SMT LANDS AT ROAD CONSTRUCTION SITE WHICH APPEARED AS A RWY AND PARALLEL TO THE RWY.

Date: 1994-11 · Aircraft: Cessna 340/340A

Anomalies: inflight-event-encounter-cftt-cfit|other-unspecified

Synopsis

SMT LANDS AT ROAD CONSTRUCTION SITE WHICH APPEARED AS A RWY AND PARALLEL TO THE RWY.

Narrative

I WAS ON A SHORT FLT FROM CARLSBAD PALOMAR ARPT (CTLED ARPT) TO OCEANSIDE ARPT (UNCTLED) 7 NM TO THE NW. I WAS FLYING OUR COMPANY'S CPR TWIN CESSNA 340 TO PICK UP MY PAX. IN THE AFTERNOON; I CALLED SAN DIEGO FSS FOR A STANDARD WX BRIEFING AND ASKED FOR ANY LCL NOTAMS FOR MY DEST ARPT JUST A FEW MINS FLT TIME AWAY. AFTER RECEIVING MY BRIEFING; I TOOK OFF FROM CARLSBAD WITH AN IFR CLRNC TO OCEANSIDE. AFTER COMING THROUGH THIN LAYERS OF BROKEN OVCST; I RPTED BASES 700 TOPS 1300 FT AND CANCELED IFR. IT APPEARED THE FOG LINE WAS NOT QUITE AS FAR INLAND AS OCEANSIDE ARPT. I REQUESTED VFR AT 2500 FT AND HEADED DIRECT USING RNAV AND DEADRECKONING. WITH THE ARPT IN SIGHT 3 MI OUT I RPTED I WAS TO THE SE 2500 FT FOR L BASE. UNICOM SUGGESTED R TFC FOR RWY 24 FOR NOISE ABATEMENT. I SAID THANK YOU AND RPTED I WAS REMAINING AT 2500 FT AND WOULD CIRCLE TO NW FOR R 45 DEG FOR RWY 24. NO TFC WAS RPTED; HEARD OR SEEN IN THE AREA. I STARTED MY DSCNT FROM 1800 FT ON DOWNWIND WHILE KEEPING THE RWY IN SIGHT. THE SUN WAS AT MY BACK ON DOWNWIND. AS I WAS TURNING BASE; THE RWY BECAME HAZY BUT THE OUTLINE OF THE RWY WAS STILL IN SIGHT. WHEN I TURNED FINAL; THE SUN WAS IN MY EYES AND THE HAZE WAS AMPLIFIED. ALL I COULD SEE WAS THE OUTLINE OF WHAT I CLRLY THOUGH WAS THE RWY. I SAW THE ROAD WHICH WAS AT A 45 DEG ANGLE PRIOR TO THE RWY. I WAS CONFIDENT I WAS ON TRACK FOR RWY 24. MY RNAV AS BACKUP TO MY VISUAL CLUES CONFIRMED CORRECT GENERAL DIRECTION AND ALL MADE SENSE. RIGHT AS I GOT TO A POINT OF APCHING TO LAND; I SAW THE RWY DID NOT HAVE A CTRLINE AND LOOKED UNUSUAL. IT FIRST APPEARED THEY HAD DONE SANDBLASTING TO DEFACE THE RWY. I THEN REALIZED IT WAS DIRT. AFTER GETTING THAT LOW; THE SUN WAS BLOCKED BY THE FOG ON THE COAST AND I COULD SEE THE RWY AHEAD AND IT LOOKED CLR AND SMOOTH (WHICH IT WAS) AND I FELT THE SAFEST THING TO DO WAS LAND. AS I ROLLED OUT TO THE END; I BELIEVED THIS WAS NOT THE SAME RWY I HAVE LANDED IN THE PAST OR THEY WERE BUILDING A LONGER RWY FOR THE ARPT NEXT TO THE ORIGINAL ONE. I REMEMBER THINKING THIS WAS NOT ON THE LCL NOTAMS I REQUESTED AND BELIEVED IT COULD ONLY BE A NEW DIRT STRIP BEING LAID OUT. IT HAD THE EXACT DIMENSIONS OF THE OCEANSIDE ARPT; EXCEPT IT MAY BE LONGER. IT EVEN HAD A TXWY ON THE S SIDE OF THE RWY. I TRULY THOUGHT I WAS ON THE OCEANSIDE ARPT EXCEPT WITH THE ADDITION OF A DIRT STRIP SIMILAR TO SANTA YNEZ WHICH IS USED FOR GLIDERS. I PROCEEDED DOWN THE TXWY AND TAXIED INTO POS (24 HDG) AND TOOK