FLC OF AN LGT ACR ACFT OVERSHOT THE FINAL APCH LOC COURSE AFTER CLRED FOR AN ILS APCH DUE TO NOT SETTING THE NAV RECEIVER WITH THE CORRECT COURSE HDG.
Synopsis
FLC OF AN LGT ACR ACFT OVERSHOT THE FINAL APCH LOC COURSE AFTER CLRED FOR AN ILS APCH DUE TO NOT SETTING THE NAV RECEIVER WITH THE CORRECT COURSE HDG.
Narrative
APCH DSCNT CHKLIST AND BRIEF COMPLETED BTWN FL180 AND 10000 FT. ON PHL APCH; FLT DIRECTOR ON; AUTOPLT (CTR) ENGAGED IN HDG SELECT. VECTORED BY APCH 240 DEG HDG TO INTERCEPT RWY 26R ILS LOC. AS WE CROSSED THE DISPLAYED DIRECT INTERCEPT COURSE TO RWY 26R ON THE MAP WE BOTH OBSERVED THAT THE AUTOPLT AND FLT DIRECTOR DID NOT CAPTURE THE LOC COURSE (THE HSI DISPLAYED LOC ARMED). VISUAL REF CONFIRMED THAT WE WERE S OF THE LOC. I BEGAN TURN BACK TO RE-INTERCEPT RWY 26R LOC. AT THAT SAME INSTANCE APCH INFORMED US THAT WE HAD GONE THROUGH THE LOC AND GAVE US A TURN TO 280 DEGS TO INTERCEPT. WE CALLED RWY 26R IN SIGHT AND WE WERE SWITCHED TO TWR THEN CLRED TO LAND. THE FINAL APCH AND LNDG WAS UNEVENTFUL!! EVEN THOUGH WE DID EVERYTHING BY SOP AS A CREW; 1 ITEM WAS MISSED BY BOTH PLTS. FIRST; THE PNF DID NOT SET THE CORRECT COURSE HDG IN THE ONE AND ONLY ILS TUNE HEAD. SECOND; THE PF FAILED TO CATCH IT WHEN DOUBLE-CHKING THE RADIOS TUNED EVEN THOUGH HE IDENTED THE FREQ. THIS ACFT HAS 3 ILS RADIOS; BUT ONLY 1 TUNING HEAD. NOT GOOD! IF THAT 1 TUNING HEAD IS SET INCORRECTLY IT NULLIFIES ALL 3 ILS'S!! ELIMINATING THE ABILITY OF EACH PLT TO TUNE AND IDENT HIS SEPARATE RADIO WITH A SEPARATE TUNING HEAD CREATES ANOTHER POTENTIAL DISASTER. AUTOMATION IS GREAT BUT REMOVING HUMAN BACKUPS LIKE THIS CAN ONLY INCREASE HUMAN ERROR!
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.