MISCOMMUNICATION RESULTS IN TWO ACFT ARRIVING AND DEPARTING IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS ON THE SAME RWY AT CTAF ARPT.

Date: 2008-04 · Aircraft: Amateur/Home Built/Experimental · Phase: takeoff

Anomalies: conflict-airborne-conflict

Synopsis

MISCOMMUNICATION RESULTS IN TWO ACFT ARRIVING AND DEPARTING IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS ON THE SAME RWY AT CTAF ARPT.

Narrative

WE MONITORED THE CTAF FOR APPROX 2-3 MINS WHILE TAXIING AND DOING OUR PREFLT CHKS. WE TAXIED TO RWY 25 AT TXWY A. WE VISUALLY CHKED FOR TFC AND MADE THE FOLLOWING RADIO CALL: 'ACFT X DEPARTING RWY 25 AT ALPHA STRAIGHT OUT.' SOMEONE ON THE FREQ SAID 'DO YOU SEE ME OUT HERE?' THERE WAS A PERSON AND A TRUCK PARKED ALONG THE RWY APPARENTLY WORKING ON SOMETHING. I THOUGHT THAT THIS WAS THE PERSON WHO MADE THE RADIO CALL. I MADE A RADIO CALL BACK; 'I'LL GET OUT OF YOUR WAY.' I STARTED MY TKOF ROLL AND JUST AS I WAS ABOUT TO BREAK GND; I HEARD ANOTHER RADIO CALL; 'I'M ON A 1 MI FINAL FOR RWY 7.' IT WAS AT THIS POINT THAT I REALIZED THAT THE FIRST RADIO CALL WAS FROM SOMEONE IN THE AIR; NOT THE PERSON I SAW ON THE GND. AS I BROKE GND; I TURNED 30 DEGS TO THE R AND APPROX 10 SECONDS LATER I SAW A HIGH WING ACFT APPROX 1/2 MI IN FRONT OF ME AND 500 FT ABOVE ME IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION -- HE WAS ALSO TURNING TO HIS R. WINDS AT THE TIME OF THE OCCURRENCE WERE FROM 250 DEGS AT APPROX 20-30 MPH. THE SUN WAS LOW ON THE HORIZON WHICH REDUCED MY ABILITY TO SEE THE ACFT AND I THOUGHT AT FIRST THE PERSON TALKING ON THE RADIO WAS THE PERSON AT THE EDGE OF THE RWY; NOT SOMEONE IN THE AIR. I ALSO DID NOT EXPECT ANYONE TO BE MAKING A DOWNWIND LNDG WITH A 20-30 MPH TAILWIND.

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