AN MD82 HAS A MULTI-FACETED PROB WITH TFC SPACING BTWN 2 OTHER ACFT DURING A REFUSED APCH TO RWY 30L LDA APCH AT STL; MO.

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ARRIVING STL ON QBALL ARR. CHKED IN WITH STL APCH. GIVEN 6500 FT AND HEADING; EXPECT LDA RWY 30L APCH. FO BEGAN DSCNT. ATIS HAD A RPTED 4 MI. DISCUSSION BTWN APCH CTL AND OTHER ACFT REGARDING VISIBILITY REQUIRED FOR APCH. APCH CTL STATED NEW MINIMUM WAS 4 MI. OUR CURRENT PLATE STL 11-7 LDA RWY 30L HAS MINIMUM OF 5 MI (DATED MAY/XX/99). I CHKED OUR FLT'S WX PACKET TO AGAIN REVIEW FDC AND COMPANY NOTAMS REGARDING LDA RWY 30L MINIMUMS CHANGE. ALSO CHKED CHART NOTAMS. FOUND NO NOTAMS. DURING THIS TIME ANOTHER ACFT DECLINED THE APCH. WHEN UNABLE TO FIND AUTH FOR LOWER APCH MINIMUMS ADVISED APCH CTLR WE WERE UNABLE TO ACCEPT LDA RWY 30L APCH DUE TO MINIMUMS. CTLR ISSUED CLRNC TO LEVEL AT 7000 FT. OTHER ACFT ALSO VOICED CONCERNS. CTLR SAID THERE WERE TOO MANY ACFT IN AIRSPACE SINCE WE WOULD NOT ACCEPT APCHS. LATER WHILE AT 7000 FT TCASII SHOWED ACFT AT 7000 FT IN OUR 10 O'CLOCK POS. TRIED TO CONTACT APCH; FREQ BUSY. TCASII ISSUED TFC ALERT FOR THE ACFT. STILL COULD NOT GET THROUGH TO APCH. WHEN RA SOUNDED 'DSND' FO IMMEDIATELY BEGAN DSCNT. RA SOUNDED AGAIN 'INCREASE DSCNT' TCASII DISPLACED RED BAND TO 2000 FT DOWN THEN GREEN BELOW 2000 FPM. ADVISED APCH WE WERE RESPONDING TO RA. NO REPLY FROM APCH. ANOTHER ACFT WAS SPOTTED BELOW US AS RA ACFT PASSED IN FRONT. CHKED TCASII LOWER ACFT AT 10 O'CLOCK POS. FO LEVELED OFF AS LOWER ACFT WENT BELOW AND BEHIND OUR ACFT. TRIED AGAIN TO ADVISE APCH OF RA AND TFC; NO RESPONSE. TCASII ISSUED CLR OF CONFLICT. WE BEGAN CLB BACK TO 7000 FT. SINCE TFC WAS AT 12 O'CLOCK POS AT 7000 FT WE SLOWLY CLBED TOWARDS 7000 FT. AGAIN NOTIFIED APCH CTL OF CONFLICTS AND RA. FINALLY APCH CTLR ANSWERED WITH FREQ AND HEADING CHANGE. THERE WAS NO ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF TCASII RA OR TFC CONFLICTS. CHANGED FREQ AND ADVISED RETURNING TO 7000 FT. GIVEN VECTORS TO ILS RWY 30R. REMAINDER OF FLT NORMAL. NO CTLR ACKNOWLEDGED OUR RA OR TFC. THE FO WAS FLYING FROM THE L SEAT AS PART OF COMPANY STUDENT CAPT IOE. THE TCASII RA DEALT WITH ACFT AT 7000 FT; BUT DID NOT SEEM TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT ACFT #2 ONCE RA WAS IN PROGRESS. CTLR APPARENTLY FORGOT US AS WE FLEW INTO OTHER APCH AIRSPACE.