FLT CREW OF LJ60 EXPERIENCE LOSS OF CTL; TCAS RA; TRACK DEV AND ALT BUST WHILE ATTEMPTING TO HAND FLY THE BARIN STAR AND ILS RWY 19R TO IAD.

Date: 2005-12 · Aircraft: Learjet 60 · Phase: approach

Anomalies: aircraft-equipment-problem-less-severe|conflict-airborne-conflict|deviation-altitude-excursion-from-assigned-altitude|deviation-track-heading-all-types|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy|inflight-event-encounter-loss-of-aircraft-control|inflight-event-encounter-unstabilized-approach

Synopsis

FLT CREW OF LJ60 EXPERIENCE LOSS OF CTL; TCAS RA; TRACK DEV AND ALT BUST WHILE ATTEMPTING TO HAND FLY THE BARIN STAR AND ILS RWY 19R TO IAD.

Narrative

THIS FLT WAS DAY #4 FOR ME AND DAY #2 FOR THE CAPT. THE DAY BEFORE WE HAD AN 18 HR DUTY DAY. I WENT TO THE HOTEL AND I HAD A VERY GOOD REST. UP TO THIS FLT; I WAS VERY FATIGUED. I TOLD THE CAPT IF WE HAD AN EARLY MORNING FLT THAT I WOULD CALL IN SICK. HE DID ADVISE THE CHIEF PLT WHAT I HAD SAID WITHOUT MY PERMISSION SO MORE CONFLICT; AND FATIGUE. ALSO; THE NIGHT BEFORE THIS FLT; HE DID NOT BRIEF ME ON THE CLRNC OUT OF ANOTHER ARPT AS I WAS ACTING AS CAPT THAT DAY AND ATC HAD TO CORRECT MY DIRECTION OF FLT. I KNEW THE AREA A LITTLE BIT AND I WAS ABLE TO GET THE SID TOGETHER BY MEMORY. BACK TO DC AREA; WE WERE CLRED FOR THE BARIN 1 ARR AND TOLD TO DSND PER THE MARIN 1 ARR. WE WERE IN MODERATE WX AND ICING CONDITIONS. I HAD ATIS AND APCH WAS SET UP FOR RWY 19L BOTH GREEN SOURCE AND IN THE FMS'S. NEXT THEY TOLD ME TO EXPECT RWY 19R FOR LNDG. ALL VNAV INFO WAS IN THE FMS AND I TOLD THE CAPT TO DSND PER THE ARR THAT IT WAS IN THE FMS; HE SAID 'OK I UNDERSTAND.' NORMALLY AT THIS POINT I WOULD ARM THE VNAV BUTTON SO THE JET WILL FLY THE ARR ON ITS OWN; BUT THIS CAPT DOESN'T BELIEVE IN USING THIS FUNCTION OF THE JET; ALSO YOU DO HAVE TO MONITOR THE SYS BECAUSE IT DOESN'T ALWAYS CAPTURE THE DSCNTS BUT IT DOES TELL YOU HOW MANY FT PER MIN YOU NEED TO USE TO GET DOWN. SO I PROCEEDED TO SET UP THE OTHER RWY IN THE FMS'S AND GREEN SOURCE FOR THE ILS SYS. THE NEXT THING I HEARD WAS ATC ASKING IF WE WERE GOING TO GET DOWN BY BARIN AND I SAID YES. THE CAPT WAS FOR SURE LATE; AND I TOLD HIM TO START DOWN. WE NEEDED AROUND 4500 FPM TO MAKE THE XING RESTR; WHICH IS NO PROB IN THE LEAR 60. I WAS STILL NOT TOTALLY FOCUSED ON WHAT WAS GOING ON UNTIL ATC STARTED YELLING AND TCAS WAS GOING OFF. FOR SOME REASON THE FLT WAS OFF COURSE AND I TOLD ATC IT WAS THE COMPUTER; BUT COME TO FIND OUT THE CAPT WAS TRYING TO HAND FLY A JET THAT IS REALLY AN AUTOPLT ACFT. WE WERE HEADED ABOUT 60 DEGS OFF COURSE AND WE WERE POINTED TOWARD DC AND ONCOMING TFC AND THE JET WAS SAYING BANK ANGLE WITH A STEEP DSCNT ANGLE. I DROPPED THE APCH PLATES AND THIS IS THE POINT THAT I HAD TO TAKE OVER THE AIRPLANE AND STARTED MAKING YELLING COMMANDS TO THE CAPT; PLUS TAKING AN IMMEDIATE TURN FROM ATC TO TURN TO HDG 270 DEGS TO REJOIN THE ARR AND AVOID THE TFC. THERE IS ONLY A 4 DEG TURN AFTER BARIN; I STILL DON'T KNOW WHERE HE WAS TRYING TO GO. I NEVER HEARD THE AUTOPLT TONE WHEN HE TURNED IT OFF DUE TO THE NOISE AND EVERYTHING THAT WAS GOING ON. ALSO AT THIS POINT DUE TO FATIGUE AND ME STOPPING THE APCH SET-UP AND REVIEW; WE MISSED AN ALT BEFORE THE INITIAL APCH AND STARTED TO DSND TOO EARLY. SO THE MISTAKE WAS NOT THE COMPUTER; BUT PROBABLY PLT ERROR DUE TO SPATIAL DISORIENTATION LEADING FROM FATIGUE. THIS CAPT WILL DO ANYTHING IT TAKES TO GET THE JOB DONE AND I DO REFUSE TO OPERATE THAT WAY. I BELIEVE IN BEING SAFE AND FOLLOWING THE RULES. I SHOULD HAVE HAD ATC PUT US INTO A HOLD SOMEWHERE UNTIL WE WERE READY TO DO THE APCH. THERE WAS JUST TOO MUCH GOING ON AT ONCE. ALSO; SOMEHOW I NEED TO REFUSE TO FLY WITH A CAPT LIKE THIS WHO DOES NOT RESPECT SAFETY AND PROCS AT ALL. I HAVEN'T HAD TO DO A RPT IN A VERY LONG TIME; UNTIL I STARTED FLYING HERE. I AM CURRENTLY SEEKING EMPLOYMENT WITH THE AIRLINES WHERE IT WILL BE SAFE AGAIN.

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