ACR ACFT TAKES THE WRONG TXWY DURING A SNOWSTORM AND REQUESTS A TURNAROUND ON THE RWY. THE PLT MISUNDERSTANDS CLRNC TO HOLD SHORT AND TAXIED ONTO THE ACTIVE RWY WHILE ANOTHER ACR WAS LNDG. A MISSED APCH WAS ISSUED.

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THE WX WAS OVCST WITH BLOWING SNOW; 1/2 MI VISIBILITY. WE HAD BEEN DEICED AND HAD A 30 MIN HOLDOVER TIME. WE WERE TAXIING FROM GATE AT SDF TO RWY 35. IN ORDER TO EXPEDITE THE TAXI; WE ASKED FOR AND RECEIVED PERMISSION TO TAXI ACROSS THE DEP END OF RWY 19 TO USE TXWY D TO THE RWY. IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT TO SEE TO TAXI AS THE SNOW WAS BLOWING HORIZLY AND THE SNOW WAS MELTING AND RUNNING DOWN THE WINDSCREEN. WINDSHIELD WIPERS WERE NECESSARY. WHILE LOOKING AT THE CHARTS PRIOR TO TAXI; WE KNEW TXWY D WAS THE PROPER TXWY TO LOOK FOR. AS WE CROSSED OVER THE END OF RWY 19 WE WERE LOOKING FOR TXWY D AND THERE WAS A SPLIT IN THE TXWY; ONE WITH A SLIGHT TURN TO THE R AND ONE WITH A SLIGHT TURN TO THE L. SINCE WE WERE LOOKING FOR TXWY D; WE TURNED L AND FOLLOWED IT; ONLY TO REALIZE THAT WE WERE APCHING THE END OF RWY 17; SO WE STOPPED. WE ADVISED GND WHERE WE WERE. THEY ASKED US IF WE WERE CLR OF THE RWY. WE SAID YES. THEN WE ADVISED THAT WE WOULD NEED TO BACK TAXI ONTO THE RWY TO EXIT AGAIN AND RESUME OUR TAXI ON TXWY D. THEY ADVISED US TO HOLD FOR TFC ON FINAL. WE ACKNOWLEDGED HOLDING. THEN WE TOLD THEM THAT ALL WE NEEDED TO DO WAS TO MAKE A 'U' TURN ONTO TXWY K AND THEN BACK ONTO TXWY D. GND THEN SAID 'CLRED AS REQUESTED.' WE BEGAN TO TAXI ONTO THE RWY AND GND SAID 'HOLD YOUR POS.' WE COULD NOT HOLD OUR POS WITHOUT SITTING ON AN ACTIVE RWY; SO WE RAPIDLY EXITED THE RWY AT TXWY K AS WE HAD BEEN PREVIOUSLY CLRED TO DO. WE ADVISED THAT WE WERE CLR OF THE RWY AND WERE PROCEEDING ON TXWY D. WE THEN WERE ASKED IF WE WERE GIVEN CLRNC TO GO ONTO THE RWY; WE SAID YES. THERE WAS A BIT OF SILENCE ON THE RADIO AND ANOTHER QUESTION WAS ASKED ABOUT OUR CLRNC. WE REPEATED WHAT WE HAD ASKED FOR AND WHAT OUR CLRNC HAD BEEN. WE CONTINUED OUR TAXI AND SWITCHED TO TWR FREQ NEAR THE END OF RWY 35. WE WERE THEN GIVEN A PHONE NUMBER TO CALL UPON ARR IN ATL. WE ACKNOWLEDGED THE REQUEST. WE CALLED THE NUMBER AN SPOKE TO MR X. HE SAID THAT THEY HAD PULLED THE TAPES AND REVIEWED THEM; THEY WERE TAKING ACTION AGAINST THE GND CTLR AND THAT WE HAD DONE NOTHING WRONG. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 331283: ACR X; AN MD88; WAS TAXIED TO THE DEP RWY. PLT WAS CONFUSED ABOUT TAXI RTE AND RWY. ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE RTE WERE GIVEN. PLT REQUESTED TO TAXI VIA A DIFFERENT RTE. THIS ALTERNATE RTE IS OPPOSITE DIRECTION OF THE RTE ARR ACFT USE TO TAXI FROM THE ACTIVE RWY TO THE TERMINAL. NO ACFT WERE CLOSE ON FINAL SO I TAXIED THE ACFT AS REQUESTED. PLT MADE A WRONG TURN; THOUGHT HE WAS ON ANOTHER TXWY; INFORMED ME HE NEEDED TO GO ON THE RWY. 2 MINS LATER THE PLT SAID 'LET ME CLARIFY; WE JUST NEED TO DO A U-TURN ON; (CLICK SOUND) FROM TXWY D TO TXWY K BACK TO TXWY D. I DID NOT HEAR THE CLICK OR FROM (IT WAS SAID VERY FAST) I SAW THE MD88; THOUGHT HE COULD TURN R; CROSSOVER TXWY K TO GET BACK ON TXWY D; SO I SAID 'PROCEED AS REQUESTED AND PROCEED SBOUND TXWY D. DURING THE CLICK HE MAY HAVE SAID RWY 35 (THE ACTIVE RWY). THE ACR X JET WENT OUT ON THE RWY 400 FT THEN OFF WHEN ACR Y; A DC9 WAS ON SHORT FINAL. WHEN THE DC9 WAS TOLD TO GAR HE WAS PAST THE THRESHOLD AT 100 FT; WHILE THE MD88 WAS AT THE DEP END OF THE RWY. BAD VISIBILITY; STEADY GND TFC; NEEDING TO WATCH FOR MOVING TFC; COORDINATING WITH LCL CTL FOR RWY XINGS AND TRAINING ON LCL WERE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS. ANOTHER POS IN THE TWR SAW ACR X ON THE RWY AND LCL SENT THE DC9 AROUND. MY INEXPERIENCE WITH JET ACFT TURNING PERFORMANCE; I WAS AT A LEVEL 1 TWR BEFORE SDF CONTRIBUTED. I THOUGHT A 180 DEG TURN ON THE TXWY WAS POSSIBLE AND SINCE THE PLT CLARIFIED WHAT HE WANTED TO DO WITHOUT SAYING HE NEEDED TO GO ON THE RWY; I PROCEED AS REQUESTED. I WAS BUSY; DIDN'T KEEP AN EYE ON ACR X AND HE GOT ON THE RWY. I LEARNED TO; IN THE FUTURE; SAY PROCEED AS REQUESTED; REMAIN CLR OF RWY 35. THEN THE PLT WOULD SAY; I CAN'T DO THAT; AND WE'D BE ON THE SAME PAGE.