Narrative:

Clearance delivery out of sba re-routed this airplane to include 'drake' VOR (drk); but both pilots wrote down 'drake' i.e. The intersection on the scratch paper in the cockpit and this was subsequently programmed in to the FMS. After flying the SID and transitioning to the enroute segment of flight; the la center controller assigned the flight 'cleared direct drake.' the crew proceeded to fly direct to the drake intersection. Crew noticed that it caused about a 90 degree turn along the route of flight and asked for direct for a fix after that point to 'straighten the line.' upon asking and controller seemed incredulous and implied that 'drake' was about a 4 degree course change from the currently assigned route. Crew insisted that 'drake' was about a 90 degree heading change and would require a significant turn thereafter to get back on course. After query from ATC; it was determined that the crew erroneously put 'drake' intersection in to the FMS rather than drk (VORTAC). Crew admitted fault; corrected in the FMS and the rest of the flight proceeded uneventfully. Controller at sba didn't specify drk VORTAC; out of pure coincidence there is a drake intersection in the same general direction even though it is in a different state. On the ground crew assumed and wrote down 'drake' and never questioned the type of fix. In the air; crew had mfd ranged out too far to realize the massive difference in course between drk and drake intersection - an entirely different state. If a course discrepancy is seen on the mfd when zooming out i.e.; not a straight line; ask ATC to verify that an intersection is spelled properly; or if it is supposed to be a VOR rather than an intersection.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Air carrier flight crew reported a track heading deviation during departure from SBA airport. The crew reported they had entered DRAKE Intersection in their FMS rather than 'Drake' DRK VOR as cleared.

Narrative: Clearance delivery out of SBA re-routed this airplane to include 'Drake' VOR (DRK); but both pilots wrote down 'DRAKE' i.e. the intersection on the scratch paper in the cockpit and this was subsequently programmed in to the FMS. After flying the SID and transitioning to the enroute segment of flight; the LA Center Controller assigned the flight 'cleared direct Drake.' The crew proceeded to fly direct to the DRAKE intersection. Crew noticed that it caused about a 90 degree turn along the route of flight and asked for direct for a fix after that point to 'straighten the line.' Upon asking and Controller seemed incredulous and implied that 'Drake' was about a 4 degree course change from the currently assigned route. Crew insisted that 'Drake' was about a 90 degree heading change and would require a significant turn thereafter to get back on course. After query from ATC; it was determined that the crew erroneously put 'DRAKE' Intersection in to the FMS rather than DRK (VORTAC). Crew admitted fault; corrected in the FMS and the rest of the flight proceeded uneventfully. Controller at SBA didn't specify DRK VORTAC; out of pure coincidence there is a DRAKE Intersection in the same general direction even though it is in a different state. On the ground crew assumed and wrote down 'DRAKE' and never questioned the type of fix. In the air; crew had MFD ranged out too far to realize the massive difference in course between DRK and DRAKE intersection - an entirely different state. If a course discrepancy is seen on the MFD when zooming out i.e.; not a straight line; ask ATC to verify that an intersection is spelled properly; or if it is supposed to be a VOR rather than an intersection.

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.