FOREIGN GOV X HAD NMAC WITH SMA WHILE ON APCH TO UNCTLED ARPT. SEE AND AVOID CONCEPT. NON ADHERENCE TO FARS.

1992-07 · NASA ASRS report 216259

Date: 1992-07 · Aircraft: Medium Large Transport; Low Wing; 2 Turbojet Eng · Phase: approach

Anomalies: conflict-nmac|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy

Synopsis

FOREIGN GOV X HAD NMAC WITH SMA WHILE ON APCH TO UNCTLED ARPT. SEE AND AVOID CONCEPT. NON ADHERENCE TO FARS.

Narrative

THE APCH CTL FACILITY AT PATUXENT RIVER NAS ALSO SERVES WALLOPS ISLAND. WE HAD EXPECTED A VOR APCH FROM SNOW HILL TO RWY 22 AT WALLOPS; AND THE SWESTERLY WINDS WE GOT WITH THE WX REINFORCED THIS. THE WX RPT ALSO TOLD US IT WAS MUGGY AND HOT -- AND THE VISIBILITY AT LOWER ALTS WAS EXTREMELY HAZY. PATUXENT THEN TOLD US TO EXPECT A VISUAL APCH TO WALLOPS AS THE TWR WAS CLOSED; AND BEGAN TO GIVE US RADAR VECTORS. WE WERE CLRED TO DSND TO 3000 FT; TOLD TO CALL THE FIELD IN SIGHT; AND INFORMED THAT WE SHOULD HOLD VISUALLY OVER THE FIELD BECAUSE OF ANOTHER ACFT IN THE PATTERN AT WALLOPS AHEAD OF US. ALL OF THIS TRANSPIRED WITH GREAT DIFFICULTY BECAUSE OF THE LANGUAGE PROBLEMS. ABOUT THE TIME WE CALLED THE FIELD IN SIGHT; THE CTLR TOLD US THAT THE OTHER ACFT HAD CANCELLED OUT AND WE WOULD BE CLRED FOR A VISUAL APCH. I ASKED FOR THE WINDS AND; AS THEY HAD SHIFTED TO COMING MORE OUT OF THE W; TOLD THE CTLR THAT WE WOULD BE MAKING A VISUAL APCH TO RWY 28. HE ROGERED THAT; TOLD US WE WERE CLRED FOR THE APCH TO RWY 28; AND ADDED THAT WE SHOULD CALL PATUXENT CLRNC DELIVERY WHEN WE WERE ON THE GND. I GAVE THE HEADSET BACK TO FO AND HE AND CAPT BEGAN TO CONFIGURE FOR THE LNDG. THE APCH LOOKED NORMAL; AND SO I SETTLED INTO THE PIT THAT SERVED AS THE FE'S JUMP SEAT AND PREPARED FOR LNDG. ON FINAL; CALLED PATUXENT CLRNC WITH A GEAR CHK. I DIDN'T THINK PATUXENT CLRNC COULD CLR US VERY WELL; BUT IT WAS THE ONLY FREQ THAT HAD BEEN GIVEN TO US AND; AS I RECALL; PATUXENT CLRNC DID CLR US TO LAND. JUST BEFORE TOUCHDOWN; HOWEVER; PULLED BACK QUICKLY ON THE YOKE AND THEN SETTLED BACK DOWN FOR WHAT WAS HIS WORST LNDG OF THE TRIP. AS WE PULLED OFF THE RWY AND BEGAN TO CALL PATUXENT CLRNC TO LET THEM KNOW WE WERE DOWN; ALEXANDER REMARKED WITH CONCERN THAT AN SMA PLANE HAD CROSSED DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF US AND LANDED ON RWY 22. (RWYS 22 AND 28 INTERSECT AT THE APCH ENDS). IT HAD BEEN A VERY NEAR MISS. WE WERE ABLE TO RECONSTRUCT LATER THAT THE PLT IN THE OTHER ACFT HAD BEEN ON A UNICOM FREQ; AND HAD BEEN CALLING HIS POS PROPERLY IN THE PATTERN. THE IFR SUPPLEMENT LISTS THE FREQ AMONG OTHERS AVAILABLE; BUT THE APCH PLATES WE WERE USING DID NOT INCLUDE IT (AND I WOULD NOT HAVE EXPECTED THEM TO). IN THE AIRLINES A 'VISUAL APCH' IS STILL AN IFR CLRNC; AND WE ARE ACCUSTOMED TO RECEIVING THE CLRNC FOR THE APCH FROM APCH CTL. (WE ARE ALSO NOT ACCUSTOMED TO BEING CLRED FOR AN APCH IF THERE ARE UNCTLED ACFT IN THE PATTERN.) THIS DOESN'T EXCUSE PLTS FROM 'SEE AND BE SEEN' FLYING IF CONDITIONS ARE VMC; OF COURSE; BUT IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A GREAT HELP IF THE CTLR HAD SAID SOMETHING LIKE 'RADAR SVC TERMINATED. CONTACT WALLOPS UNICOM ON 126.5 FOR VFR ADVISORIES. CONTACT PATUXENT CLRNC DELIVERY ON 121.7 WHEN ON THE GND.'

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

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