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Air carrier captain reports difficulty seeing taxiway lines at bwi at night during rain; suggesting the paint is less reflective than normal.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1014842 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201206 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1801-2400 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | BWI.Airport |
| State Reference | MD |
| Environment | |
| Light | Night |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Widebody Transport |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Taxi |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Captain Pilot Flying |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | No Specific Anomaly Occurred All Types |
Narrative:
Due to inoperative APU; started all engines before push back. Rain began during engine start; light to moderate and then somewhat heavy. Push back completed. It was very hard to visually identify the taxi lines. This was my first bwi trip in several years. Ground control was helpful once we cleared the ramp area; but the taxiway markings at night coupled with significant rain make it almost impossible to see the taxiway lines. (Very similar to sju and previously reported by this individual) I tried using the efvs [enhanced night vision system]; but this accomplished little. The problem is poor lighting and taxiway markings/paint that is non-reflective. In my opinion; [this is] unsatisfactory and a very real safety issue. Use reflective paint.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: Air Carrier Captain reports difficulty seeing taxiway lines at BWI at night during rain; suggesting the paint is less reflective than normal.
Narrative: Due to inoperative APU; started all engines before push back. Rain began during engine start; light to moderate and then somewhat heavy. Push back completed. It was very hard to visually identify the taxi lines. This was my first BWI trip in several years. Ground Control was helpful once we cleared the ramp area; but the taxiway markings at night coupled with significant rain make it almost impossible to see the taxiway lines. (Very similar to SJU and previously reported by this individual) I tried using the EFVS [enhanced night vision system]; but this accomplished little. The problem is poor lighting and taxiway markings/paint that is non-reflective. In my opinion; [this is] unsatisfactory and a very real safety issue. Use reflective paint.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.