of RAP on final approach for runway 14. These airports have similar runway alignment and can be mistaken for one another."
Flight Recorders
The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) was an Allied Signal solid-state unit, 2-hour duration, extracted normally with good audio quality. A CVR group created a transcript correlated with the flight data recorder (FDR). The FDR was a Honeywell SSFDR, data extracted normally. GMT times were converted to local MDT with a -6 hour offset.
Medical and Pathological Information
Both pilots completed company drug screening on July 8, 2016, with negative results. The captain reported wearing his glasses as required.
Additional Information
FAA Order 7110.65 specifies phraseology to warn pilots of nearby airports. A review of Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) data indicated about 600 wrong airport landings or near-landings in the previous 20 years, including six involving RAP and RCA, four by general aviation and two by commercial air carriers.
Previous incidents of confusion between RAP and RCA include an August 17, 2015, landing by a Hawker business jet, and a June 19, 2004, landing by a Northwest Airlines Airbus A319. Ellsworth reported that pilot confusion continues to be fairly common but is usually detected and corrected before landing.
The NTSB has investigated similar wrong airport landings, including Southwest Airlines flight 4013 at Branson (2014) and a Boeing 747 Dreamlifter at Wichita (2013). In April 2014, the NTSB issued a Safety Alert on wrong airport landings, guiding pilots to adhere to SOPs, verify position, use cockpit instrumentation, maintain vigilance at night, include airport layout in briefing, use precise navigational aids, and confirm airport identity before reporting in sight.
Safety Recommendation A-15-010 addressed MSAW software modification to apply destination airport parameters until touchdown. Currently classified "Open – Acceptable Alternate Response."