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B787-9 crew reported descending below cleared altitude due to confusion over the meters to feet conversion.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1595778 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201811 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1801-2400 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZSPD.ARTCC |
| State Reference | FO |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | B787-900 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Descent |
| Route In Use | STAR DUMET |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Captain Pilot Not Flying |
| Person 2 | |
| Function | Pilot Flying Captain |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Deviation - Altitude Excursion From Assigned Altitude Deviation - Altitude Overshoot Deviation - Procedural Clearance |
Narrative:
On descent into zspd; ATC assigned us 3;600 meters. As non-flying pilot; I read back 3;600 meters. While I was reading back the altitude to ATC; the relief pilot called out the meters to feet conversion from the chart incorrectly using the 3;300 meter equivalent of 10;800 feet rather than the 3;600 meter equivalent of 11;800 feet. After completing the read back with ATC; I glanced at the meters to feet conversion chart I had up on my ipad. I saw the called out altitude of 10;800 meters and did not notice that it was one line lower than the correct altitude of 11;800 feet. ATC called us about our altitude when we were approx. 800 feet low. The captain who was pilot flying turned off the autopilot and returned the aircraft to the correct altitude.the chinese [ATC] change you back and forth between feet and meters without notice several times during the same approach. It can get very confusing. The altitude set from the conversion sheet do not correspond directly to the altitude assigned and so it can be very difficult to look and see whether the correct altitude is being flown.having the crew members reading the conversion altitude; wait until the radio read-back is complete before calling out the converted altitude might help all of the pilots be more involved in the cross check of the altitude.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: B787-9 crew reported descending below cleared altitude due to confusion over the meters to feet conversion.
Narrative: On descent into ZSPD; ATC assigned us 3;600 meters. As Non-Flying Pilot; I read back 3;600 meters. While I was reading back the altitude to ATC; the Relief Pilot called out the meters to feet conversion from the chart incorrectly using the 3;300 meter equivalent of 10;800 feet rather than the 3;600 meter equivalent of 11;800 feet. After completing the read back with ATC; I glanced at the meters to feet conversion chart I had up on my iPad. I saw the called out altitude of 10;800 meters and did not notice that it was one line lower than the correct altitude of 11;800 feet. ATC called us about our altitude when we were approx. 800 feet low. The Captain who was Pilot Flying turned off the autopilot and returned the aircraft to the correct altitude.The Chinese [ATC] change you back and forth between Feet and Meters without notice several times during the same approach. It can get very confusing. The altitude set from the conversion sheet do not correspond directly to the altitude assigned and so it can be very difficult to look and see whether the correct altitude is being flown.Having the crew members reading the conversion altitude; wait until the radio read-back is complete before calling out the converted altitude might help all of the pilots be more involved in the cross check of the altitude.
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.