ALLEGED PENETRATION OF TCA BY GA SMT.

Narrative

IN MY TWIN SMT I TOOK OFF WITH ANOTHER QUALIFIED PLT FROM SAN CARLOS ARPT ON RWY 30 WITH A RIGHT DOWNWIND DEP CLBING TO 1000' TAKING A HDG TO INTERCEPT THE OUTBND SFO 088 DEG R TO AVOID THE SFO TCA ON CLBOUT TO CRUISE AT AN ALT OF 17500' WITH A FINAL DEST OF DEATH VALLEY ARPT. AT APPROX 12 NM DME FROM THE SFO VOR WE CLBED TO 2000' WHILE BEING HANDED OFF FROM SAN CARLOS TWR TO PALO ALT TWR. AT APPROX 20 NM DME FROM THE SFO VOR ON THE 088 DEG R OF SFO VOR WE STARTED OUR CLB TO 17500' WHILE BEING PASSED FROM PALO ALTO TWR TO BAY AREA APCH CTL. THE APCH CTLR GAVE US A SQUAWK CODE OF XXXX AND ASKED AND ACKNOWLEDGED OUR FINAL CRUISE ALT OF 17500'. AT APPROX 30 NM DME FROM SFO VOR WE HAD 1 O'CLOCK AIRLINER TFC ABOVE PASS US OVERHEAD TO OUR RIGHT. THERE WAS NO EVASIVE ACTION NECESSARY TO AVOID THE OVERHEAD TFC; NOR WAS THERE ANY TFC ADVISORIES FROM THE APCH CTLR PRIOR TO OUR PASSAGE CONCERNING THIS TFC. AFTER 3 HDOFS WHILE ON FLT WATCH AND APPROX 100+ NM FROM SFO VOR WE WERE INFORMED TO PHONE OAK CENTER UPON LNDG AT DEATH VALLEY. UPON LNDG WE PHONED OAK CENTER AND THEY ADVISED US THAT THEY SAID WE WENT INTO THE SFO TCA. WE BELIEVE OAK CENTER HAS US MISTAKEN FOR ANOTHER CONTACT ON THEIR RADAR SCREEN INSIDE THE SFO TCA AREA; OTHERWISE WE WOULD HAVE BEEN ADVISED BY BAY APCH AS TO BEING IN THE SFO TCA AT THE TIME THEY SAID WE WERE THERE. AS FOR THE AIRLINER TFC PASSING OVERHEAD; WE BELIEVE THE SFO TCA SHOULD BE EXTENDED AS ATL'S TCA WITH BOUNDARIES OF 35 NM AND 42 NM UPWARD TO 12500'. THIS TYPE OF TCA WOULD ELIMINATE THE CONFLICT THAT HIGH PERFORMANCE VFR TFC COULD HAVE WITH AIRLINER TFC INBND OR OUTBND FROM THE AREA. WE ALSO BELIEVE THE OPEN NOTCH IN THE SFO TCA WHICH EXISTS BTWN 055 DEGS AND 090 DEGS BTWN 15 AND 25 NM DME SHOULD BE ELIMINATED. LOOKING AT THE ILS APCH FOR SFO 28R; THE INBND HDG IS 281 DEGS (OUTBND OF 101 DEGS); THE DIFFERENCE FROM THE TCA BOUNDARY AT THE 15 THROUGH 25 NM DME IS ONLY 11 DEGS. AND; FOR THE QUIET BRIDGE APCH FOR 28 RWYS; THE INBND HDG IS 275 DEGS (OUTBND OF 95 DEGS). THE DIFFERENCE FROM THE TCA BOUNDARY AT THE 15 THROUGH 25 NM DME WITH THIS APCH IS THEN DOWN TO ONLY 5 DEGS. BOTH THESE APCHES ARE TOO CLOSE TO THE PRESENT TCA BOUNDARY AND THUS THE BOUNDARIES SHOULD BE CHANGED. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING: HAS RECEIVED 1 LETTER FROM THE FAA ASKING FOR STATEMENT ON ALLEGED PENETRATION AND HAS ANSWERED THAT WITH ESSENTIALLY WHAT WAS ON THE ASRS RPT. AT TIME TALKED TO OAK ARTCC DID NOT MENTION THAT HE HAD BEEN WORKING BAY TRACON AND IF HE HAD PENETRATED TCA THEY SURELY WOULD HAVE SAID SOMETHING. WAS AT 20 DME SFO WHEN LEFT 2000' FOR CLB; SO EVEN IF NAV SET OR SFO SCALLOPING WOULD HAVE HAD TO CLB 4000' IN 5 MI TO GET IN BASE OF 6000' FLOOR OF THAT SECTOR. OAK ARTCC HAD NOT PULLED UP THE COMPUTER TRACKING TO SEE IF THEY HAD THE CORRECT ACFT.