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Air carrier captain reported a roof top solar array presented a blinding glare on approach to san runway 27.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1759137 |
| Time | |
| Date | 202008 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1201-1800 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | SAN.Airport |
| State Reference | CA |
| Environment | |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Commercial Fixed Wing |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Final Approach |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Captain Pilot Not Flying |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Inflight Event / Encounter Other / Unknown |
Narrative:
On approach to runway 27 in san; just prior to the parking garage; there is a roof top with a solar panel array. This solar panel array reflected the sun like a mirror which created a blinding bright glare. The glare had the illusion of originating at the threshold of the runway which created a lot of confusion and distraction and was a factor from the FAF inbound until we finally passed over it on very short final. This bright light was worse than being 'lasered.' the solar panel array needs to be removed; or at the very least covered during times of the year in which the location of the sun in the sky will be reflected towards the final approach course. Or angle the panels in a way that it will never reflect the sun towards the FAF.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: Air carrier Captain reported a roof top solar array presented a blinding glare on approach to SAN Runway 27.
Narrative: On approach to Runway 27 in SAN; just prior to the parking garage; there is a roof top with a solar panel array. This solar panel array reflected the sun like a mirror which created a blinding bright glare. The glare had the illusion of originating at the threshold of the runway which created a lot of confusion and distraction and was a factor from the FAF inbound until we finally passed over it on very short final. This bright light was worse than being 'lasered.' The solar panel array needs to be removed; or at the very least covered during times of the year in which the location of the sun in the sky will be reflected towards the final approach course. Or angle the panels in a way that it will never reflect the sun towards the FAF.
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.