FLC FAILS TO COMPLY WITH ALT RESTR DURING VOR APCH.

Narrative

WASHINGTON APCH 124.7; XA00Z. FO PNF RPTING. ATIS WAS RPTING LDA DME 18 APCH IN USE. CLOSE IN; ATC ASSIGNED VOR DME 18 APCH. WX WAS 900 FT OVCST 10 MI; WIND 180 DEGS 20 KTS. CAPT QUICKLY BRIEFED THE APCH; BUT MISSED THE VISUAL DSCNT POINT AT MAP; WHICH I POINTED OUT LATER. DUE TO LOW LIGHT SETTING; CONTINUOUS LIGHT CHOP; AND VERY BUSY; NEITHER OF US NOTICED SMALL CROSS AT 5 DME AND INTERPRETED CHART 13-3 TO READ BONDS 10 DME IS FAF. THE STRAIGHT DSNDING LINE FROM BONDS LED US TO THINK THE DSCNT IS CONTINUOUS TO 706 MDH. USING STANDARD NON PRECISION APCH PROCS; WE BEGAN OUR DSCNT AT BONDS. ATC ADVISED LOW ALT ALERT AT 1800 FT. I SAID WE WERE OVER 1000 FT ABOVE OUR MDH. ATC SAID HE HAS BEEN GETTING A LOT OF FALSE WARNINGS. SAID HE THOUGHT IT WAS A COMPUTER GLITCH. WE REACHED MDH AT ABOUT 4 DME. ONLY WHEN WE WERE PARKED AT THE GATE DID I CATCH OUR MISTAKE. DUE TO STRONG HEAD WIND WE WERE EARLY GETTING DOWN; PROBABLY 500 FT LOW. CHART VERT PROFILE NEEDS TO BE CHANGED TO SHOW 5 DME FAF CROSS MUCH LARGER AND BOLDER. ALSO; DSCNT SHOULD BE SHOWN AS A SERIES OF STEP DOWNS AND NOT AS A STRAIGHT; CONTINUOUS LINE.