Narrative:

I am a front line manager (flm) and was called to the tower for an emergency in progress. Before the emergency event and before I got to the tower cab the pilot had reported an auto-pilot issue which subsequently he reported resolved. The aircraft was on a vector for the ILS and then reported an engine failure. An alert 2 emergency was called and the controller in communication with the pilot determined a turn close to the approach gate was going to be necessary. The pilot appeared to be having difficulty joining the localizer and was not able get established. The pilot was maintaining altitude and agreed to go back out and attempt the ILS again; and this time the turn to final looked like it was going to be effective but about the point the aircraft was joining final it began a turn straight west and again flew through the localizer. This is purely speculation but it appeared that perhaps the pilot's autopilot problem was not resolved as he had thought.the pilot was then asked if he wanted a vector to join an approximately 5 mile final and descend to the minimum descent altitude for an ASR approach. The pilot concurred and was vectored onto final and began his descent. He reported the runway in sight descending through approximately 1800 feet with ceilings reported 700 feet. The aircraft landed and taxied to parking under its own power.the most important aspect of this operation was that the pilot landed safely. The concern I have is the ASR approaches were allowed to lapse in certification so they are now not flight checked and controllers are not required to practice them for proficiency. The altitudes and information for them; however; are maintained in the radar position binders. We used that information today to help this pilot safely reach the ground. Having a fairly intimate local knowledge of the terrain and building structures I did not have a significant safety concern in this emergency situation about descending an aircraft to the now non-flight checked MDA as there are no buildings or obstructions close to that height that could have caused a safety hazard to this aircraft. Couple this with the fact that for some reason the pilot was able to take vectors but was having difficulty joining the localizer and it seemed our best option versus taking the aircraft out for another ILS attempt on one engine; especially as we had received numerous icing reports at all altitudes. Had ASR approaches been flight checked and current it likely would have been our first option to help this pilot reach the airport safely.I came from a facility in which ASR approaches were maintained and we were all current and proficient with them. I have seen them used in emergency situations; in the most minor situations to help the pilot reach the airport quickly; and at most; averting accidents and loss of life. I am bothered by the fact that for some reason; which I have been unable to determine with certainty; the use and maintenance of ASR approaches was allowed to lapse. I am more bothered that I only now thought to atsap this problem. I trust the effectiveness of atsap and our safety culture and regret that I didn't think to use it sooner. I am going to strongly urge my air traffic manager to investigate the actions necessary to bring the ASR approaches back into currency. If they save one life they will be well worth the effort needed to get them re-established and get the operational personnel back to currency on them.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Twin engine aircraft with an engine out emergency attempted to land conducting an ILS approach. The aircraft was unable to intercept the localizer twice. ATC vectored the aircraft on to an ASR approach and the aircraft landed.

Narrative: I am a Front Line Manager (FLM) and was called to the tower for an emergency in progress. Before the emergency event and before I got to the tower cab the pilot had reported an auto-pilot issue which subsequently he reported resolved. The aircraft was on a vector for the ILS and then reported an engine failure. An alert 2 emergency was called and the controller in communication with the pilot determined a turn close to the approach gate was going to be necessary. The pilot appeared to be having difficulty joining the localizer and was not able get established. The pilot was maintaining altitude and agreed to go back out and attempt the ILS again; and this time the turn to final looked like it was going to be effective but about the point the aircraft was joining final it began a turn straight west and again flew through the localizer. This is purely speculation but it appeared that perhaps the pilot's autopilot problem was not resolved as he had thought.The pilot was then asked if he wanted a vector to join an approximately 5 mile final and descend to the minimum descent altitude for an ASR approach. The pilot concurred and was vectored onto final and began his descent. He reported the runway in sight descending through approximately 1800 feet with ceilings reported 700 feet. The aircraft landed and taxied to parking under its own power.The most important aspect of this operation was that the pilot landed safely. The concern I have is the ASR approaches were allowed to lapse in certification so they are now not flight checked and controllers are not required to practice them for proficiency. The altitudes and information for them; however; are maintained in the RADAR position binders. We used that information today to help this pilot safely reach the ground. Having a fairly intimate local knowledge of the terrain and building structures I did not have a significant safety concern in this emergency situation about descending an aircraft to the now non-flight checked MDA as there are no buildings or obstructions close to that height that could have caused a safety hazard to this aircraft. Couple this with the fact that for some reason the pilot was able to take vectors but was having difficulty joining the localizer and it seemed our best option versus taking the aircraft out for another ILS attempt on one engine; especially as we had received numerous icing reports at all altitudes. Had ASR approaches been flight checked and current it likely would have been our first option to help this pilot reach the airport safely.I came from a facility in which ASR approaches were maintained and we were all current and proficient with them. I have seen them used in emergency situations; in the most minor situations to help the pilot reach the airport quickly; and at most; averting accidents and loss of life. I am bothered by the fact that for some reason; which I have been unable to determine with certainty; the use and maintenance of ASR approaches was allowed to lapse. I am more bothered that I only now thought to ATSAP this problem. I trust the effectiveness of ATSAP and our safety culture and regret that I didn't think to use it sooner. I am going to strongly urge my Air Traffic Manager to investigate the actions necessary to bring the ASR approaches back into currency. If they save one life they will be well worth the effort needed to get them re-established and get the operational personnel back to currency on them.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site 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.