A DC10-30 FLC DISCOVERED THAT THEIR ASSIGNED HDG WAS TAKING THEM OVER AN AREA THAT THEY HAD BEEN INSTRUCTED TO AVOID DURING DEP FROM HNL. AFTER SEVERAL QUERIES TO ATC REGARDING ASSIGNED HDG; THEY FOUND THAT THE ERROR HAD OCCURRED ON THEIR ACFT. FLC MANUALLY RESET DIRECTIONAL GYROSCOPE COMPASS SYS. TRACK DEV.

Date: 1996-02 · Aircraft: Widebody; Low Wing; 3 Turbojet Eng · Phase: initial_climb

Anomalies: deviation-track-heading-all-types|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-clearance

Synopsis

A DC10-30 FLC DISCOVERED THAT THEIR ASSIGNED HDG WAS TAKING THEM OVER AN AREA THAT THEY HAD BEEN INSTRUCTED TO AVOID DURING DEP FROM HNL. AFTER SEVERAL QUERIES TO ATC REGARDING ASSIGNED HDG; THEY FOUND THAT THE ERROR HAD OCCURRED ON THEIR ACFT. FLC MANUALLY RESET DIRECTIONAL GYROSCOPE COMPASS SYS. TRACK DEV.

Narrative

OUR ATC CLRNC WAS THE STANDARD R TURN TO A 155 DEG HDG AFTER TKOF. AFTER TKOF WE TURNED TO WHAT WE THOUGHT WAS THE ASSIGNED HDG; OF WHICH BOTH OUR DIRECTIONAL GYROSCOPE COMPASS SYS CONCURRED. WE HAD NO MORE QUESTIONED EACH OTHER AS TO WHY WE WERE FLYING SO CLOSE TO THE SHORELINE; WHEN ATC ASKED US IF WE WERE TURNING TO THE ASSIGNED HDG. WE XCHKED THE COMPASSES WHICH SAID WE WERE FLYING THE ASSIGNED 155 DEG HDG. IN QUICKLY XCHKING WITH THE WET COMPASS WE FOUND THAT WE WERE ACTUALLY FLYING ABOUT A 110 DEG HDG. WE PROMPTLY TURNED TO THE NEWLY ASSIGNED 270 DEG HDG USING THE WET COMPASS AND RESET BOTH DIRECTIONAL GYROSCOPE COMPASS SYS. ALTHOUGH BOTH COMPASS SYS WERE IN ERROR; THEY WERE WITHIN THE LIMITS OF THE COMPANY PARAMETERS WHEN COMPARED TO EACH OTHER. THIS KEPT US FROM INITIALLY CATCHING THE ERROR. WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE SITUATIONALLY AWARE OF THE ACFT HDG DURING THAT PART OF THE CHKLIST AND COMPARED IT WITH A KNOWN HDG. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 328790: OUR RELEASE PAPERS ARRIVED ABOUT 20-25 MINS LATER THAN USUAL; SO WE WERE A LITTLE HURRIED AT THIS POINT. ARRIVED AT THE ACFT WITHIN COMPANY PARAMETERS; BUT ABOUT 15 MINS LATER THAN I LIKE TO GET THERE. I PERFORMED MY PREFLT DUTIES CONSCIOUSLY NOT ATTEMPTING TO HURRY THEM. ALL CHKS AND CHKLISTS WERE COMPLETED SO AS TO PUSH FOR ENG START AND TAXI 9 MINS EARLY. TAXI OUT WAS NORMAL AND TKOF NORMAL. IN RETROSPECT; WHAT I THINK HAPPENED WAS THAT I WAS TRYING NOT TO HURRY; BUT IN FACT WAS HURRYING TO SOME EXTENT.

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