ACR LNDG WITHOUT CLRNC.

Date: 1992-01 · Aircraft: Large Transport; Low Wing; 3 Turbojet Eng

Anomalies: deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-landing-without-clearance

Synopsis

ACR LNDG WITHOUT CLRNC.

Narrative

I MADE THE APCH TO DEN RWY 26L. WE WERE CLRED FOR A VISUAL AND APCH CTL CALLED OUT TFC LNDG ON 26R. WE SAW THE TFC AND I SLOWED SLIGHTLY TO LET HIM GAIN SOME DISTANCE ON US. I FLEW THE ILS TO 26L AND ALL CHKLISTS WERE COMPLETED NORMALLY. AT 500 FT I CALLED '30 FLAPS; FINAL SETTING (NORMAL SOP) CLRED TO LAND?' THE FO AND SO VERIFIED 30 DEG FLAPS AND SAID NOTHING MORE. I THOUGHT I HAD HEARD A CLRNC TO LAND SO DID NOT QUESTION THE FO AGAIN. I LANDED AND CLRED THE RWY. THE FO TOLD TWR (HE THOUGHT) THAT WE WERE CLRING THE RWY. APCH CTL ANSWERED AND WE REALIZED THAT THE FO HAD NOT SWITCHED TO THE TWR AT THE OM. NO ACFT WERE AHEAD OR BEHIND US (ON RWY 26L) SO NO TFC CONFLICT OCCURRED. I CALLED THE TWR AND WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS NO PROBLEM CREATED BY THE INCIDENT (OTHER THAN OUR EMBARRASSMENT). I BELIEVE MY ASSUMPTION THAT WE HAD BEEN CLRED TO LAND WAS CAUSED BY MY RECOLLECTION OF APCH CTL SAYING 'CLRED FOR APCH.' THE FO WAS ENGROSSED IN WATCHING THE PARALLEL TFC AHEAD OF US TO THE EXTENT THAT HE FORGOT TO SWITCH TO TWR. I SHOULD HAVE QUESTIONED HIM A SECOND TIME AS TO 'CLRED TO LAND' WHEN HE FAILED TO VERIFY IT THE FIRST TIME I SAID IT; AT THE FINAL FLAP CHK. SWITCHING TO THE TWR AT THE MARKER IS SO ROUTINE IT NEVER DAWNED ON ME THAT THE FO MAY NOT HAVE DONE IT. ALSO; I WAS A LITTLE PREOCCUPIED WITH A XWIND WHICH I KNEW WOULD BECOME A TAILWIND ON LNDG. THE FAILURE OF THE FO TO VERIFY LNDG CLRNC IMMEDIATELY WHEN I QUERIED HIM SHOULD HAVE BEEN A CLUE THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG. ALSO; IN THE FUTURE I WILL SAY; 'ARE WE CLRED TO LAND;' INSTEAD OF MERELY SAYING; 'CLRED TO LAND?' HAD I SAID; 'ARE WE CLRED TO LAND;' I BELIEVE THE FO WOULD HAVE REALIZED THAT WE WERE NOT CLRED. CALLOUTS WHICH LEAVE NO DOUBT IN ANYONE'S MIND MUST BE USED TO PREVENT INCIDENTS SUCH AS THIS. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR PARTICIPATED IN STRUCTURED CALLBACK FOR RWY INCURSION SURVEY. REITERATED CONCERNS REF PARALLEL TFC AND SAYS HE WAS PREOCCUPIED WITH WIND CONDITIONS. TWR CTLRS WERE NOT AT ALL CONCERNED ABOUT THEM NOT BEING ON FREQ. SINCE INCIDENT COMPANY HAS ADDED A 'CLRED TO LAND' CHK ON THE 1000 FT CALLOUT. ALSO COMPANY HAS PUT OUT A REMINDER THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF LNDGS WITHOUT CLRNC INCIDENTS AND CITED DEN RWY 26L IN PARTICULAR. RPTR SAYS HE SHOULD HAVE INSISTED ON ANSWER FROM PNF WHEN HE TRIED TO VERIFY LNDG CLRNC.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.