B767 FLT CREW ENCOUNTERS SEVERE TURBULENCE AND HAIL WHILE ON APPROACH TO RWY 11 AT SAEZ. FLT CREW DIVERTS TO SUMU FOR AN UNEVENTFUL LANDING IN VFR CONDITIONS.

Date: 2007-04 · Aircraft: B767-300 and 300 ER · Phase: approach

Anomalies: inflight-event-encounter-weather-turbulence|inflight-event-encounter-other-unknown

Synopsis

B767 FLT CREW ENCOUNTERS SEVERE TURBULENCE AND HAIL WHILE ON APPROACH TO RWY 11 AT SAEZ. FLT CREW DIVERTS TO SUMU FOR AN UNEVENTFUL LANDING IN VFR CONDITIONS.

Narrative

WE WERE FLYING SUMU TO SAEZ. THE DISTANCE BTWN AIRFIELDS IS ABOUT 130 NM. THE WX AT SUMU WAS EXCELLENT. SAEZ SHOWED A RPT AT XA00Z OF SCATTERED CLOUDS. THE FORECAST FOR OUR SCHEDULED ARR CALLED FOR TEMPORARY CONDITIONS OF TRSA WITH STILL VMC. BEFORE TKOF WX AT SAEZ WAS CHKED AGAIN AND AT XB20Z THEY SHOWED WINDS AT 160 DEGS AT 6 KTS AND 4000 M IN TSTMS WITH A CEILING OF 10000 FT BROKEN. SINCE THE FLT WAS SHORT AND THERE WAS A POSSIBILITY OF WX AT DEST; I ENSURED THAT THE FLT ATTENDANTS AND PAX WERE SEATED FOR THE 25-30 MIN FLT. AFTER TKOF WE COULD SEE ON RADAR A CELL THAT HAD PASSED SAEZ AND ANOTHER WAS ABOUT 30 MI W OF SAEZ. CHKING THE WX SEVERAL MORE TIMES AND ATIS; SAEZ NEVER RPTED ANYTHING MORE THAN WINDS LESS THAN 10 KTS AND VMC. WE DEVIATED N OF COURSE AND WE COULD SEE ABOUT A 30 MI CLR AREA ON RADAR AT SAEZ EXTENDING FROM ABOUT 5 MI E OF THE FIELD TO ABOUT 20 MI W WHICH GAVE US A CLR AREA TO APCH THE FINAL APCH COURSE OF 108 DEGS FROM THE N (ROUGHLY PERPENDICULAR) TO THE FINAL APCH COURSE. APCH CLRED US TO THE IAF WHICH WE COULD NOT ACCEPT (IT WAS LOCATED UNDER A CELL). WE TOLD APCH THAT WE NEEDED ABOUT A 200 DEG HDG TO INTERCEPT THE FINAL APCH COURSE WHICH THEY APPROVED. WE WERE ON A DSCNT FROM 5000 FT TO 4000 FT WHEN WE STARTED TO PICK UP MODERATE TURB AND INTERMITTENT HVY RAIN. WE ELECTED THEN TO DISCONTINUE THE ARR AND TURN R TO A NORTHERLY HDG TO GET BACK IN THE CLR AREA. IN SO DOING; CONDITIONS RAPIDLY DETERIORATED WITH TURB GOING FROM MODERATE TO SEVERE FOR SEVERAL MINS AS WE CLBED AND TURNED OUT. THE PRECIP WAS OCCASIONALLY INTENSE WITH SOME HAIL. THE TURB AND PRECIP WERE SO INTENSE THAT IT WAS DIFFICULT TO COM AND TO SEE THE INSTS. THE PLANE OVERSPED AT LEAST ONCE DURING THE CLBOUT. WE LEVELED AT 16000 FT AND TOLD APCH THAT WE WERE DIVERTING TO SUMU. DURING THIS MANEUVER WE WERE FOLLOWING THE WINDSHEAR ESCAPE MANEUVER AND WE PUT THE IGNITION TO FLT. THE FLT ATTENDANTS ADVISED THAT NO ONE WAS INJURED BUT THAT AN AFT TOILET HAD COME LOOSE IN THE AFT L LAVATORY. THE PLANE FLEW WELL AND NO APPARENT PROBS. APCH AND LNDG AT SUMU WERE ROUTINE. POSTFLT INSPECTION REVEALED THAT THE RADOME HAD AN INDENTATION OF ABOUT 4 INCHES AT THE VERY FRONT AND PEELING AND CHIPPING. THE REST OF THE AIRPLANE APPEARED TO HAVE SOME MINOR DINGING FROM THE HAIL WE HAD ENCOUNTERED.

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