DC9-30 FLC ALLEGEDLY FAILS TO GET THE STAR ARR ASSIGNED AND THIS DELAYS THEIR PLANNING THE APCH. WHEN FINALLY CLRED; THEY EXPERIENCE AN ALT BUST AND A HDG DEV. EXASPERATED APCH CTLR FINALLY RESORTS TO VECTORS FOR FLC TO MEM ARPT.

Narrative

WE WERE CLRED BY ZME TO GO DIRECT TO GILMORE. EVEN DURING THE DSCNT INTO MEM; WE WERE NEVER CLRED FOR THE GILMORE 1 ARR. MEM APCH DSNDED US TO 8000 FT AND AS WE APCHED GILMORE I ASKED WHAT HDG THEY WANTED OUT OF GILMORE. THEY TOLD US TO DO THE GILMORE 1. WE QUICKLY SET IT UP AND I BECAME A BIT DISTR BY A LINE OF CUMULO NIMBUS; SE OF MEM. THE COPLT/FO; BUSTED THROUGH 8000 FT; GOT TO 7600 FT THEN CLBED TO 8500 FT BEFORE SETTLING AT 8000 FT. THIS WAS CAUSED BY HIS SETTING UP THE ARR AS WE WERE ABOUT TO LEVEL. AS WE WERE DISCUSSING THE ALT BUST; MEM APCH TOLD US TO TURN TO A HDG OF 180 DEGS AT THE MEM 302 DEG RADIAL/8 DME. I ALREADY HAD MEM IN MY VOR. THE FO HAD GILMORE. SINCE THE MEM 302 DEG RADIAL/8 DME IS 'BOWEN' ON THE GQE 122 DEG RADIAL/12 DME; WHEN THE FO ASKED ME WHAT DME TO TURN ON; I SAID '12;' THINKING HE WAS STILL ON GQE. UNFORTUNATELY; HE HAD SWITCHED TO MEM AND THUS TURNED 4 MI TOO EARLY. MEM APCH CTLR GOT VERY UPSET WITH US AND PROCEEDED TO GIVE US RADAR VECTORS TO THE FIELD. WE GOT OURSELVES BEHIND BY NOT CLARIFYING THE ARR PROCS FURTHER OUT. LOTS OF TSTMS IN THE AREA DID NOT HELP EITHER. EACH PLT NEEDS TO TELL THE OTHER WHEN HE/SHE SWITCHES FREQS (OR NAV RADIOS).