A ZDC ARTCC RADAR CTLR INCORRECTLY APPLIES VISUAL SEPARATION TO AN MD88 CREW RESULTING IN A TCASII RA AND CAUSING THE CREW TO TAKE EVASIVE ACTION.

Narrative

CLBING OUT OF RICHMOND; VA; WE WERE LEVELED AT 9000 FT BY RICHMOND DEP CTL. FOLLOWING A BRASILIA JET; WE WERE HELD AT 9000 FT FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME. WE WERE THEN PASSED TO ZDC WHO CLRED US TO 13000 FT AND HELD US THERE FOR A WHILE. THEY ASKED IF WE HAD TFC IN SIGHT AHEAD AT 14000 FT; SAME DIRECTION. WE SAID WE DID. ZDC CLRED US FOR A VISUAL CLB TO FL200. WE ASSUMED THE TFC WAS THE BRASILIA JET; WHICH WOULD BE A COMPARABLE SPD WITH OUR ACFT. WE WERE MISTAKEN. IN REALITY WE HAD A LARGE OVERTAKE ON THE VISUAL TFC AND AS WE PASSED THROUGH ITS ALT; WE TURNED AWAY TO AVOID. AN RA TCASII RESULTED AND WE CONTINUED OUR CLB WITH THE TFC IN SIGHT; THEN TURNED BACK ON COURSE. POINT #1: THE ZDC CTLR SET US UP WITH A CONFLICT SIT KNOWING WE HAD OVERTAKE ON THE VISUAL TFC; BUT NOT DIVULGING THAT INFO. POINT #2: AT NIGHT; HAVING A VISUAL SIGHTING OF THE LIGHTS OF AN ACFT DOES NOT GIVE ENOUGH VISUAL CLUES AS TO THE ORIENTATION OF THAT ACFT OR THE RATE OF CLOSURE BTWN THE 2 ACFT. POINT #3: NIGHT VISUAL AVOIDANCE MANEUVERS ARE DANGEROUS; SHOULD BE ILLEGAL; AND I WILL NEVER ACCEPT ANOTHER CLRNC TO PERFORM ONE. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 636451: LEVEL AT 13000 FT; ZDC ASKED IF WE HAD TFC 11:30 O'CLOCK POS; SAME DIRECTION. WE STATED 'TFC IN SIGHT.' CTR THEN CLRED US FOR A VISUAL CLB TO FL200. WE ACCEPTED CLB BELIEVING TFC WAS AN EMB135 WHICH WE HAD BEEN BEHIND SINCE RIC. THAT TFC WOULD BE COMPARABLE SPD-WISE. THAT; HOWEVER; WAS NOT THE CASE. AS WE CLBED THROUGH 14000 FT; WE TURNED R TO INSURE PROPER SPACING. A TCASII RA THEN ALERTED AT APPROX 14500 FT. WE CONTINUED THE CLB WITH TFC NEVER OUT OF OUR SIGHT DURING ENTIRE CLB. CTLRS ISSUING VISUAL CLB/DSCNTS SHOULD GIVE MORE INFO ON CLOSURE RATE; HDGS; AND DISTANCE TO ENSURE THIS CLRNC IS ADVISABLE USING NORMAL ACFT MANEUVERS. VISUAL CLUES AT NIGHT WERE LIMITED AND MADE IT DIFFICULT TO READILY DETERMINE EXACT DISTANCE/POS/TRACK. LESSON LEARNED: DO NOT ACCEPT VISUAL CLB/DSCNT DURING LIMITED VISIBILITY OR NIGHT OPS. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR ACN 636459 REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR STATED HE REGRETS ACCEPTING THE CLRNC TO MAINTAIN VISUAL SEPARATION FROM THE ACFT AT 14000 FT. HE SAID IT WAS DIFFICULT TO JUDGE THE DISTANCE FROM THE OTHER ACFT AND BELIEVED THEY WERE TRAVELING AT ABOUT THE SAME SPD BUT LATER ESTIMATED THE CLOSURE RATE WAS ABOUT 100 KTS. HE SAID WHILE THEY WERE RESPONDING TO THE TCASII RA; THE OTHER ACFT WAS ASKING THE CTLR TO ADVISE WHAT WAS GOING ON.