maybe next time, ignore dispatch.

 

You could still get violated, but the punishment would probably be waived, ie no suspension. But it would still be on your record.

Yes.

 

You got a compass in that 208?

Do you know a heading of 120 is 80 degrees off of a heading of 040?

You do have your instrument ticket, right?

When in doubt, trust the compass, and don't let yourself get distracted by dispatch messages. I'm sure the tower and MD88 guys got a chuckle out of it, and you learned an important lesson, I hope.

It sounds like the Tower saved you from any legal action, don't sweat it, and next time, know where you are in the pattern and don't turn final if you don't.

It could have been ugly, meeting an MD88 coming the other way after you landed.

 

That is absolutely correct. Even if the controller you are working with says "no problem", a routine review of tapes and data by a supervisor or higher authority could send the enforcement branch your way. I've heard of cases where it was several weeks after the incident before the letter of investigation was issued.

If you even momentarily think 'should I file an ASAP or NASA', then you absolutely should. Fortunately the OP indicates he filed a NASA. While not nearly as good as an ASAP, it would prevent you from having to 'serve the sentence' and in this case my gut tells me ASAP is not an option at his employer.

 

Good! You should be fine. I'm just glad you got the NASA form submitted. Now go spread the word to your fellow pilots who find themselves in a similar situation in the future.

 

Good advice. Everyone gets distracted. I hope you learned from it. The way you describe it I don't see a deviation (maybe if you were off frequency for a while). We get C208's that essentially line up with a crossing runway then turn a very short final. It looks kind of cool and sounds like what you almost did. If I clear you for a visual approach with no restrictions and you aren't following any traffic visually, it's on me if there is conflict. There are certain profiles I expect, but you have a lot of discretion on a visual.

A few years back we were told not to say "no problem" on the frequency because it can make it harder to take enforcement action. We can also get in a lot of trouble for not reporting a possible pilot deviation. Good luck.

 

As everyone else has said, NASA form, and refrain from any non essential tasks when in low level flight. I don't know how your company is, but it's policy for most to only worry about essentials when in the terminal area.

 

I'm not sure, in the case of a possible deviation, why someone should also fill out an ASAP report (if available at their company). If it just involves the FAA, why report yourself to the company also? We know these aren't really de-identified, and some guys are filling out ASAP reports constantly to cover themselves. I guess I don't really understand the system that much, and while I definitely see filling out a NASA report for a possible violation, why get yourself investigated by the company also?

 

Well, one reason is that the ASRS only waives the penalty at the end of an NTSB hearing, after judgement is rendered, so you'll still be found "guilty" of a violation, just that a possible suspension will be waived.

ASAP is set up for protecting the certificate holder for violations and occurrences (in addition to general safety reporting functions). In this respect, if the violation wasn't an intentional gross violation ("I had a few beers 5hrs ago, but damn I'm feeling pretty good now, let's go!"), there is usually nothing on your record and even if you get a warning-letter as the outcome of the ASAP, it can't be PRIAed by a prospective employer. If you are having repercussions from the company for freely sharing safety information about non-intentional violations and just general safety concerns, you need to contact the POI and FAA ASAP reps, and maybe even their managers-asap (haha), because there is a fundamental problem with your program. If you are asking "why get yourself investigated by the company" it shows that there is some sort of problem with the program. Also, consider that if there's a pilot deviation, the FAA WILL investigate it and they likely WILL contact your company to get information about you, information that the company is required to keep by FARs. It's not going to be a secret that you are being investigated for a pilot deviation. In the scheme of things, these are pretty small things unless there was a loss of separation or some type of situation where the potential hazard was much greater than normal. If it's a decent sized company, they probably have multiple pilot deviation investigations going on much of the time, these things happen, so the FAA has tried to have some programs (there are others besides ASAP) to try and recognize this and the fact that humans don't perform 100% perfectly 100% of the time.

The other issue is that if it's a sole-source ASAP, you are pretty well protected. If it's non-sole source, your ASAP can still be accepted (usually given the benefit of the doubt if it was not an intentional action/violation). If you don't do any ASAP, using a certificate for a certificate holder (commercial operations) usually has a pretty high standard of conduct and that is something that is taken into account when investigating the violation. Not filing an ASAP could end poorly, especially if you provide no information that would help the investigation determine if it was just a "slip" vs. it happened because you aren't competent. The ASAP program usually makes that much easier, as the lines of communication are open without fear of reprisal. The ATC guys are required to report pilot deviations. As investigators, we are required to investigate them. We are trying to determine if it was a routine violation and the above described "slip", or if we have a pilot operating out there that is a danger to the public. Obviously the path this could take varies widely depending on those factors. ASAP helps immensely and I highly recommend to use it.

 

Thanks for that details explanation, JamesNoBrakes, that makes much more sense now! I can understand why someone would file an ASAP report, definitely.

In my situation, I've never gotten a deviation, warning letter, or even a request to call a controller back, in decades of flying. I'm not worried about a letter from the FAA (not going to apply for another flying job, ever), I am more concerned about a fine. I can't even remember a time that I was worried about getting deviated, but talking to some guys....it seems like they are constantly filling out ASAP reports for things that come close.

I wonder about the wisdom of filling out a report for things that aren't possible violations---such as while the other guy is flying....autopilot doesn't catch the altitude, he corrects too slowly and before you know it, he's 250 feet off. Not 300 feet, ATC doesn't say anything, but it's close. Or they give you direct, you forget to take it off heading select for awhile, you realize it, and reselect. Things that are obviously errors, but not to the point that anyone mentions it. When I read up about ASAP reports, they say they take into account how often the type of things reported have happened to you, and it makes me wonder that if you're the type of person who is constantly reporting your errors, while most people don't...wouldn't that make you seem reckless?

I really appreciate the explanation of why to do an ASAP. That's the best one I've read.