EMS TRAINING FLT HAS NMAC WITH SMA AT UNCTLED ARPT. OPPOSITE DIRECTION LNDG.
Synopsis
EMS TRAINING FLT HAS NMAC WITH SMA AT UNCTLED ARPT. OPPOSITE DIRECTION LNDG.
Narrative
I WAS CONDUCTING A VFR TRAINING FLT AT ZZZ ARPT. AS THE ONLY ACFT IN THE TFC PATTERN WE ESTABLISHED RWY 09 FOR LNDG SO THAT THE TRAINING PLT WOULD NOT BE LOOKING INTO THE SUN DURING FINAL APCH. I HEARD ANOTHER ACFT ANNOUNCE ENTERING R DOWNWIND FOR 27. WE WERE TURNING R BASE TO RWY 09 AND I ANNOUNCED ON CTAF THAT WE WERE PLANNING A STOP AND GO ON RWY 9. THE OTHER ACFT PLT ANNOUNCED THAT HE HAD US IN SIGHT AND WOULD EXTEND HIS DOWNWIND. IN ANY CASE WE EACH COMPLETED OUR APCHS WITHOUT CONFLICT. I TOOK A MOMENT TO ASK IN A NO CONFRONTATIONAL WAY 'SAY I DON'T MEAN TO BE PICKY BUT YOUR LNDG OPPOSITE THE ESTABLISHED DIRECTION MAKES IT TOUGH FOR TRAINING'. THE MALE VOICE RETORTED 'RWY 9 IS L TFC ONLY'?? I DECIDED NOT TO PURSUE IT ANY FURTHER. AT ABOUT THIS SAME TIME AS WE WERE ON THE GO RWY 09 FOR CLOSED TFC AND I CHANGED TO L TO COMPLY WITH THE POSSIBLE LCL RULE (NOT LISTED IN THE AFD); I NOTICED A BLUE AND WHITE SMA A PARALLELING RWY 27 ON THE N SIDE AT A RELATIVELY LOW ALT. THERE WERE NO RADIO TRANSMISSIONS FROM THIS ACFT. AS WE COMPLETED OUR DOWNWIND A SINGLE ENG SMA B ANNOUNCED DEPARTING RWY 09. WE EACH ACKNOWLEDGED THE OTHER IN SIGHT. WE ANNOUNCED THAT WE WERE ON FINAL FOR RWY 09. THE LITTLE SMA A WAS IN THE BACK OF MY MIND AND I HAD AN UNCOMFORTABLE FEELING ABOUT IT. THERE WAS STILL NO WORK ON THE RADIO BUT I WAS SUSPICIOUS. I SCANNED THE SKY DURING FINAL APCH WITH THE NAGGING FEELING THAT THE SMA A WAS OUT THERE. AT APPROX 50 FT AGL THE TRAINING PLT UTTERED AN EXPLETIVE 'AND THERE IT IS!' I HURRIEDLY SCANNED THE RWY AHEAD OF US AND FINALLY PICKED OUT THE SMA A ROLLING TOWARD US. THE RWY WAS MOTTLED WITH LIGHT AND DARK PATCHES FROM WET AND DRY SPOTS MAKING THE LITTLE SMA A VERY DIFFICULT TO THE SEE. I CAME ON THE CTLS TO INITIATE A R TURN AND CLB; BUT THE TRAINING PLT WAS STARTING L SAYING HE HAD HIM. (HE LATER TOLD ME HE WAS TRYING TO KEEP THE SMA A IN SIGHT AS HE TURNED). I DECIDED NOT TO FIGHT HIM FOR THE CTLS AT THAT ALT AND ALLOWED HIM THE BANK L AND CLB AWAY. DUE TO THE HIGH WING AND THE SMA A ON OUR R SIDE I WAS UNABLE TO GET A GOOD LOOK AT THE A/N NUMBER. I DID TRY TO FIND OUT THE NUMBER BY ASKING XXX APCH IF THEY HAD JUST HANDLED A SMALL SMA A LNDG AT ZZZ. THEY CHKED THEIR STRIPS AND HAD NO RECORD OF IT. I DECIDED NOT TO RETURN TO THE RAMP FOR A CONFRONTATION BECAUSE WE ARE ON EMS PROGRAM AND IT WOULD BE POOR POLITICS FOR ME TO PUNCH OUT SOMEONE; EVEN A BUFFOON; HOWEVER JUSTIFIED. I TERMINATED TRAINING FOR THE DAY AFTER THIS INCIDENT. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: CALLBACK WAS TO SET UP APPOINTMENT FOR STRUCTURED CALLBACK ON RESEARCH STUDY AND RPTR ONLY ADDRESSED THOSE ISSUES. NO COMMENT ON WHY HE DID NOT CONFORM TO PROPER PATTERN OR BE AWARE THAT OTHER ACFT HAD A RIGHT TO BE WHERE HE WAS. LEGAL IS NOT ALWAYS SAFE!
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.