NMAC BTWN AN SMT ATX COMMUTER AND A FLT OF 3 MIL HELI NEAR THE DEP END OF AN UNCTLED ARPT RWY.

Date: 1994-07 · Aircraft: Commercial Fixed Wing · Phase: initial_climb

Anomalies: conflict-nmac|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-other-unknown|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far|other-unspecified

Synopsis

NMAC BTWN AN SMT ATX COMMUTER AND A FLT OF 3 MIL HELI NEAR THE DEP END OF AN UNCTLED ARPT RWY.

Narrative

WE HAD BEEN MONITORING UNICOM 122.7 AT TUP ON JUL/XX/94 AND THEN CONTACTED ZME AND RECEIVED OUR CLRNC FOR RETURN FLT TO MEMPHIS. WE HEARD A NATIONAL GUARD HELI ANNOUNCE XING RWY 36 ON APCH TO PAD TUP (AFTER MY PRODDING ON UNICOM FOR OTHER TFC TO ANNOUNCE). WE TOLD HIM WE HAD HIM IN SIGHT AND THAT WE WERE GOING IN POS AND HOLD ON RWY 36. AFTER WAITING FOR THE GUARD HELI TO PASS WE FINISHED THE FINAL ITEMS ON THE CHKLIST AND ANNOUNCED 'TAKING OFF ON RWY 36 TUP DEP ON THE L XWIND.' AFTER TKOF WE NOTICED A FLT OF 3 GUARD HELI'S XING THE END OF RWY 36 HEADING FOR THEIR PAD. WE THEN HEARD THEM ANNOUNCE THAT A FLT OF 3 HELI'S WAS LNDG AT TUP. I KEPT THE FLAPS DOWN AT 10 DEG AND PASSED OVER THE HELI'S SINCE WE WERE FAR TOO LOW TO GO UNDER OR TO BANK RADICALLY. THE POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS WOULD OF COURSE BE A TWR AT TUP. BUT SINCE IT APPEARS THAT COMMUTERS ARE GOING TO HAVE TO CONTINUE TO FLY INTO UNCTLED ARPTS; IMPROVED RADAR COVERAGE AND IMPROVED COMS FOR ACFT IN THE AREA IS NEEDED. EVEN WHEN YOU ASSUME NO ONE IS AROUND MONITORING AND COMS INTENTIONS ON THE AVAILABLE FREQ WOULD HELP. NOTE 1: THE LATTER 3 HELI'S HAD A DIFFERENT FLT NUMBER THAN THE FIRST.

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