TCA PENETRATION WITHOUT CLRNC.

Narrative

IN 8/88; AT APPROX XX AM; I DEPARTED GILLESPIE FIELD (EL CAJON; CA) FOR THE RETURN TRIP TO MY HOME BASE OF OAK. I HAD FLOWN INTO AND OUT OF GILLESPIE ONLY 1 OTHER TIME (WITH NO PROBS) SINCE THE SAN DIEGO TCA WENT INTO EFFECT EARLIER THIS YEAR. PRIOR TO THE FLT I MADE SURE MY TCA CHART WAS OUT AND THAT I LOOKED IT OVER. ALSO; SINCE THE TCA HAD BEEN UPDATED SINCE MY CHART WAS PRINTED; I ALSO LOOKED UP THE CURRENT CHARTING IN MY CHART BOOK. AT THE TIME OF THE ALLEGED INCIDENT; I HAD A PVT PLT; SINGLE ENG LAND CERTIFICATE WITH AN INSTRUMENT RATING; AND HAD BEEN A PVT PLT SINCE 2/87. I HAD LOGGED OVER 324 HRS AND HAVE FLOWN ALL TYPES OF TERRAIN AND BOTH UNCONTROLLED AND CTLED AREAS FROM CALIF TO MINN. I FLY FOR PLEASURE AND BUSINESS; AND WAS ON A BUSINESS TRIP AT THE TIME. THE ACFT INVOLVED IS AN SMA WHICH I OWN AND HAVE FLOWN FOR ABOUT 275 HRS. IT IS EQUIPPED WITH MODE C AND JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING ELSE FROM DUAL NAVCOMS TO LORAN. JUST BEFORE MY TKOF ROLL; GILLESPIE TWR AGREED TO OPEN MY FLT PLAN FOR ME; BUT NEEDING TO OPEN THE FLT PLAN WAS STILL ON MY MIND AFTER TKOF FROM RWY 27R. I TURNED TO A HDG OF ABOUT 310 DEGS; SWITCHED FREQS TO SAN APCH AND IMMEDIATELY CALLED IN; BUT MADE THE MISTAKE OF SAYING; 'SAN DIEGO RADIO; THIS IS XXX.' UNDERSTANDABLY; THE RESPONSE CAME BACK SOMETHING TO THE EFFECT THAT I HAD CONTACTED SAN APCH. MY SECOND XMISSION WAS CORRECT AND STATED; 'SAN DIEGO APCH; THIS IS XXX.' NONETHELESS; THE ATC SECOND XMISSION REPLIED TO THE EFFECT THAT THIS WAS SAN APCH AND THAT SAN DIEGO RADIO WAS AT 122.4. I CALLED A THIRD TIME STATING WORDS SIMILAR TO; 'SAN DIEGO APCH; THIS IS XXX AND I DO WANT SAN DIEGO APCH! I'M AN SMA; JUST DEPARTED GILLESPIE ENRTE OAK REQUESTING FLT FOLLOWING.' HIS THIRD XMISSIONS ACKNOWLEDGED ME AND GAVE ME A SQUAWK CODE AND SAID TO REMAIN CLR OF THE TCA. MY NEXT XMISSION ACKNOWLEDGED THE SQUAWK. WITHIN A VERY; VERY FEW SECS THEREAFTER; HE RESPONDED REQUESTING MY ALT. I TOLD HIM I WAS AT 2700'; AND THEN HE RESPONDED IMMEDIATELY TO THE EFFECT THAT I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TCA AND TO TURN LEFT TO 100 DEGS. I ACKNOWLEDGED THE XMISSION; REPEATING THE HDG AND COMPLIED. SHORTLY THEREAFTER A DIFFERENT VOICE XMITTED FROM ATC AND REQUESTED THAT I RETURN TO GILLESPIE AND LAND; AND THAT I CALL TRACON; WHICH I DID DO. THEY SAID I HAD ENTERED THE TCA W/O PERMISSION AND THAT AN MTR FROM MIRAMAR SUPPOSEDLY HAD TO DEVIATE ON ITS APCH. I KNEW WHERE THE TCA WAS ON PAPER AND HAD THE APPROPRIATE MAPS; AND I DID NOT BELIEVE I HAD ENTERED THE TCA AS YET. I KNEW THAT I WOULD BE NEARING IT SOON; ON THAT HDG; AND SO I WAS PREPARED TO IMMEDIATELY HEAD EASTERLY IF I DID NOT RECEIVE CLRNC FROM ATC WITHIN THE NEXT FEW SECS; GIVEN THE DELAYS FROM THE XMISSIONS. I DID NOT BELIEVE I HAD ENTERED THE TCA; BUT ACCORDING TO THEIR RADAR; THEY SAY I DID. I BELIEVE THERE ARE EXTENUATING AND MITIGATING CIRCUMSTANCES PRESENT IN THE INCIDENT IN THAT I AM A RELATIVELY NEW PLT AND THAT THIS AREA IS NOT MY HOME BASE. ADDITIONALLY; THE NEED FOR 4 EXCHANGES OF XMISSIONS TOOK MY ATTN; AND ALSO A BIT OF TIME; WHICH OBVIOUSLY COULD HAVE BROUGHT ME CLOSER TO THE TCA W/O ME BEING CONSCIOUSLY AWARE OF IT; DUE TO THE COMS PROBS. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING: RPTR CALLED TRACON AFTER RETURNING TO GILLESPIE. DISCUSSION NOT CONCLUSIVE. RPTR FEELS HE DID NOT ENTER TCA; BUT ATC SAYS HE DID. RPTR NEVER WAS ABLE TO SEE MTR. INVESTIGATION IS IN PROCESS AND FAA INDICATES THEY WILL FILE A VIOLATION.