B767 PIC'S COMPLAINT OF THE LAHSO OP IN BOS DURING A NIGHT OP. ACFT WAS TURNED OFF RWY 22L AT TXWY P JUST PRIOR TO RWY 27. ACR Y WAS JUST PASSING THROUGH RWY 22L ON RWY 27. RPTR'S COMPLAINT PERTAINS TO LACK OF AWARENESS OF HIS ACFT'S POS RELATIVE TO RWY 27.

Narrative

FOR SEVERAL MONTHS NOW I HAVE BEEN VERY CONCERNED ABOUT LAHSO AND THE VERY REAL POTENTIAL FOR COLLISION. I ACKNOWLEDGE THE FACT THAT WE CAN STOP OUR ACFT WITHIN THE ALLOTTED DISTANCE UNDER IDEAL CONDITIONS. MY PROB WITH LAHSO IS THAT I CANNOT GUARANTEE WE WILL MAKE IT EVERY TIME. SHOULD I AS CAPT PLACE MY CREW; PAX AND ACFT IN JEOPARDY BY ACCEPTING A LAHSO WHEN I KNOW THAT ANY COMBINATION OF FACTORS COULD RESULT IN AN OVERSHOOT? A SLIGHT AIRSPD INCREASE; A LITTLE FLOAT; DELAY IN BRAKING; GARS; ABORTS; ANTI-SKID FAILURE; UNSTABLIZED APCHS; SLAM DUNKS AND A HOST OF OTHER VARIABLES MAKES LAHSO A RISKY OP AT BEST. IT WON'T TAKE MUCH TO BLOW A LAHSO AND RIP THROUGH AN INTERSECTING RWY WITH DISASTROUS RESULTS. NOW MY STORY. BOSTON ON A CLR DARK NIGHT. CLRED TO LAND RWY 22L HOLD SHORT OF RWY 27. LNDG TFC ON FINAL RWY 27. TOUCHDOWN WAS NORMAL AND WITHIN 1000 FT. DECELERATION WAS NORMAL; HOWEVER; WE HAD NO INDICATION OF HOW FAR DOWN RWY 27 WAS. WE HAD NOT SEEN ANY TAXI LIGHTS OR HIGH SPD TURNOFFS. DID WE OVERSHOOT? WHERE WAS THE LNDG TFC? ABOUT THE TIME WE LAID INTO THE BRAKES TXWY P CAME INTO VIEW. ACR Y COMES TO A HALT IN FRONT OF US ON RWY 27. IF WE HAD OVERRUN RWY 27 WE WOULD HAVE COLLIDED. I CAN'T JUSTIFY THIS OP IN ORDER TO PACK MORE AIRPLANES INTO THE ARPT. THE SAME HOLDS TRUE FOR TKOFS. ARE WE ACCEPTING THE OTHER ACFT'S GUARANTEE OF STOPPING SHORT WHILE WE TKOF? HOW ABOUT 2 ACFT LNDG ON XING RWYS WITH A LAHSO GIVEN TO THE OTHER GUY. SHOULD WE ACCEPT HIS GUARANTEE THAT HE WILL NOT OVERSHOOT AS WE LAND? I BELIEVE LAHSO IS AN ACCIDENT WAITING TO HAPPEN AND SHOULD BE SUSPENDED. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR STATED THAT THIS WAS AN AGENDA ITEM TO POINT OUT THE DANGER OF THESE TYPES OF CLRNCS; PARTICULARLY AT NIGHT AT BOS. HE STATED THAT THERE IS A DECIDED LACK OF GUIDANCE TO INFORM THE PLTS AS TO WHERE THEY ARE IN RELATION TO RWY 27. HIS AIRLINE MANUAL SHOWS A DISTANCE OF 6400 FT FOR LNDG ON RWY 22L WITH A LAHSO OF RWY 27. AN ADDITIONAL PROB MENTIONED WAS THAT THE LAHSO WAS NOT RECEIVED UNTIL ON FINAL APCH; 5 MI OUT AND ON TWR FREQ. HE ADDED THAT TXWY P IS THE NORMAL EXIT POINT OFF RWY 22L AND THAT IS WHERE HE EXITED JUST AS THE OTHER ACFT WAS GOING THROUGH RWY 22L. NO CONFLICT OCCURRED BUT COULD HAVE HAD A MALFUNCTION OF ANY SORT ARISEN.