Narrative:

Flying cpr light transport X from portland, or to lax on a normal corp trip. Cleared to descend from FL330 on the sadde 4 profile descent 24/25. Cleared to cross smo VOR 6000' and fly the stadium visual approach for 24R. Next controller said depart smo on 070 heading and look for an medium large transport Y at our 1 O'clock 4 mi 2500' on final approach to 24R, which we were going to follow to the airport. After crossing smo I was cleared to 4000' and was flying my assigned 070 heading when air carrier medium large transport Y was spotted at 2 O'clock. At this time I realized that my lateral distance from medium large transport Y was not far enough to allow me to make a 180 turn to the right and fall in behind him as I had been expecting to do. This surprised me and when I asked my first officer what his compass was reading he responded 085. At this time I selected the third compass on my side which confirmed that I had actually been flying 085 instead of the assigned 070 and consequently had been drifting in closer to the final approach course than desired. About this time the controller told me to turn right O 180 heading and descend to 2500'. As I was descending through 3700' I was told to continue my right turn to 240, stop my descent at 3500' for traffic underneath me. Because of the previously described drift in problem I was in a 35 degree bank to facilitate a tighter turn to final. Upon rollout of the turn on a 240 heading I was directly aligned with runway 25R. Momentarily I thought the controller was going to change me to 25R. At this point I am still at 3500' and showing about 7 DME from the lax VOR. My first officer and I discuss/argue which runway we are headed to when the approach controller then confirmed us to 24R and cleared us for the visual. We then dropped the landing gear and flaps and made a much steeper than normal descent to the runway. In our haste to get configured for landing and descend we failed to notice the approach controller had not turned us over to the lax tower controller. About when we crossed the threshold the approach controller issued us a clearance to land and told us to contact the tower when able on our roll out. We did this and were cleared to ground control then to the ramp uneventfully. Afterward, my first officer and I discussed the whole incident thoroughly. Our light transport X has a comparator warning system and I couldn't figure out why my compass failure had not been activated. My first officer then told me he had cancelled the warning without mentioning it because we were in visual conditions. The controller shouldn't assign a stadium visual then negate it by assigning a heading. If we had been flying the stadium visual as depicted there would have been no drift in problem even with the compass failure. I should have been cross checking my compass as I would have been doing in IMC conditions. Also, I should have been paying closer attention and immediately questioned the confusion of runways. I have operated in and out of lax for years and always used 25L/right prior to this time. When I rolled out on my assigned 240 heading aligned with 25R I tricked myself into thinking that was where I was going. That will not happen again.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: CPR LTT FLT CREW EXPERIENCES COMPASS ERROR ON APCH TO LAX, CAUSES THEM TO BE CLOSE TO RWY THEY ARE CLEARED FOR, BUT IN A DIFFICULT POSITION TO MANEUVER FOR LNDG.

