2008-10 · NASA ASRS report 809519
AIR CARRIER CAPTAIN REPORTS FIRST OFFICER NOT LINED UP WITH INTENDED RUNWAY AND GETTING TOO LOW ON APPROACH. AFTER GO- AROUND IS INITIATED TOWER ISSUES LOW ALTITUDE ALERT.
WE WERE ON A DSCNT AND HAD COMPLETED ALL CHKLISTS BELOW 10000 FT. THE WX WAS PERFECT WITH CALM WINDS ON THE SURFACE; 10 MI VISIBILITY RPTED AND ONLY A HIGH SCATTERED LAYER OF CLOUDS. WE SAW ZZZ FROM GREATER THAN 20 MI; AND APCH ASKED US TO RPT THE FIELD AT ABOUT 10 MI. WE CALLED THE FIELD IN SIGHT AND WERE CLRED FOR THE VISUAL TO RWY 33L AND HANDED OFF TO TWR. MY FO WAS PF; AND CLICKED OFF THE AUTOPLT. ALTHOUGH THERE WERE CALM WINDS ON THE SURFACE; THERE WAS A 30 KT XWIND OUT OF THE W THAT PREVAILED UNTIL BELOW 800 FT AGL. I COMMENTED TO MY FO THAT IT APPEARED HE WAS LINED UP FOR THE WRONG RWY (28) BUT HE TOLD ME THAT HE WAS MANEUVERING FOR RWY 33L. A FEW SECONDS PASSED; AND HE WAS STILL LINED UP FOR RWY 28; SO I AGAIN STATED MY CONCERNS. HE TOLD ME THAT HE REALIZED THAT HE WAS LINED UP FOR RWY 28; AND THAT HE INTENDED TO MANEUVER FOR RWY 33L. HE CONTINUED TO DSND THROUGHOUT ALL OF THIS; AND SO I ASKED HIM TO LEVEL OFF. HE LOOKED AT HIS APCH PLATE/ARPT DIAGRAM; THEN STARTED A GENTLE TURN TO THE L THAT WAS MOSTLY NEGATED BY THE STRONG XWIND. TWR CALLED AND TOLD US TO CHK OUR COMPASS; AND THAT WE WERE LINED UP WITH THE WRONG RWY; AND ASKED IF WE WOULD LIKE TO LAND ON RWY 28 BECAUSE IT WAS AVAILABLE. I STATED THAT WE DIDN'T; AND THAT WE WERE MANEUVERING FOR RWY 33L. I THEN TOLD MY FO THAT WE NEEDED AN AGGRESSIVE TURN TO INTERCEPT; AND THAT WE SHOULD STOP DSNDING. A COUPLE SECONDS LATER I WAS STILL NOT HAPPY WITH THE CORRECTIONS HE WAS MAKING; AND HAD DOUBTS ABOUT HIS POSITIONAL AWARENESS. WE HAD NOW DSNDED BELOW 1000 FT AGL; SO I CALLED A GAR. SECONDS LATER TWR CALLED BACK AND SAID THAT THEY WERE GETTING AN ALT ALERT ON US. I RESPONDED THAT WE HAD INITIATED A GAR; AND HE GAVE US A HDG; AND ALT AND HANDED US BACK TO APCH. WE MADE A NORMAL APCH TO LNDG ON THE SECOND APCH.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.
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