A PA28 PLT MAKES AN APCH TO RWY 15 WHEN CLRED TO RWY 19 AND HOLD SHORT OF RWY 24 AT FOK. TWR DISCOVERS THE ERROR WHEN THE PA28 STOPS ON RWY 15.

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IN THE LATE AFTERNOON AUG/FRI/04; A STUDENT PLT AND I WERE APCHING TO LAND AT GABRESKI (FOK) FROM THE SE. THE TWR CTLR CLRED US FOR A L DOWNWIND FOR RWY 19. AT THIS POINT WE WERE HDG INTO THE DIRECTION OF THE SETTING SUN AT APPROX 1200 FT MSL. I THOUGHT WE WERE IN POS FOR A STANDARD PATTERN FOR RWY 19. AT THE ABEAM POS FOR THE RWY; WHICH I THOUGHT WAS RWY 19; WAS ACTUALLY RWY 15. DUE TO THE GLARE FROM THE SUN I WAS UNABLE TO READ THE NUMBERS CLRLY ON THE RWY. AT THIS POINT I BEGAN A NORMAL DSCNT FOR LNDG. WHEN I WAS ON FINAL THE CTLR CALLED TO SAY HE HAD LOST VISUAL CONTACT WITH OUR ACFT; AND ASKED OUR POS. I RESPONDED WITH WE ARE ON FINAL. HE THEN ASKED IF WE HAD CROSSED OVER 'THE HWY.' LOOKING DOWN I SAW THAT WE HAD CROSSED A HWY AND WERE NOW ABOUT SHORT FINAL. THE CTLR THEN SAID: LAND AND HOLD SHORT OF RWY 24 FOR A HAWKER ABOUT TO TOUCH DOWN. I THEN RESPONDED ACKNOWLEDGING HIS REQUEST. ONCE WE HAD COME TO A COMPLETE STOP HE ADVISED ME THAT HE HAD CLRED US TO LAND ON RWY 19 AND THAT WE HAD JUST LANDED ON RWY 15 BY MISTAKE AND TOLD US TO FOLLOW THE HAWKER TO THE RAMP AND PARK. AS SOON AS THE ACFT WAS SECURED I WENT INSIDE THE FBO AND CALLED GABRESKI TWR TO APOLOGIZE AND EXPLAIN MY MISTAKE. I TOLD HIM THAT WITH THE GLARE I COULDN'T SEE THE NUMBERS ON THE RWY AND THAT MY DIRECTIONAL GYROSCOPE WAS NOT CORRECTLY LINED UP WITH THE MAGNETIC COMPASS (IT WAS INDICATING APPROX 165 DEGS ON FINAL). THAT WAS THE EXTENT OF THE CONVERSATION BTWN THE TWR AND MYSELF FOLLOWING THE INCIDENT. I FEEL THAT THIS WAS AN HONEST MISTAKE AND THAT THERE WAS NOTHING THAT COULD HAVE BEEN DONE TO PREVENT THE INCIDENT. I THINK THE CTLR ASSUMED THAT I WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE ARPT; WHEN IN FACT IT WAS THE FIRST TIME I HAVE EVER BEEN THERE.