A CAPT OF A B747-400 EXECUTED A MISSED APCH ON FINAL TO RWY 6R DUE TO A WHITEOUT CONDITION CAUSED BY BLOWING SNOW FROM A DEPARTING B747.

Narrative

ON NOV/XA/99 I WAS PIC OF A B747-400 ATL-ANC. PRT ARR WE CHK ANC ATIS WHICH INDICATED VMC AND LNDGS BEING CONDUCTED TO ILS RWY 6R. ANC APCH ADVISED US TO EXPECT ILS APCH AND LNDG RWY 6R. APCHING THE FAF AT 1600 FT MSL STILL IN IMC; APCH ADVISED US TO CONTACT THE TWR. TWR ADVISED US AND CLRED US FOR THE 'ILS RWY 6R APCH SIDESTEP TO LAND RWY 6L.' MY FO READ BACK THE CLRNC TO THE TWR. AT 800 FT MSL I SAW THE ARPT ENVIRONMENT AND AT 700 FT I HAD RWY 6R IN SIGHT BUT NOT RWY 6L. AT THIS TIME I NOTICED SNOW REMOVAL EQUIP ON RWY 6R. AT THE SAME TIME WE WERE ON APCH; ACR Y (AN ACR B747 FREIGHTER) TOLD THE TWR THAT HE WAS ON RWY 6L WAITING TO TAKE OFF ON RWY 32. TWR CLRED ACR Y FOR TKOF -- HE DEPARTED. I AGAIN REPLIED TO MY CREW THAT I DID NOT HAVE RWY 6L IN SIGHT AND QUERIED MY CREW. THE FO AND 2 OBSERVERS REPLIED THAT THEY DID NOT. AT 600 FT MSL I EXECUTED A MISSED APCH WHEN I ENTERED A 'WHITEOUT CONDITION' CAUSED BY BLOWING SNOW. WE WERE VECTORED AROUND WHERE WE FLEW THE ILS RWY 6R SIDESTEP TO LAND RWY 6L WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. I FELT THIS INCIDENT AND POSSIBLE RWY INCURSION COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED IF ONE OF THE LOC AND VISUAL LNDG AIDS FOR WY 6L WERE OPERABLE. ADDITIONALLY; TWR SHOULD SEQUENCE DEPARTING AND ARRIVING TFC ACCORDINGLY TO AVOID WHITEOUT CONDITIONS CAUSED BY BLOWING SNOW AND JETBLAST. RWY 6R'S CLOSURE DUE TO SNOW REMOVAL SHOULD HAVE BEEN BROADCASTED ON AN UPDATED ATIS; PLUS NOTIFICATION BY APCH. I REQUEST THE TWR AND APCH TAPES SHOULD BE REVIEWED FOR FURTHER ANALYSIS.