Narrative: FLYING CPR LTT X FROM PORTLAND, OR TO LAX ON A NORMAL CORP TRIP. CLRED TO DSND FROM FL330 ON THE SADDE 4 PROFILE DSCNT 24/25. CLRED TO CROSS SMO VOR 6000' AND FLY THE STADIUM VISUAL APCH FOR 24R. NEXT CTLR SAID DEPART SMO ON 070 HDG AND LOOK FOR AN MLG Y AT OUR 1 O'CLOCK 4 MI 2500' ON FINAL APCH TO 24R, WHICH WE WERE GOING TO FOLLOW TO THE ARPT. AFTER XING SMO I WAS CLRED TO 4000' AND WAS FLYING MY ASSIGNED 070 HDG WHEN ACR MLG Y WAS SPOTTED AT 2 O'CLOCK. AT THIS TIME I REALIZED THAT MY LATERAL DISTANCE FROM MLG Y WAS NOT FAR ENOUGH TO ALLOW ME TO MAKE A 180 TURN TO THE RIGHT AND FALL IN BEHIND HIM AS I HAD BEEN EXPECTING TO DO. THIS SURPRISED ME AND WHEN I ASKED MY F/O WHAT HIS COMPASS WAS READING HE RESPONDED 085. AT THIS TIME I SELECTED THE THIRD COMPASS ON MY SIDE WHICH CONFIRMED THAT I HAD ACTUALLY BEEN FLYING 085 INSTEAD OF THE ASSIGNED 070 AND CONSEQUENTLY HAD BEEN DRIFTING IN CLOSER TO THE FINAL APCH COURSE THAN DESIRED. ABOUT THIS TIME THE CTLR TOLD ME TO TURN RIGHT O 180 HDG AND DSND TO 2500'. AS I WAS DESCENDING THROUGH 3700' I WAS TOLD TO CONTINUE MY RIGHT TURN TO 240, STOP MY DSCNT AT 3500' FOR TFC UNDERNEATH ME. BECAUSE OF THE PREVIOUSLY DESCRIBED DRIFT IN PROBLEM I WAS IN A 35 DEG BANK TO FACILITATE A TIGHTER TURN TO FINAL. UPON ROLLOUT OF THE TURN ON A 240 HDG I WAS DIRECTLY ALIGNED WITH RWY 25R. MOMENTARILY I THOUGHT THE CTLR WAS GOING TO CHANGE ME TO 25R. AT THIS POINT I AM STILL AT 3500' AND SHOWING ABOUT 7 DME FROM THE LAX VOR. MY F/O AND I DISCUSS/ARGUE WHICH RWY WE ARE HEADED TO WHEN THE APCH CTLR THEN CONFIRMED US TO 24R AND CLRED US FOR THE VISUAL. WE THEN DROPPED THE LNDG GEAR AND FLAPS AND MADE A MUCH STEEPER THAN NORMAL DSCNT TO THE RWY. IN OUR HASTE TO GET CONFIGURED FOR LNDG AND DSND WE FAILED TO NOTICE THE APCH CTLR HAD NOT TURNED US OVER TO THE LAX TWR CTLR. ABOUT WHEN WE CROSSED THE THRESHOLD THE APCH CTLR ISSUED US A CLRNC TO LAND AND TOLD US TO CONTACT THE TWR WHEN ABLE ON OUR ROLL OUT. WE DID THIS AND WERE CLRED TO GND CTL THEN TO THE RAMP UNEVENTFULLY. AFTERWARD, MY F/O AND I DISCUSSED THE WHOLE INCIDENT THOROUGHLY. OUR LTT X HAS A COMPARATOR WARNING SYSTEM AND I COULDN'T FIGURE OUT WHY MY COMPASS FAILURE HAD NOT BEEN ACTIVATED. MY F/O THEN TOLD ME HE HAD CANCELLED THE WARNING WITHOUT MENTIONING IT BECAUSE WE WERE IN VISUAL CONDITIONS. THE CTLR SHOULDN'T ASSIGN A STADIUM VISUAL THEN NEGATE IT BY ASSIGNING A HDG. IF WE HAD BEEN FLYING THE STADIUM VISUAL AS DEPICTED THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN NO DRIFT IN PROBLEM EVEN WITH THE COMPASS FAILURE. I SHOULD HAVE BEEN CROSS CHECKING MY COMPASS AS I WOULD HAVE BEEN DOING IN IMC CONDITIONS. ALSO, I SHOULD HAVE BEEN PAYING CLOSER ATTN AND IMMEDIATELY QUESTIONED THE CONFUSION OF RWYS. I HAVE OPERATED IN AND OUT OF LAX FOR YEARS AND ALWAYS USED 25L/R PRIOR TO THIS TIME. WHEN I ROLLED OUT ON MY ASSIGNED 240 HDG ALIGNED WITH 25R I TRICKED MYSELF INTO THINKING THAT WAS WHERE I WAS GOING. THAT WILL NOT HAPPEN AGAIN.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2007 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.