AN ACR PILOT COMMENTS THAT KNOWN TURB FORECASTS AND PIREPS ARE NOT PASSED ON TO FLT CREWS TRANSITING SOUTH AMERICA AIRWAYS ALLOWING THEM TO DIVERT AROUND POTENTIALLY INJURIOUS CONDITIONS.

2007-11 · NASA ASRS report 760716

Date: 2007-11 · Aircraft: Commercial Fixed Wing · Phase: cruise

Anomalies: deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far|inflight-event-encounter-weather-turbulence

Synopsis

AN ACR PILOT COMMENTS THAT KNOWN TURB FORECASTS AND PIREPS ARE NOT PASSED ON TO FLT CREWS TRANSITING SOUTH AMERICA AIRWAYS ALLOWING THEM TO DIVERT AROUND POTENTIALLY INJURIOUS CONDITIONS.

Narrative

APCHING ABC INTXN NBOUND ON AIRWAY XXX MY FLT ENCOUNTERED ALMOST CONTINUOUS LIGHT AND OCCASIONAL MODERATE TURB. I WAS ABLE TO INFORM MY CABIN CREW AND PAX TO REMAIN SEATED UNTIL I NOTIFIED THEM IT WAS SAFE TO RESUME NORMAL OPS. LA PAZ CTR DID NOT INFORM US OF THE TURB WHICH WAS BEING CAUSED BY HORIZ WINDSHEAR COMING OFF THE EASTERN ANDES MOUNTAINS. THE WINDS PRIOR TO THE TURB WERE FROM THE W AT ABOUT 70 KTS AND QUICKLY VARIED IN DIRECTION AND INTENSITY TO ABOUT 25 KTS. I REQUESTED A CLB TO SEEK A SAFER ALT BUT WAS ONLY CLRED TO CLB TO FL330 DUE TO TFC. EVENTUALLY I WAS CLRED TO CLB TO FL340 WITH A VERY SLIGHT IMPROVEMENT IN CONDITIONS. THE TURB LASTED ABOUT 25 MINS. SOON AFTER THE BEGINNING OF THE ENCOUNTER I CALLED DISPATCH TO INFORM THE DISPATCHER OF THE CONDITIONS ON THE AIRWAY. DISPATCHER TOLD ME HE HAD NO RPTS OF TURB ON THE RTE. I ASKED DISPATCHER IF OUR SBOUND ZZZZ1 AND ZZZZ2 FLTS WERE BEING ROUTED ALONG THIS AIRWAY. I BELIEVE DISPATCHER SAID THAT THE ZZZZ2 FLT WAS FLYING THE SAME AIRWAY SBOUND. I STRONGLY RECOMMENDED TO DISPATCHER THAT HE CONTACT THE FLT AND HAVE HIM RERTED AROUND THE AREA OF TURB. I WAS VERY EMPHATIC THAT THE RIDE WAS TERRIBLE AND A DANGER TO ANY ACFT FLYING IN THAT REGION. HRS LATER THE ZZZZ1 SBOUND FLT CHKED IN WITH CTR ON SAME FREQ WITH MY FLT. I CONTACTED THEM ON AIR TO AIR FREQ TO ASK IF HE HAD RECEIVED A MESSAGE FROM DISPATCH CONCERNING MY RPT OF TURB. THE PLTS TOLD ME THEY HAD RECEIVED NOTHING FROM DISPATCH. THIS MADE ME VERY ANGRY AND CONCERNED THAT THIS CREW HAD NOT BEEN WARNED OF THE RPT THAT I HAD MADE HRS EARLIER. I BRIEFED THE SBOUND PLTS ABOUT OUR ENCOUNTER AND ENCOURAGED THEM TO AVOID THE AREA. AT LEAST I HOPE THAT MY BRIEFING AIDED THEM IN PREPARATION TO SEEK A RERTE OR PREPARE THEIR PAX AND CABIN CREW FOR A POSSIBLE ENCOUNTER. I AM DUMBFOUNDED TO UNDERSTAND WHY THIS IMPORTANT SAFETY RPT WAS NOT XMITTED TO THIS CREW. DISPATCH RPTS OF TURB IN SOUTH AMERICA ARE ABSOLUTELY WORTHLESS! I HAVE YET TO RECEIVE ANY FLT PLAN THAT HAS ANYTHING BUT SMOOTH AIR PREDICTED ON THE RTES. HOWEVER; I HAVE NEVER FLOWN ANY SOUTH AMERICA FLTS THAT HAVE NOT HAD SOME KIND OF TURB ALONG THE RTES. THIS IS A SERIOUS PROB FOR US; AND I FEAR THAT SOMEONE WILL BE HURT ENTERING AN AREA OF UNRPTED TURB. IT IS INEXCUSABLE; HOWEVER; TO NOT INFORM CREWS OF KNOWN AREAS OF TURB!

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

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