PART 135 OPERATOR BEGAN APCH WHEN WX REPORTER BELOW MINIMUMS AND HAD NOT RECEIVED AN APCH CLRNC.

Date: 1988-07 · Aircraft: Small Aircraft; Low Wing; 1 Eng; Retractable Gear · Phase: approach

Anomalies: deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far|inflight-event-encounter-weather-turbulence|other-unspecified

Synopsis

PART 135 OPERATOR BEGAN APCH WHEN WX REPORTER BELOW MINIMUMS AND HAD NOT RECEIVED AN APCH CLRNC.

Narrative

I WAS BEING VECTORED BY MRY APCH AND WAS ESTABLISHING INBND TO SAMES IAF. APCH CALLED AND TOLD ME I WAS 2 MI FROM SAMES AND WOULD BE CLRED FOR THE APCH AS SOON AS THE ACFT ON THE APCH AHEAD OF ME RPTED BACK ON FREQ WITH THEIR MISSED APCH (THEY WERE A TRNING FLT OUT OF SAN JOSE). PREVIOUS TO INTERCEPTING THE APCH COURSE INBND MRY HAD ISSUED ME THE CURRENT WX AT SALINAS AS 7' 20 MI. THE CTLR ASKED IF I COULD REMAIN VFR UNTIL THE OTHER ACFT CHKED IN. I REMAINED AT 3000' UNTIL REACHING SAMES; AND THEN STARTED DOWN. JUST AFTER PASSING SAMES THE CTLR ASKED IF I HAD HEARD THE CALL MADE BY THE ACFT ON THE MISSED APCH. I REPLIED NEGATIVE AND THE CTLR SAID THAT THE PRECEDING ACFT HAD DSNDED TO 520' AND NEVER SAW THE ARPT. HE THEN GAVE ME CURRENT WX AS 400'; 7 MI. I ROGERED FOR THE INFO AND CONTINUED. AT THIS TIME THERE WAS A LOT OF CHATTER ON THE FREQ. I DID NOT SPECIFICALLY HEAR THE CTLR TELL ME I WAS CLRED NOR DID I HEAR HIM TELL ME TO CONTACT RADIO (SALINAS FSS) IF HE DID. AT 1.5 DME I TOLD MRY APCH I WAS GOING TO RADIO. I GOT NO REPLY. AT APPROX 1.3 DME I CAME OUT OF THE CLOUDS AT 540' AND MADE GND CONTACT AND CONTINUED TO DSND TO 520' AT 1.2 DME. I MADE CONTACT WITH THE FIELD; AND RADIOED SALINAS FSS THAT I HAD THE FIELD IN SIGHT AND ALT I BROKE OUT AT. AT THE TIME I SPOTTED THE FIELD I WAS RIGHT OF COURSE APPROX 700'. I CONTINUED ON THE LEFT DOWN AND LANDED ON RWY 31. I FEEL THAT HAVING 2 ACFT ON THE APCH AT THE SAME TIME; WITH THE SECOND ACFT'S CLRNC DEPENDENT ON THE FIRST ACFT CHKING IN IS INCORRECT. I FEEL THAT APCH SHOULD HAVE GIVEN ME CURRENT WX PRIOR TO MY REACHING SAMES AND/OR OFFERED ME ONE OF THE OTHER APCHS. WHEN I HADN'T HEARD THE ACTUAL APCH CLRNC OR BEEN TOLD TO CONTACT RADIO I SHOULD HAVE PROBABLY EXECUTED A MISSED APCH AND SORTED THINGS OUT WITH THE CTLR. AFTER MY LNDG THE FSS MADE NO COMMENT ON THE APCH AND AFTER I DEPARTED AND CONTACTED MRY AGAIN; THEY ALSO MADE NO COMMENT AS TO WHETHER THIS PROC WAS CORRECT OR NOT (HOWEVER I DID NOT ASK).

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