EWR CTLR RECOGNIZES INCORRECT TAXI CLRNC WHEN CHALLENGED BY CARGO FLC.

Date: 2000-01 · Aircraft: DC-10 Undifferentiated or Other Model · Phase: taxi

Anomalies: conflict-ground-conflict|less-severe|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy

Synopsis

EWR CTLR RECOGNIZES INCORRECT TAXI CLRNC WHEN CHALLENGED BY CARGO FLC.

Narrative

LANDED RWY 4R AT EWR. TAXIED OFF ONTO TXWY K TO HOLD SHORT OF RWY 4L. CLRED ACROSS RWY 4L TO HOLD SHORT OF TXWY S; CONTACT GND AT TXWY S; TOLD TO TAXI TO RAMP VIA TXWYS S AND B. CTLR CALLED US AT TXWY B AND TOLD US TO CONTINUE ON TXWY S TO TXWY A TO HOLD SHORT OF TXWY V. UPON PASSING 'RE' CTLR QUERIED US IF WE PAST TXWY RE. WE STATED YES AND WERE CURRENTLY HOLDING SHORT OF TXWY RD. AT TXWY RD; I NOTICED A B767 TAXIING ON A NBOUND; WE WERE NOW HEADED NOSE-TO-NOSE. CTLR STATED WE WERE TOLD TO HOLD AT RE. AT RD WE WERE TOLD TO TURN ON TXWY E TO HOLD SHORT OF TXWY B. WE HELD SHORT ALLOWING A JET TO PASS. WE WERE THEN CLRED TO TURN R ON TXWY B CONTINUE TO TXWY PB. THIS WAS AN INCORRECT CLRNC; COULD NOT GET TO TXWY PB WITHOUT TURNING ONTO TXWY V. CTLR CAME BACK REALIZING HIS MISTAKE AND CLRED US VIA TXWY B TO TXWY V TO TXWY PB. AT TXWY V I HELD SHORT AND ASKED FOR CLRNC TO ENTER RAMP VIA TXWY B TO TXWY RB. CTLR SAID APPROVED TO TAXI TO TXWY PB AS REQUESTED. REALIZING ANOTHER MISTAKE; WE RECONFIRMED OUR TAXI INSTRUCTIONS. CTLR SAID 'CLRED TO TAXI TO TXWY RB.' AFTER BLOCK-IN; I CALLED THE EWR TWR AT XA00 AND SPOKE TO A TWR CTLR WHO ASSURED US THAT NO ACTION WOULD BE TAKEN. HE SAID IT WAS A FREE FOR ALL OUT THERE WITH MASS CONFUSION. HUMAN FACTORS CONSIDERATIONS: 1) ICY RWYS AND TXWYS CAUSING SLOW TAXI WITH TAXI LINES COVERED BY SNOW AND ICE. 2) VERY HIGH GND TAXI DENSITY. 3) A LOT OF INTL ARRS WITH BROKEN ENGLISH SPOKEN. 4) MULTIPLE CHANGES OF TAXI CLRNCS. 5) CTLR'S VOICE WAS TERSE.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.