PREPARING FOR AN INST CHK RIDE; PA28 PLT BECOMES DISORIENTED WHILE CONDUCTING A VFR VOR APCH TO T41; OVERSHOOTS ARPT AND PENETRATES AN ADJACENT CLASS D AIRSPACE.

Date: 2003-02 · Aircraft: PA-28 Cherokee/Archer/Dakota/Pillan/Warrior

Anomalies: airspace-violation-all-types|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far|other-disorientation

Synopsis

PREPARING FOR AN INST CHK RIDE; PA28 PLT BECOMES DISORIENTED WHILE CONDUCTING A VFR VOR APCH TO T41; OVERSHOOTS ARPT AND PENETRATES AN ADJACENT CLASS D AIRSPACE.

Narrative

I WAS WBOUND ON A VOR-A APCH AT T41 (CLASS G AIRSPACE) AT NIGHT; PREPARING FOR AN INST CHK RIDE. MY GPS (NOT IFR CERTIFIED) WAS SET TO HUB VOR. T41 IS APPROX 4 NM NE OF EFD AT 11 NM E OF HOU. THE ARPT AT NIGHT IS DIFFICULT TO SPOT AND THE RWY LIGHTS WERE NOT ACTIVATED WHEN MY MIKE WAS KEYED. THERE WAS NO OTHER TFC IN THE PATTERN. I CONTINUED IN A SOUTHWESTERLY DIRECTION TO LINE UP FOR DOWNWIND ON RWY 5; STILL KEYING THE MIKE; UNINTENTIONALLY FLYING BEYOND T41 INTO EFD (CLASS D) AIRSPACE. ALTHOUGH THE GPS PLACED ME 2 NM PAST T41; I IGNORED THE DATA AS A BRIGHTLY LIT RWY LOOMED JUST AHEAD. MY DIRECTIONAL GYRO CONFIRMED RWY 5; SO I ANNOUNCED A DOWNWIND ENTRY OVER THE T41 CTAF. ONLY 1 OTHER ACFT WAS IN THE PATTERN AT EFD; WHICH IS WHAT I WOULD HAVE EXPECTED AT T41. AS I DSNDED TO 700-800 FT; TURNING BASE TO FINAL; I REALIZED MY ERROR AND THAT THE RWY WAS RWY 4 (NOT RWY 5); SO I EXECUTED A LOW APCH WHILE CLBING TO 1500 FT ON A NE HDG TO EXIT THE PATTERN. I RESET MY GPS FROM HUB TO T41 TO CONFIRM MY LOCATION; AND FLEW DIRECT TO A PROMINENT LCL LANDMARK E OF T41; TO REGAIN ORIENTATION. THE RWY LIGHTS AT T41 WERE LIT FROM OTHER TFC; SO I LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER DIFFICULTIES. I WAS UNABLE TO LOCATE T41 AT NIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF FACTORY LIGHTS AND EXPERIENCED MOMENTARY LOSS OF ORIENTATION. INSTEAD OF PROPERLY READING MY GPS AND TAKING IMMEDIATE CORRECTIVE ACTION; I CONTINUED PAST T41 ON A SOUTHWESTERLY HDG TOWARDS WHAT I BELIEVED WAS RWY 5 AT T41. FATIGUE; A CHILD; AND A RINGING CELL PHONE AGGRAVATED THE SIT. THE ENTIRE PROB COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED BY ANY ONE OF SEVERAL ACTIONS: 1) EXECUTING AN IMMEDIATE MISSED APCH; 2) IGNORING MY VFR INSTINCTS AND RELYING INSTEAD ON SKILLS LEARNED DURING MY INST FLT TRAINING; OR 3) BY IMMEDIATELY REVERSING COURSE AND FLYING TO THE BAYTOWN BRIDGE FOR A VFR APCH. AS DIFFICULT AS IT IS TO SPOT T41 AT NIGHT; THIS HAS NOT HAPPENED BEFORE (AFTER NEARLY 3 YRS AT THIS ARPT). THIS WAS MY FIRST SOLO; NIGHTTIME; PRACTICE INST APCH AT THIS ARPT; SO I MAY HAVE MISSED MY USUAL VISUAL CUES AS I CONCENTRATED ON FLYING THE APCH.

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