AIR CARRIER CAPTAIN REPORTS USING A CLOSED TAXIWAY TO GET TO THE GATE AFTER LANDING. REPORTER DISCOVERS AFTER THE FACT THAT SEVERAL TAXIWAYS ARE CLOSED BY NOTAM DUE TO UNPLOWED CONDITION.
Synopsis
AIR CARRIER CAPTAIN REPORTS USING A CLOSED TAXIWAY TO GET TO THE GATE AFTER LANDING. REPORTER DISCOVERS AFTER THE FACT THAT SEVERAL TAXIWAYS ARE CLOSED BY NOTAM DUE TO UNPLOWED CONDITION.
Narrative
AFTER LANDING RUNWAY 20 WE ROLLED OUT TO THE FIRST AVAILABLE TAXIWAY. THE TAXIWAY LOOKED CLEAR BUT THE EXIT BETWEEN THE RUNWAY AND TAXIWAY HAD NOT BEEN FULLY CLEARED. THERE WAS A COUPLE INCHES OF HARD PACKED SNOW WITH A MULTITUDE OF TIRE TRACKS GOING THROUGH IT. HAVING NOT BEEN TO DRO IN THE WINTER I ASSUMED MAYBE THEY DIDN'T PLOW THE ENTRANCES AND EXITS AND PROCEEDED TO TAXI THROUGH THE SNOW. CONTINUING INTO THE GATE I NOTICED THAT SOME OF THE ENTRANCES WERE ACTUALLY PLOWED. UPON ARRIVING AT THE GATE I WONDERED IF I HAD MISSED SOMETHING SAYING SOME TAXIWAYS WERE SNOW COVERED AND I DISCOVERED THAT I HAD IN FACT MISSED A NOTAM THAT THE SNOW COVERED TAXIWAYS INCLUDING THE ONE I TAXIED ON WERE ACTUALLY CLOSED. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE A NOTAM SYSTEM THAT IS CONFUSING; ARCANE AND OVERWROUGHT AND CAUSES PILOTS NOT TO READ NOTAMS AS THOROUGHLY AS THEY SHOULD. OTHER FACTORS INCLUDE THAT THE TAXIWAY WAS NOT MARKED CLOSED IN ANY WAY; THERE WERE NO 'X' MARKINGS AND THE LIGHTS WERE ON. FURTHER EXACERBATING THE SITUATION WAS AN AIRCRAFT THAT HAD WAITED A WHILE FOR US TO LAND AND WAS WAITING TO DEPART. I LET MYSELF BE PRESSURED TO GET OFF THE RUNWAY WHEREAS IF THE AIRPORT WAS EMPTY I MAY HAVE GONE DOWN AND EXPLORED THE NEXT TAXIWAY. LUCKILY IT REALLY WASN'T MUCH SNOW AND WHILE IT WAS A BUMPY RIDE FOR A FEW FEET THERE WAS NO DAMAGE DONE.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.