OFF FOR ANOTHER LOOK AT EVERYTHING. I REALIZED RIGHT AFTER TKOF THE CORRECT RWY WAS DIRECTLY TO MY R AND DIRECTLY PARALLEL MY PREVIOUS LNDG. AFTER COMING AROUND TO LAND ON THE PAVED RWY I DECIDED THERE WAS SOMETHING VERY WRONG AND BALKED THE APCH AND HEADED TOWARD THE COAST STARTING AROUND 800 TO 1000 FT AS I RECALL ON MY INITIAL CLB. UNICOM MENTIONED THE NOISE ABATEMENT FOR THE AREA AND SUGGESTED I HEAD OUT TOWARD THE OCEAN PRIOR TO RE-ENTERING THE PATTERN. 'THREE'S A CHARM' HE STATED; MEANING HE EXPECTED I WOULD COME AROUND AGAIN. I FELT IT BEST TO GO BACK TO CARLSBAD AND START GATHERING THE DETAILS OF WHAT HAD JUST HAPPENED AND EXACTLY WHY I WAS NOT INFORMED OF THIS NEW STRIP PROBABLY 50 YDS OR SO FROM THE MAIN RWY. IT TURNS OUT THE AREA I LANDED WAS A NEW FREEWAY BEING BUILT RIGHT NEXT TO THE RWY (SEE DIAGRAM). I AM VERY CONCERNED SUCH AN OBVIOUS POTENTIAL HAZARD EXISTED AND YET THERE WAS NO MENTION OF IT FROM ANYONE; NOT FSS OR UNICOM. I REALIZE IT IS NOT UNICOM'S RESPONSIBILITY TO MENTION; BUT AN OBVIOUS LCL NOTAM FOR FSS. IN ADDITION; THERE WAS NO MARKING ANYWHERE INDICATING THIS WAS NOT SUITABLE FOR LNDG. I AM AN EXTREMIST TO THE STUDY AND SAFE PRACTICES OF FLYING AND MAINTAIN A RECURRENT TRAINING PROGRAM ALWAYS. I HAVE NEVER HAD AN AVIATION INCIDENT OF ANY KIND IN MY 8 YRS OF FLYING OR ANY TFC VIOLATIONS. I PRACTICE SAFE STANDARDIZATION IN ALL ASPECTS OF MY LIFE. I BELIEVE; HAD I KNOWN THERE WAS CONSTRUCTION GOING ON NEXT THE ARPT; WHICH RESEMBLED THE EXISTING RWY SO CLOSELY; I WOULD HAVE NEVER ATTEMPTED TO CONTINUE THE APCH PAST MY BASE TURN UNDER THE CONDITIONS. I WOULD HAVE HAD SOME DOUBT TO THE RWY LAYOUT I WAS FLYING TOWARD AND BALKED THE APCH DURING BASE WHEN NOTICING THE DECREASING VISIBILITY OF THE RWY. I WAS IN NO HURRY TO GET THERE AND WAS NOT UNDER ANY PRESSURE TO GET INTO THE ARPT FROM MY EMPLOYER. I KNEW IT WOULD HAVE ONLY TOOK MY PAX A FEW MINS OUT OF THEIR WAY TO GO BACK TO CARLSBAD FOR OUR DEP; TRULY NOT A PROB FOR ALL PARTIES. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR STATES THAT SEVERAL PEOPLE AT THE ARPT STATED THEY KNEW SOMEONE WAS GOING TO MAKE A LNDG ON THE FREEWAY JUST BECAUSE IT LOOKED SO MUCH LIKE THE RWY FROM ALT. A SECOND ACFT ALSO LANDED THERE A FEW DAYS LATER. RPTR DID EXCELLENT FOLLOW UP WITH FAA AND THERE IS NOW A LCL NOTAM REF THE CONSTRUCTION AND A LARGE X WILL BE PLACED AT THE END OF THE SITE. THE FAA REPRESENTATIVE ALSO SPOKE TO THE ARPT MGR WHO WILL ADD A COMMENT ABOUT THE SIMILARITY ON THE UNICOM. RPTR TOOK PHOTOGRAPHS AND FAXED THOSE AND HIS NASA RPT TO THE FAA REPRESENTATIVE HE CONFERRED WITH. WHAT LOOKS LIKE A TXWY BESIDE THE FREEWAY IS ACTUALLY A ROAD FOR THE TRUCKS COMING AND GOING ON THE PROJECT.

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