WDB CARGO ACFT POSSIBLE LNDG BELOW MINIMUMS. SNOW CLUTTERED RWY; POOR VISIBILITY.

1993-03 · NASA ASRS report 236339

Date: 1993-03 · Aircraft: Widebody; Low Wing; 3 Turbojet Eng

Anomalies: inflight-event-encounter-weather-turbulence|other-unspecified

Synopsis

WDB CARGO ACFT POSSIBLE LNDG BELOW MINIMUMS. SNOW CLUTTERED RWY; POOR VISIBILITY.

Narrative

WE DEPARTED DFW FOR ATL. ATIS WX 5 BROKEN; 11 OVCST; 4/4 S-IP-F 34/34/340/17 RWY 26R 27L; ALTIMETER 29.08. WE WERE SENT 3 ACAR MESSAGES BY THE COMPANY ADVISING OF ATL SPECIALS; AND PEN AND MOB WX. WE BRIEFED 6 APCHS; AND BUILT 6 APCHS; 3 IN THE PRIMARY AND 3 IN THE SECONDARY. ON DOWNWIND FOR RWY 26L THE APCH CTLR ADVISED THAT THEY WERE LNDG NOW ON RWY 26L NOT RWY 26R AS ATIS SAID. MY FO ASKED WHICH RWY WE SHOULD PLAN IF THAT ALSO CHANGED AND WE WERE ADVISED RWY 27R; THAT WAS THEN PUT INTO THE SECONDARY FLT PLAN. WE WERE EXTREMELY BUSY AT THIS POINT AND TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE OUR ACFT WAS NOT USUALLY SCHEDULED FOR SVC INTO ATL; SO THE COMPANY HAD NOT NOTIFIED COMMERCIAL COMPANY TO ISSUE WDB CREWS APCH PLATES. THE ACFT HAD A COMPLETE AND UP-TO-DATE SET WHICH WE HAD TO SHARE. WE SHOT THE APCH AND THE CTLR ADVISED US TO CONTACT TWR MARKER INBOUND. IN A 2-MAN CREW THIS IS A VERY BUSY TIME! IT WAS AN 8 MI TURN ONTO FINAL. THE LOC HAD TO BE CONFIRMED ALIVE; AND GS CAPTURE; TWR FREQ TUNED; AND STANDARD CALLOUTS MADE. I CONTACTED TWR JUST PAST THE MARKER AND WAS TOLD THE WINDS AND THAT BRAKING ACTION WAS RPTED POOR BY ANOTHER ACFT; RVR 2000 FT. I DO NOT RECALL EVER BEING TOLD THE RVR PRIOR TO THIS POINT; AND THAT IS MY CONCERN. THIS APCH REQUIRED RVR 2400 FT PRIOR TO THE MARKER. WE ALSO WERE HAVING TREMENDOUS STATIC AND A LOUD SQUEAL ON APCH AND TWR FREQ. I RPTED THIS TO APCH AND HE DID A RADIO CHK; BUT I SAID IT WAS NO BETTER. I BELIEVE WE MIGHT HAVE HAD ICE BUILDING ON THE ANTENNA AND THIS COULD HAVE BEEN THE PROB IN THE LAST 7 MINS OF FLT. THE APCH WAS NORMAL; TWR DID GIVE A WIND SHEAR RPT SHORTLY BEFORE TOUCHDOWN. OUR PFD'S INDICATED DURING THE ENTIRE APCH AND TOUCHDOWN; THAT THE WIND WAS A R STRONG QUARTERING HEAD/XWIND; BUT NEVER EXCEEDED 25 KTS DIRECT XWIND. YOU COULD BARELY SEE THE RWY MARKINGS THROUGH THE STANDING SLUSH/SNOW. THE ALS AND HIRLS WERE VISIBLE 1/2 MI OUT; I ADVISED THE FO AND TOLD HIM TO REMAIN ON THE INSTS. I TOOK THE ACFT 200 FT ABOUT DECISION HT; KICKED OFF THE AUTOPLT AND LANDED THE ACFT. I ESTIMATE THAT THE RWY HAD 1 INCH OF STANDING SLUSH. WE SLID TO THE L OF THE RWY THEN TO THE R; NEVER LEAVING THE RWY; BUT CERTAINLY NOT CTRED. WE HAD ADEQUATE DISTANCE FOR STOPPING; AND TAXIED TO THE END WITHOUT FURTHER COMPLICATIONS. I FEEL THAT INADEQUATE INFO WAS GIVEN TO US WHILE WE WERE AIRBORNE. I WAS NEVER INFORMED OF ANY RWY CLUTTER; AND NO OFFICIAL BRAKING ACTION BY THE ARPT AUTHORITY WAS AVAILABLE. THE RWY 26R HAD FRESHLY BEEN PLOWED AND THEY WERE USING IT FOR TKOFS. I DO NOT KNOW IF WE WERE ADVISED OF THE RVR PRIOR TO TWR FREQ MARKER INBOUND. THE FO AND I COULD NOT REMEMBER; DUE TO RADIO STATIC AND OTHER ACFT BEING VECTORED FOR PEACHTREE ARPT. CERTAINLY THIS WAS THE WORST STORM IN 100 YRS TO HIT ATL AND THEY WERE NOT PREPARED FOR THIS COLD WX AND HIGH WINDS. ANOTHER UNSAFE CLRNC WAS WHILE TAXIING TO PARKING. CROSS RWY 26L ON C AND HOLD SHORT RWY 26R. WE SAT ON E WHILE TRYING TO ADVISE GND WE WERE NOT WILLING TO BE A SITTING DUCK BTWN 2 ACTIVE RWYS; IF TFC WAS TAKING OFF OR LNDG. WE NEVER GOT THROUGH ON GND; WE SAW AN LGT ROTATE AT C AND THEN WE WERE TOLD TO CROSS RWY 26R AND PROCEED TO PARKING. TWR ASKED FOR A BRAKING ACTION RPT RWY 26L; WE ADVISED POOR TO NIL AND SUGGESTED THEY USE ANOTHER RWY. THE SNOW PLOW AND EQUIP WERE SITTING AT THE END OF RWY 26L.

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

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