BE40 CREW HAD AN ALT OVERSHOOT IN ZME CLASS E AIRSPACE.

Narrative

WE WERE ON A PART 91 CPR FLT FROM; STF; MS; TO BWG; KY. WE WERE AT THE END OF A LONG DAY. WE SAT ON THE AIRPLANE MOST OF THE DAY WAITING FOR PAX. WHEN THEY ARRIVED; THEY INFORMED US THEY NEEDED TO DROP 1 PAX IN STF; SO WE HAD TO REFILE AND CHANGE OUR FLT PLAN AROUND. WHEN WE LEFT STF FOR BWG; WE HAD TO CROSS A LINE OF WX AND DO A LOT OF DEVIATING TO GET TO BWG. JUST N OF BNA; WE WERE TURNED OVER TO ZME ON 133.85. THEY GAVE US A HDG OF 080 DEGS FOR TFC AND A DSCNT TO 16000 FT. AROUND 35 NM FROM BWG THEY CLRED US DIRECT TO BWG AND A CLRNC TO 4000 FT. AT AROUND 10000 FT; THE CAPT CALLED FOR THE APCH CHKLIST. AS I WAS RUNNING THE APCH CHKLIST; MEM ASKED US TO STOP AT 5000 FT. I ACKNOWLEDGED THE ALT AND WENT RIGHT BACK TO THE CHKLIST WITHOUT SETTING THE ALT SELECTOR. AT AROUND 15 MI FROM BWG; WE HAD THE ARPT IN SIGHT. WE ALSO HAD AN ACFT ON TCASII BTWN US AND BWG. WE LEVELED AT 4000 FT. AT THIS TIME ZME TOLD US TO EXPECT LOWER PASSING THIS TFC WHICH WAS AT 4000 FT. AT THIS TIME THE CAPT ASKED ME ABOUT US BEING AT 4000 FT ALSO. I TOLD THE CTLR WE WERE AT 4000 FT AND HAD THE TFC AND THE ARPT. THE CAPT ALSO TURNED SLIGHTLY R TO GO AROUND THE TFC. ZME CALLED BACK AND TOLD US WE SHOULD BE AT 5000 FT. I TOLD HIM HE HAD GIVEN US 4000 FT; AND HE TOLD ME I WAS IN ERROR. I TOLD HIM WE WOULD CLB BACK TO 5000 FT. AT THIS TIME; THE TCASII ISSUED AN RA TO DSND. WE FOLLOWED THE TCASII AND DSNDED TO AROUND 3600 FT AFTER I HAD TOLD ATC WE WOULD CLB. THE TFC PASSED OFF OUR L. I TOLD ZME WE HAD PASSED THE TFC AND HAD THE ARPT IN SIGHT; WE WOULD CANCEL IFR. HE ACCEPTED OUR CANCELLATION AND WE LANDED UNEVENTFULLY. I BELIEVE THAT THE LONG DUTY DAY CONTRIBUTED TO OUR BUSTING THE ALT. WE WERE TIRED AND READY TO BE HOME. WE ALSO WERE KEPT HIGH FOR OTHER TFC; SO WHEN WE WERE GIVEN THE DSCNT TO 4000 FT; WE WERE COMING DOWN PRETTY FAST. THIS WAS A CRITICAL PHASE OF FLT. THE CAPT WAS FLYING AND I WAS RUNNING A CHKLIST WHEN THE CTLR TOLD US TO STOP AT 5000 FT. I THINK IF HE HAD TOLD US TO STOP AT 5000 FT FOR TFC; I WOULD HAVE CAUGHT THE CHANGE. INSTEAD I DON'T EVEN REMEMBER READING IT BACK AND NEITHER DOES THE CAPT. ANOTHER FACTOR IS THIS WAS MY FIRST TRIP IN THE BEECH JET. I TRAINED ON IT IN AUGUST AND WAS CURRENT. HOWEVER; WE OPERATE DIAMONDS WHICH ARE THE SAME TYPE CERTIFICATE AND MOST OF MY TIME IS IN THE DIAMONDS. THE BEECH JET HAS A VERY DIFFERENT PACKAGE OF AVIONICS AND I WAS TRYING TO KEEP UP. IT ALSO WOULD HAVE HELPED IF I HAD INFORMED ATC THAT WE WERE FOLLOWING AN RA. OUR COMPANY HAS AN SOP MANUAL THAT WE TRAIN BY TO COVER THE SETTING OF THE ALT SELECTOR. WE HAVE RPTED THIS EVENT TO THE VICE PRESIDENT OF OPS AND HAVE RECEIVED REMEDIAL TRAINING ON THIS ISSUE AND HOW TO AVOID IT IN THE FUTURE. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 561960: CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE NIGHT; TSTMS; AND A VERY LONG DAY. THE FO WAS ON HIS VERY FIRST FLT IN THIS ACFT. WE HAVE AN SOP FOR SETTING THE ALT SELECTOR. THE PNF SETS IT IF THE PF IS CTLING THE AIRPLANE BY HAND.