TKOF ON OCCUPIED RWY BY MDT AS TWR FORGETS THE TFC PICTURE.
Synopsis
TKOF ON OCCUPIED RWY BY MDT AS TWR FORGETS THE TFC PICTURE.
Narrative
TWR CLRED ME TO LAND TO THE NUMBERS OF RWY 21; HOLD SHORT OF RWY 33. I LANDED TO A HOVER. I HAD ALREADY INFORMED TWR WE NEEDED TRANSITION TO FBO. I NOTICED A HIGH WING TWIN TURBOPROP AIRPLANE AT THE OTHER END OF THE RWY FACING US. TFC WAS LINED UP FOR DEP ON 33 AND 36. TFC WAS LNDG ON 33 AND 36. AFTER ABOUT 1 MINUTE OF HOVERING; LISTENING TO SEVERAL CLRNCS TO TKOF AND LAND; I SET THE HELI DOWN; SENSING A SIGNIFICANT XING DELAY. I THEN; APPROX 1 MINUTE LATER HEARD TWR CLR ANOTHER AIRPLANE FOR TKOF. AS THE AIRPLANE AT THE OTHER END OF THE RWY GREW LARGER; I REALIZED IT HAD BEEN CLRED AND WE WERE FORGOTTEN. I IMMEDIATELY PULLED COLLECTIVE AND CLRED THE RWY BY MOVING OFF TO THE R. AS I DID THIS; I HEARD AN UNIDENTIFIED UTTERANCE ON THE RADIO WHICH SAID 'WE'VE GOT YOU' OR 'I SEE YOU.' EITHER JUST BEFORE OR JUST AFTER THAT CALL; I SAID OVER THE TWR FREQ AS I MOVED; 'X IS STILL HOLDING APCH END OF 21!' TWR CAME BACK AND AS IF NOTHING HAD OCCURRED; SAID 'CLRED TO THE MAIN RAMP THEN PROCEED TO FBO.' THE AIRPLANE HAD PULLED UP SHARPLY AND TURNED R. WE WERE NEVER CLOSE. I THOUGHT IT ODD THAT THE AIRPLANE WAS CLRED WHILE WE WERE ON THE RWY; OPPOSITE DIRECTION. EITHER THE CTLR AND THE AIRPLANE COULD NOT SEE US OR HAD FORGOTTEN ABOUT US. THE CTLR WAS VERY BUSY WITH A LOT OF TFC AND SEEMED TO BE HANDLING IT VERY WELL. I FELT IT IMPORTANT TO RPT; HOWEVER.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.