CARJ EXPERIENCES TA-RA DURING APCH TO MHT.

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WE WERE DSNDING INTO MANCHESTER ON A DOWNWIND FOR A VISUAL APCH. ON A 180 DEG HDG AND LNDG N IN MANCHESTER; I NOTICED A TARGET ON TCAS AT OUR 10-11 DEG POS. AT THE TIME I WAS ON THE 10 MI SCALE ON THE NAV DISPLAY; THEN WENT TO THE 5 NM SCALE NOTICING THE CLOSURE AND ALT SEPARATION DECREASING. THIS WAS A SITUATION WHICH WAS DETERIORATING. MIND YOU; WE WERE NOT ADVISED OF THE TFC; NOT TO MENTION HAD BEEN CLRED TO AN ALT LOWER THAN THIS TFC. WE WERE CLRED TO 3000 FT. I NOTICED THIS TFC LEVEL AT 5000 FT AND AM ALMOST CERTAIN IT WAS 500 FT BELOW. BEING CLRED TO 3000 FT THIS DIDN'T LOOK GOOD; I ALSO STARTED A SHALLOW TURN WBOUND. THIS ACFT WAS ALSO WBOUND. EVERYTHING WAS COMING TOGETHER. STILL NO ADVISORY. I ASKED MY COPLT TO QUERY APCH AND WHAT HE'D LIKE US TO DO. AT THIS POINT; I DON'T KNOW WHAT APCH SAID; I TOLD MY COPLT TO TELL APCH I WAS LEVELING OFF; I DID WITH A SLIGHT CLB. AT THIS POINT; I GOT THE TFC IN SIGHT. WE DID GET A TA AND RA. I COULDN'T TELL YOU WHAT THE RA SAID BECAUSE I WAS OUTSIDE. WITH THIS TFC BEING WBOUND; HAD I CONTINUED THE DSCNT WITH THAT TURN I MENTIONED WE WOULD HAVE COLLIDED. AFTER MY COPLT QUERIED APCH HE TOLD US TO LEVEL AT 4500 FT WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN THAT TFC'S ALT. I MENTIONED THIS ON THE RADIO. WE HAD TO ASK IF WE WERE CLRED AGAIN TO 3000 FT. THAT WAS ABOUT IT; L TURN BACK AROUND CLRED VISUAL CONTACT THE TWR. THIS HANDLING BY APCH WAS ABYSMAL. THIS WAS A VERY SERIOUS SITUATION; WHERE THERE WAS A DISREGARD FOR SAFETY AND THAT SITUATION IN GENERAL; NOT MUCH INTEREST APPARENT. AS WE ALL KNOW; ACCIDENTS HAPPEN USUALLY WHEN MANY THINGS COMPOUND. FORTUNATELY IT WAS VMC; OURSELVES WE WERE WRAPPING UP A 13 HR DUTY DAY AND WERE FAMILIAR WITH THE ARPT. AN ALERT CREW TOOK ACTION TO AVERT DISASTER. EVERYONE MAKES MISTAKES; HOWEVER; THAT SITUATION SHOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED. APCH KEEPING TRACK OF BASIC VFR SEPARATION WOULD HAVE TAKEN CARE OF IT. UNACCEPTABLE HANDLING.