T28 PLT ACCIDENTALLY ENTERED RESTR AIRSPACE AFTER HAVING HIS DIRECTIONAL GYRO TUMBLE.

Date: 2001-11 · Aircraft: Trojan (T28) · Phase: cruise

Anomalies: airspace-violation-all-types|deviation-track-heading-all-types|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy|other-acft-bank-angle-in-turn

Synopsis

T28 PLT ACCIDENTALLY ENTERED RESTR AIRSPACE AFTER HAVING HIS DIRECTIONAL GYRO TUMBLE.

Narrative

VIOLATED R2501 AIRSPACE. WAS RETURNING FROM FORMATION CLINIC AT IGM. WAS FLYING WING IN FLT OF 2. HAD AGREED WITH LEAD THAT 10 MI SE OF THE TNP VOR I WOULD LEAVE ELEMENT TO HEAD TO HOME ARPT (I7A) AND LEAD WOULD HEAD HOME TO SAN DIEGO. HAD PREVIOUSLY DETERMINED HDG FROM BREAK-UP POINT B I7A WOULD KEEP ME S OF R2501. AS AGREED; BROKE WITH LEAD 10 MI SE OF TNP AND TURNED TO 270 DEGS; THE HDG OPS SHOWED FOR I7A. CALLED ZLA FOR ADVISORIES AND INPUT XPONDER CODE. CTR COULD NOT FIND ME; AND HAD ME RECYCLE XPONDER. THIS WENT ON FOR 5 MINS UNTIL CTR SAID SINCE HE COULD NOT SEE ME HE COULD NOT PROVIDE SVC. MEANWHILE; SOMETHING DID NOT FEEL RIGHT WITH NAV; TERRAIN LOOKED UNFAMILIAR. CDI FOR HSI WOULD NOT STAY CTRED (GPS WAS COUPLED TO HSI). GPS/HSI WAS COMMANDING MASSIVE COURSE CORRECTIONS; XCHKING WITH VORS SUGGESTED I WAS WAY OFF COURSE. THE SETTING SUN AND HAZE MADE IT IMPOSSIBLE TO SEE THE 2 LARGE LANDMARKS IN THE AREA (MT SAN GORGONIO AND MT SAN JACINTO). IT FINALLY DAWNED ON ME TO XCHK THE HSI TO THE COMPASS. THE HSI WAS 50-60 DEGS OFF TO THE S. (I HAD CHKED COMPASS AND HSI ON THE GND BEFORE TKOF AND THEY ALIGNED.) THE HSI ERROR RESULTED IN ME TURNING TO A TRUE HDG OF 320-330 DEGS EVEN THOUGH 270 DEGS WAS INDICATED. THIS TOOK ME INTO THE RESTR AIRSPACE. AT ALMOST 4 MI PER MIN IT DOES NOT TAKE LONG TO GET PRETTY FAR OFF COURSE. I THINK WHEN I MADE MY 60 DEG BREAK; IT PRECESSED THE HSI. SINCE I HAD BEEN FLYING WING; I HAD NOT BEEN CALIBRATING MY NAV; SO I HAD NO REF EXCEPT THE HSI. I DID A PRETTY GOOD JOB OF PLANNING TO STAY OUT OF R2501; AND WOULD HAVE USED ZLA AS BACK-UP; BUT THE COMBINATION OF HSI ERROR; ZLA NOT SEEING ME; LOW SUN OBSCURING KNOWN LANDMARKED CONSPIRED TO PUT ME IN R2501. CLRLY; HAD I XCHKED THE HSI TO THE COMPANY SOONER; I MIGHT HAVE STAYED OUT. THIS WAS A TOUGH ONE BECAUSE IN NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES I WOULD HAVE NOTICED NAV INST PROBS EARLY ON; BUT SINCE I WAS FLYING FORMATION; I WAS NOT EVEN NAVING. THE ONLY THING I CAN THINK OF TO AVOID THIS SIT IN THE FUTURE IS TO CHK THE HSI AGAINST THE COMPASS SOONER.

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