ACR B737 HAS FLAP PROB IS ON A VECTOR AT 3000 FT TO GIVE FLC TIME TO TROUBLESHOOT. ACFT GETS GPWS AND CLBS TO 4500 FT WHILE INFORMING THE CTLR. FLC DETERMINE THEY HAVE SPLIT FLAP PROB AND WHILE ON APCH REQUEST THE EMER EQUIP TO STAND BY.

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OUR FLT WAS ONLY 11 MI FROM THE OAK ARPT; WX WAS RPTED TO BE 800 FT OVCST AND 4 MI LIGHT RAIN. FLAPS WERE SELECTED TO POS #5 AND WERE NOTED TO JAM AT POS #1. POS #40 WAS NEEDED DUE TO POSSIBLE WET RWYS. ATC WAS ADVISED THAT WE HAD A PROB AND NEEDED EXTRA TIME TO TROUBLESHOOT. CTLR VECTORED US TO THE SE AND ADVISED WE WOULD SOON NEED MORE ALT DUE TO HILLS. THERE NOW SEEMED TO BE A LOT MORE ACFT ON THE APCH FREQ AND IT WAS DIFFICULT FOR ANYONE TO GET A WORD IN EDGEWISE. WX NOW SEEMED TO BE GETTING WORSE AND FO CONFIRMED WE HAD A SPLIT FLAP AND THE SYS WAS LOCKED IN THE #1 POS. ALL OF A SUDDEN WE RECEIVED THE AUTOMATIC TERRAIN AVOIDANCE ALARM AND EXECUTED A MAX RATE OF CLB TO 4500 FT. ATC WAS ADVISED OF THE CLB AND OUR FLT WAS ISSUED A VECTOR TO INTERCEPT ILS RWY 29. WX HAD NOW DROPPED TO 400 FT OVCST MINUS RAIN. EMER PROCS NOW RECALCULATED OUR LNDG SPD TO 165 KTS. WE REQUESTED EMER EQUIP TO STAND BY. WX WAS IN FACT SOLID DOWN TO 400 FT WHERE WE BROKE OUT AND LANDED WITHOUT ANY FURTHER PROB. THERE SEEMED TO BE TOO MUCH CONFUSION/CHATTER ON VHF AND A BREAKDOWN IN COM WITH ATC AS TO JUST HOW SERIOUS OUR FLAP PROB WAS. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR INDICATED THE ACFT DID NOT ROLL AS A RESULT OF THE SPLIT FLAP PROB WHICH AT FIRST WAS THOUGHT TO BE WITH THE FLAP INDICATOR. THE ACFT WAS OPERATING WITH AN MEL FOR THE SLAT INDICATOR. RPTR SAID THAT AFTER THE GPWS RPT TO THE CTLR; THE CTLR MENTIONED THAT IF THEY CONTINUED ON THE SAME HEADING; A HIGHER ALT WOULD BE NEEDED. AFTER DETERMINING THEY HAD A SPLIT FLAP PROB; THEY WERE VECTORED FOR THE ILS APCH. RPTR IS UNSURE OF WHOSE FREQ THE CALL FOR THE EMER EQUIP WAS MADE; APCH OR TWR. FLC DID NOT LEARN WHAT CAUSED THE SPLIT FLAP CONDITION.