FLT CREW OF B733; DEPENDING ON COMPANY SUPPLIED LAPTOP COMPUTER FOR LNDG PERFORMANCE CALCULATIONS; LANDS ON RWY 7 AT RNO ALTHOUGH PROHIBITED EXCEPT UNDER EMER CONDITIONS BY COMPANY POLICY. FAILURE OF DISPATCH TO ADVISE OF THE PROHIBITION WAS A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR.

Narrative

THE LEG FROM SJC TO RNO WAS TO BE OUR LAST LEG FOR THE NIGHT. AFTER ARRIVING IN SJC; WE WERE INFORMED BY THE OPS AGENT THAT BOTH OF THE ACTIVE RWYS (16R/L) IN RNO WERE CLOSED. I IMMEDIATELY CONTACTED DISPATCH TO CONFIRM THE STATUS OF RNO'S RWYS. DISPATCH CONFIRMED WHAT THE OPS AGENT SAID AND TOLD ME THAT IT WOULD BE APPROX 45 MINS UNTIL THE RWY OPENED. ABOUT THE TIME THE LAST PAX HAD DEPLANED; THE OPS AGENT INFORMED ME THAT HE HAD HEARD THAT RNO WAS LNDG ACFT ON RWY 7. DISPATCH NOT ONLY CONFIRMED IT; BUT WHEN I ASKED IF I WAS GOOD TO GO; THEY REPLIED YES WITHOUT ANY HESITATION. ON THE ARR; THE PERFORMANCE COMPUTER WAS USED PER NORMAL OPS AND IT SHOWED THAT RWY 7 WAS USABLE WITH MEDIUM BRAKING REQUIRED. WE WERE OFFERED RWY 25 A FEW TIMES; BUT I THOUGHT RWY 7 WOULD BE SAFER BECAUSE IT WAS NIGHTTIME AND I HAD NEVER LANDED ON RWY 7 OR RWY 25 IN RNO. FROM THE VFR PICTORIAL I FELT THAT THE TERRAIN FOR THE VISUAL LNDG WOULD BE SAFER ESPECIALLY AT NIGHT USING RWY 7. WE EXECUTED A NORMAL VFR APCH AND LNDG TO A FULL STOP ON RWY 6. WHAT HAPPENED? I SHOULD HAVE REFED THE 10-7 PAGE! WE ARE NOT AUTH TO OPERATE ON RWY 7 WHERE WAS DISPATCH ON THIS ONE? A LITTLE FAMILIARITY WITH THE 10-7 PAGE COULD HAVE HELPED ME. MOST OF ALL; WHY IN THE WORLD DOES THE PERFORMANCE COMPUTER NOT HAVE A NOTE NEXT TO RWY 7 POINTING ME TO REF THE 10-7 PAGE? BEING GEARED TO THE FACT THAT IF THE PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS ARE MET BY THE PERFORMANCE COMPUTER THEN WE ARE PERMITTED TO LAND ON THAT RWY. I WOULD NOT HAVE DEPARTED KNOWING THAT WE WERE NOT PERMITTED TO LAND ON RWY 7 AT RNO! I STILL DON'T KNOW WHY WE CANNOT LAND ON RWY 7 AND I WOULD BE CURIOUS TO KNOW WHY RWY 25 IS AN AUTH RWY. IN MY HUMBLE OPINION I FEEL THAT RWY 7 WOULD BE A SAFER RWY TO LAND ON IN VFR CONDITIONS AT NIGHT. IT WAS MY FAULT THAT WE LANDED ON RWY 7. I JUST FEEL THAT A FEW RED FLAG; IE; DISPATCH AND THE PERFORMANCE COMPUTER; COULD HAVE HELPED TO AVERT THIS SIT. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR ADVISED THAT HE IS VERY COMFORTABLE WITH THE USE OF THE LAPTOP PERFORMANCE COMPUTER AS A PRIMARY SOURCE OF TKOF AND LNDG DATA. HE DOES PLAN TO REINFORCE WITH HIS COMPANY THE DESIRABILITY TO INCLUDE IN THE 'NOTES' SECTION AVAILABLE FOR RWYS IN THE DATABASE A NOTATION AS TO RWY RESTRS TO EMER CONDITIONS ONLY. HE STRONGLY EMPHASIZED HIS DISPLEASURE AT BEING LED ASTRAY BY THE DISPATCHER'S CASUAL ASSURANCE THAT THE FLT WAS 'GOOD TO GO' BASED ON A PLANNED LNDG ON A RWY THEY WERE NOT AUTH TO USE.