CTLR RPTR CLAIMS THAT WHENEVER THERE IS A PWR FAILURE; THAT THE RWY ARRESTING GEAR AUTOMATICALLY RAISES. ACFT ON FINAL APCH WAS ADVISED AND LANDED LONG.
Synopsis
CTLR RPTR CLAIMS THAT WHENEVER THERE IS A PWR FAILURE; THAT THE RWY ARRESTING GEAR AUTOMATICALLY RAISES. ACFT ON FINAL APCH WAS ADVISED AND LANDED LONG.
Narrative
DURING A PWR FAILURE; WHILE WORKING LCL CTL; I FOUND OUT THAT THE BAK 14 ARRESTING GEAR AUTOMATICALLY RAISES. I HAD AN ACFT ON SHORT FINAL AND JUST HAPPENED TO LOOK AT THE CABLE WITH BINOCULARS AND OBSERVED IT UP. ACFT WAS ADVISED AND LANDED BEYOND CABLE. AFTER INVESTIGATING; FOUND THAT FAA PERSONNEL DID NOT KNOW THIS OCCURS. WE HAVE ALREADY HAD 1 INCIDENT WITH THE CABLE SYS -- AN ACFT CLAIMS THE CABLE WAS PARTIALLY RAISED; WHICH CAUSED HIS NOSE GEAR TO COLLAPSE. SUGGEST: AIR NATL GUARD PERSONNEL (ANG) REMAIN AT BAK 14 SITE AND RAISE; LOWER AND SECURE CABLE AS NEEDED. THIS IS ANOTHER ACCIDENT WAITING TO HAPPEN! CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR CLAIMS THAT PWR FAILURE OCCURRED ON THE FIELD AND NOT IN THE TWR. STATED THAT IF THE CABLE IS 'LOCKED DOWN'; THE CABLE WILL SLOWLY RAISE IN A 30 MIN PERIOD. HOWEVER; IF THEY ARE IN THE UNLOCKED POS; THEY GO UP IMMEDIATELY. CABLES WERE INSTALLED APPROX 18 MONTHS AGO. CTL BOX IS LOCATED IN TWR. THEY ARE LOCATED AT BOTH ENDS OF RWY 27 AND RAISE TO A HEIGHT OF 4-6 INCHES. AN ACFT ACCIDENT INVOLVING THE CABLES BEING UP HAS RESULTED IN A LAW SUIT BEING FILED. RPTR WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE CTL BOX MOVED FROM THE TWR DUE TO THE RESPONSIBILITY TO THE CTLR.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.