A LOW TIME PLT IN AN SMA FLYING OVER AN UNFAMILIAR AREA AT NIGHT BECAME DISORIENTED AND OVERFLEW HIS DEST AND ENTERED NEARBY CLASS B AIRSPACE AND INITIALLY REFUSED TO ACCEPT CORRECTIVE VECTORS FROM A CTLR. RPTR CLAIMS THAT FEAR MADE HIM REFUSE THE VECTOR.
Synopsis
A LOW TIME PLT IN AN SMA FLYING OVER AN UNFAMILIAR AREA AT NIGHT BECAME DISORIENTED AND OVERFLEW HIS DEST AND ENTERED NEARBY CLASS B AIRSPACE AND INITIALLY REFUSED TO ACCEPT CORRECTIVE VECTORS FROM A CTLR. RPTR CLAIMS THAT FEAR MADE HIM REFUSE THE VECTOR.
Narrative
WE WERE RETURNING TO MYF IN SAN DIEGO; CA; FROM THE SE. UP UNTIL RECENTLY; WE HAD FLT FOLLOWING SVC FROM SOCAL APCH; BUT THEY HAD TERMINATED RADAR SVC AND INSTRUCTED US TO SQUAWK 1200. AT THIS POINT; WE WERE DSNDING OUT OF ABOUT 6000 FT MSL. WE FLEW PAST GILLESPIE FIELD AND CONTINUED FLYING W. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT (AND WHY IT HAPPENED) IS NOT VERY CLR. WE WERE UNFAMILIAR WITH THE AREA; AND IT WAS NIGHTTIME. WE FLEW PAST MT HELIX; WHICH ALMOST LOOKED LIKE WE WERE NEXT TO COWLES MOUNTAIN; PUTTING US ENRTE TO MONTGOMERY. WE DID NOT SPOT THE BEACON; SO WE CONTINUED FLYING W. A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR TO THE CONFLICT WAS THE FACT THAT BECAUSE WE WERE DSNDING; WE WERE GOING FASTER; COVERING MORE MI. WE SPOTTED A BEACON; AND A RWY WITH A BUNNY (LEAD IN STROBE LIGHTS) AHEAD. WE CAME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT IT WAS MONTGOMERY AND SET UP AN APCH. WE WERE NO LONGER ON THE SOCAL FREQ. OUR PROB WAS THAT THE ARPT WE HAD SET UP THE APCH FOR WAS SAN DIEGO INTL RWY 27. WE WERE DOWN TO 2000 FT MSL. IT WAS THEN THAT OUR BACK SEAT PAX POINTED OUT THAT WE WERE NEXT TO DOWNTOWN. REALIZING THAT WE WERE IN THE WAY OF LARGE ACFT; WE CUT TO THE NE OUT OF THE WAY. 2 PLANES WERE APCHING; THE NEAREST ABOUT 4 MI OUT. SOON AFTER; WE FOUND MONTGOMERY AND LANDED SAFELY. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 382810: WE KNEW THAT WE HAD RADAR SVC; EXCEPT THAT SOCAL HADN'T TALKED TO US SINCE THE INITIAL CONTACT. SO; WE MAINTAINED OUR HEADING AND ALT. WE WERE APCHING SAN DIEGO CLASS B AIRSPACE; AND BECAUSE OF FLT FOLLOWING; WE ENTERED IT. SOON AFTER; WE RECEIVED A VECTOR TO 290 DEGS. WE DID NOT TURN. THERE WAS A FEAR FACTOR INVOLVED; SINCE THIS HEADING WOULD LEAD US THROUGH THE FINAL APCH OF SAN DIEGO INTL. A COUPLE MINS LATER; THEY CAME BACK AND TOLD US TO TURN 290 DEGS AGAIN; AND WE DID IT; WITH WAKE TURB ANXIETY.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.