TOO HIGH CLOSE IN TO ACCEPT VISUAL APCH.

Narrative

AFTER GETTING THE ATIS FOR JAX WHICH STATED A VISUAL APCH FOR RWY 31 JAX; WE SET UP FOR RWY 31 JAX. WE WERE ARRIVING FROM THE N (GOING S). AFTER SWITCHING RADIOS TO APCH CTL; APCH GAVE US A TURN TO THE R (THIS TURN PUT US ON A PRETTY GOOD DOWNWIND TO RWY 31 JAX). WE WERE CLRED TO 2000 FT (WE SET UP AND BRIEFED FOR RWY 31; WITH THE BACK COURSE 31 ILS SET UP TOO). SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 292950: EVIDENTLY; SUBSEQUENT INFO WAS RELEASED THAT THE ARR RWY WAS CHANGED TO RWY 7. PRIOR TO ABEAM RWY 7; APCH ASKED US IF WE HAD THE ARPT IN SIGHT. WE SAID YES; AND WERE CLRED FOR THE VISUAL TO RWY 7. SEEING THAT WE WERE TOO HIGH TO MAKE A SAFE APCH; WE REQUESTED A L 360 DEG TURN. THIS WAS DENIED AND WE WERE INSTRUCTED TO CLB TO 3000 FT AND GIVEN NUMEROUS HDG CHANGES. WE WERE ALSO THEN TOLD TO MAINTAIN 2000 FT AND THAT THERE WERE NUMEROUS ACFT IN THE AREA. DURING THIS EPISODE THERE WERE MANY BROKEN OR 'STEPPED ON' XMISSIONS. THESE EVENTS COULD HAVE BEEN RELEASED OR HAD INDICATED WHAT APCH WE COULD PLAN ON DURING INITIAL CONTACT.