2000-01 · NASA ASRS report 461673
C560 CREW HAD TRACK DEV DEPARTING DCA.
DEP FROM DCA. CLRNC WAS 'RWY 1; AFTER TKOF; L TURN AS SOON AS PRACTICABLE TO INTERCEPT THE DCA 328 DEG RADIAL; NOISE ABATEMENT PROC; MAINTAIN 5000 FT.' WE USE GOV CHARTS AND SEARCHED THE DCA PROCS FOR ANY REF TO NOISE ABATEMENT AND FOUND NONE. THERE IS NO SID AT DCA BUT IN THE 'TKOF MINIMUMS' SECTION OF THE GOV BOOK WE FOUND A DEP PROC FOR RWY 1 THAT STATES 'TURN L AS SOON AS PRACTICABLE; INTERCEPT DCA 328 DEG RADIAL. CLB TO 5000 FT OR AS ASSIGNED.' AFTER TKOF; I TURNED L TO INTERCEPT THE 328 DEG RADIAL; CLBING TO INITIAL ALT OF 5000 FT. SHORTLY AFTER THE TURN TO INTERCEPT; THE PNF INFORMED ME THAT I HAD OVERSHOT THE RADIAL; SO I BEGAN A TURN TO THE R TO REINTERCEPT. AT THAT POINT THE CTLR CALLED AND ASKED US WHAT WE WERE DOING. THE PNF STATED THAT WE WERE INTERCEPTING THE 328 DEG RADIAL. THE CTLR THEN STATED THAT WE WERE 'SUPPOSED TO FOLLOW THE RIVER' ON THE ASSIGNED DEP. HE MADE NO FURTHER COMMENTS ABOUT OUR 'MISTAKE' BUT INFORMED US THAT HE WOULD HAVE TO TURN US N TO AVOID OTHER TFC THAT WAS W OF OUR COURSE. WE FOLLOWED HIS VECTOR INSTRUCTIONS AND PROCEEDED ON THE DEP UNDER POSITIVE RADAR CTL. AFTER REACHING CRUISE FLT; WE RESEARCHED ALL OF THE GOV DOCUMENTS THAT WE HAD ON THE ACFT AND FOUND NO REF TO THE PROC THAT WE WERE GIVEN AT DCA. AFTER THE FLT WE CONTACTED ANOTHER DEPT THAT USES COMMERCIAL CHARTS AND WERE INFORMED THAT THEIR CHARTS HAVE A DETAILED TEXTUAL ACCOUNT OF THE PROC THAT THE CTLR HAD GIVEN US; WITH INSTRUCTIONS TO FOLLOW THE RIVER DURING THE INITIAL PHASE OF THE DEP. THIS LACK OF PERTINENT INFO CAN CREATE SERIOUS HAZARDS AS WELL AS CONFUSION FOR THE CREW DURING A CRITICAL PHASE OF FLT. I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THE GOV CHARTS WOULD NOT CONTAIN INFO OF THIS SORT FOR AN ARPT AS BUSY AS DCA. ANY DEP PROC SUCH AS THIS SHOULD BE LOCATED IN THE IAP BOOK JUST AFTER THE ARPT DIAGRAM PAGE; JUST AS THE SIDS USUALLY ARE; SO THAT THE PLTS CAN READILY LOCATE THEM WHEN THEY ARE ASSIGNED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE LACK OF INFO AVAILABLE TO US IN THE COCKPIT; WE SHOULD HAVE CLARIFIED THE DEP PROC WITH CLRNC DELIVERY AND INFORMED THEM THAT WE DID NOT HAVE THE PROC IN QUESTION IN OUR PUBS. DCA IS A VERY BUSY PLACE AND WE ALL HESITATE TO ADD TO THE FREQ CONGESTION WITH QUERIES LIKE THIS; BUT IN THE FUTURE I WILL DEFINITELY ASK FOR CLARIFICATION OF A CLRNC THAT I DON'T UNDERSTAND OR HAVE IN MY PUBS.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.
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