GA SMA WITH STUDENT PLT FLYING LNDG AT WRONG ARPT.

1988-04 · NASA ASRS report 86216

Date: 1988-04 · Aircraft: Small Aircraft; Low Wing; 1 Eng; Fixed Gear

Anomalies: deviation-track-heading-all-types|ground-incursion-runway|other-unspecified

Synopsis

GA SMA WITH STUDENT PLT FLYING LNDG AT WRONG ARPT.

Narrative

WAS ON SOLO X-COUNTRY FLT FROM WILMINGTON (ILG); DE TO OCEAN CITY (26N); NJ TO MILLVILLE (MIV); NJ TO GEORGETOWN (GED); DE; BACK TO WILMINGTON. WAS ON OCEAN CITY TO MILLVILLE LEG. WAS MONITORING MILLVILLE CTAF. ANNOUNCED WHEN ENTERING DOWNWIND LEG FOR RWY 32 AT MILLVILLE. MILLVILLE ACKNOWLEDGED. ON FINAL NOTICED RWY WAS NUMBERED 31. DID A TOUCH AND GO AND PROCEEDED TO GEORGETOWN. WAS SURE I HAD LANDED AT WRONG ARPT WHEN HEADING TO GEORGETOWN WAS OFF. FINISHED X-COUNTRY WITHOUT FURTHER PROBLEMS. UPON LNDG AT WILMINGTON I CONFIRMED MILLVILLE'S RWY WAS 32. HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO POSITIVELY DETERMINE WHERE I LANDED AT THIS WRITING. WHEN I WAS ON FINAL AND SAW THE RWY NUMBERED 31 I SHOULD HAVE LANDED INSTEAD OF DOING TOUCH AND GO; HOWEVER; I WAS STILL CONFIDENT IT WAS MILLVILLE. I BELIEVE THAT BECAUSE IT WAS A CLEAR DAY AND I HAD FLOWN RIGHT BY MILLVILLE ON THE WAY TO DC; I DID NOT PAY NEAR ENOUGH ATTN TO MY HDG UPON DEPARTING OCEAN CITY AREA BUT RATHER RELIED TOO HEAVILY ON VISUAL CONTACT. I MAY HAVE MISREAD MY HDG. AT ANY RATE I FEEL I COULD HAVE AVOIDED THIS POTENTIALLY CATASTROPHIC ERROR BY CIRCLING OVER ARPT AT PROPER ALT (IN THIS SITUATION AT LEAST OVER 4100' SINCE ACY ARSA IS IN THE AREA) TO IDENTIFY ARPT. I HAD NEVER FLOWN TO MILLVILLE. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH REPORTER REVEALED THE FOLLOWING: PLT HAS BEEN UNABLE; CHECKING CHARTS; TO DETERMINE WHICH ARPT HE MADE TOUCH AND GO LNDG AT. CONFIRMED NO ACTIVITY AT ALL AT ARPT SO NOW FEELS CERTAIN IT WAS NOT ACY SO PROBABLY DID NOT VIOLATE ARSA AS HE HAS HAD NO CALLS FROM FAA.

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

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