2022-02 · NASA ASRS report 1879331
ERJ 135 flight crew reported GPWS alert along with erroneous indications from Radio Altimeter during descent to land.
Night arrival on the JANNY 5. Outbound after WABBT and level at 5000 ft. MSL as assigned by ATC; received 'Whoop; Whoop; Pull Up' advisory from EGPWS (Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System). As Pilot Flying; initiated response by disconnecting the autopilot; maximum thrust; while pitching nose up while maintaining assigned heading. Advisory quickly went away and leveled at 5200 ft. MSL; notifying ATC. Descended back to 5000 FT and re-engaged the autopilot. No aircraft conflict during maneuver. Noticed [a] hill underneath the aircraft prior to EGPWS activation; but did not present itself as a threat visually. Also noted 'RA' on the MFD (Multi-function Flight Display) presented with terrain pop up during advisory.Wonder if the radio altimeter had malfunctioned due to 5G interference. As mentioned earlier; 'RA' flashed on the MFD with terrain pop up; and the Radio Altimeter varied prior to advisory. Though it was dark; the terrain did not visually present itself as a threat as I was looking outside throughout; and 5000 ft. is a normal vectoring altitude for ATC in that area. The only other possible cause would be closure rate with the terrain; we were flying at about 230 kts. due to traffic behind us. No real suggestion; except to see if 5G interference can trigger spurious EGPWS advisories.
While on descent into Burbank; approach cleared us to descend to 5000 ft. After reaching the assigned altitude we received a GPWS (Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System) alert of terrain/pull up. While performing the climb we noticed our RA system was acting erratically. After the warning system cleared we descended back to our assigned and notified approach of the indication we received. Possible erroneous indications from our RA. I believe we made the right decision to adhere to the terrain warning.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.
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