WITHOUT ANY NOTICE THIS RPTR SUDDENLY FOUND HIMSELF IN HIGH SPD MANEUVERING AT A LOW ALT; AND WITHOUT GUIDANCE INTO EWR. THE RPTR'S E120 HAD BEEN ORIGINALLY CLRED 'DOWN THE RIVER' VFR; BUT NEAR THE BOUNDARY OF EWR CLASS B; THIS CLRNC WAS CANCELED.
Synopsis
WITHOUT ANY NOTICE THIS RPTR SUDDENLY FOUND HIMSELF IN HIGH SPD MANEUVERING AT A LOW ALT; AND WITHOUT GUIDANCE INTO EWR. THE RPTR'S E120 HAD BEEN ORIGINALLY CLRED 'DOWN THE RIVER' VFR; BUT NEAR THE BOUNDARY OF EWR CLASS B; THIS CLRNC WAS CANCELED.
Narrative
WHILE ON AN IFR FLT PLAN TO EWR; WHILE IN THE VICINITY OF THE CARMEL VOR; WE WERE TOLD BY NEW YORK APCH THAT EWR WAS ACCEPTING VFR ARRS 'DOWN THE RIVER.' WE CANCELED OUR IFR FLT PLAN AND WERE TOLD BY APCH TO DSND TO 2000 FT AND FLY DIRECT TO THE TAPPAN ZEE BRIDGE AND THEN DOWN THE HUDSON RIVER TOWARD THE STATUE OF LIBERTY. SOON AFTER PASSING THE TAPPAN ZEE BRIDGE WE WERE HANDED OFF TO THE LGA TWR. UPON PASSING ABEAM THE TEB ARPT OVER THE HUDSON RIVER; THE LGA TWR TOLD US TO 'FLY N' AND THEN DSND BELOW THE CLASS B AIRSPACE. WE WERE TOLD EWR WAS NOT ACCEPTING VFR ARRS ANYMORE. AS WE EXECUTED OUR R TURN TO N (L WAS NOT POSSIBLE AT OUR ALT DUE TO THE BUILDINGS OF NYC) LGA SAID WE WERE APCHING THE TEB AIRSPACE. (WE REMAINED AT 2000 FT MSL.) LGA THEN TOLD US TO CONTINUE OUR TURN TO PROCEED BACK DOWN THE HUDSON AGAIN BELOW 1100 FT MSL AND THEN HOLD AT THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE UNTIL EWR ACCEPTED VFR ARRS AGAIN. THIS TYPE OF MANEUVERING IS UNSAFE. AT OUR SPD AND THE ALTS WE FLY; THE AIRSPACE SAFELY ALLOWS A DIRECT PATH DOWN THE RIVER AND INTO EWR. ONCE WE ARE TOLD A VFR ARR IS ACCEPTED; THE CTLRS MUST BE COMMITTED TO ACCEPTING THOSE THAT HAVE BEGUN THE ARR. ELSE THE VFR ARR PROGRAM SHOULD BE DISALLOWED. THEY MUST NOT BE ABLE TO CHANGE THEIR MIND MID WAY. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: THIS ONE INCIDENT; OUT OF 50 GOOD ARRS; HAS TURNED THIS RPTR OFF TO ACCEPTING THIS CLRNC AGAIN. WHEN THE LGA TWR CANCELED THE RIVER CLRNC; THIS CREW FELT LIKE THEY WERE LEFT HANGING -- ALL THAT WAS SAID WAS 'TURN L BELOW THE TCA; SQUAWK VFR; GOOD DAY.' THIS RPTR CAPT WAS UPSET BY THE HANDLING AND ONLY THROUGH ASSERTION; GOT THE HOLD CLRNC AT VERRAZANO BRIDGE. AN ATR HAD BEEN 5 NM AHEAD; AND RECEIVED THE SAME HANDLING.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.