Narrative:

After clearing customs and immigration in mia, we proceeded to gate for this flight's departure to puj. As I approached gate, I saw a large crowd around the gate and as I needed to retrieve the paperwork for this flight, I went to another gate, as it was empty, to use that computer and printer. A woman came up to me that I recognized as one of the 'vip' meeters and greeters. She seemed to be a bit frazzled this flight, however, and started talking to me. I asked her to give me a chance to make the 'jp' entry, as it would take a while to print out. She said 'of course,' I made the entry and away went the printer to my satisfaction. She and I entered into a conversation about the vip's that were to be on my flight. We also discussed their armed escorts and she was unsure how many there were to be and where they would be sitting and whether or not some had checked their weapons. I heard the printer stop printing, and excused myself to turn around and find that the printer had run out of paper! I looked at what it had printed prior to running out of paper and thought I had everything I needed except the tps. I saw flight plans, WX, F-4 NOTAMS, field reports. I then assigned the printer and entered the wbdf entry to obtain a tps. I was now down to about 17 mins prior to departure. I finally walked onto the airplane about 14 mins prior to departure to have my copilot tell me this was an origination preflight and he was headed outside. I set up my cockpit with the usual interruptions from all who needed some sort of information. Herein lies part of the problem. I was trying to read the paperwork I had pulled up and the mountains of into it holds. I thought I had it all. I did not, as I would find out upon arrival in puj. I was missing the NOTAMS that would have told me that taxiway E3 was closed! We departed and had an uneventful flight to puj until we were overhead and were told to hold for about 20 mins. We held directly overhead the airport and if only I had looked down, I would have seen taxiway E3 and why it was closed. I briefed the approach. The copilot had been to puj the week before and E3 was not closed then. On approach, I heard the previous aircraft say he was taking it to the end and would do a 180 degree turn. I thought that odd, as it is a long runway and plenty of room to stop prior to E3 to enable an easy turnoff, but it was a B767 and I assumed he landed long or was heavy and rolled out. He cleared the runway and we were cleared to land (I had never been to puj prior to this). I let it roll to taxiway E3 and turned right only to stare at 2 707's parked on the parallel portion of this taxiway. I stopped and assessed whether I had room to turn left back onto the runway (after consulting with the tower who was wondering what we were doing, but never told us to take it to the end as E3 was closed). I decided to bite the bullet and hold where I was and receive instructions from the tower. We were still not clear of the runway when the tower cleared another company flight to take off and I forcefully told them not to clear another aircraft to take off as we were not clear of the runway. We taxied ahead and parked the brakes clear of the runway and awaited a tug to push us back onto the runway (after clearance from tower), unhook and then we taxied to the ramp, arriving late. I allowed myself to be rushed and 'missed' the NOTAM about the closure of E3 (as I did not even have it). That was my fault. Personally, however, I think this should have been an F4 NOTAM or at least in the field report and the tower should have informed us. Supplemental information from acn 565891: neither of us picked up on the NOTAM closing taxiway E3 which was in an obscure spot in the airport NOTAMS. The field conditions report was 24 hours old and had no mention of the taxiway closure. No mention was made by the tower of the taxiway closure. We elected to pull straight ahead, call for a tug and to push us back onto the runway and restart to taxi to taxiway E2. The only comment the tower had is that they had sent it to our company 3 weeks ago. It took the captain, myself, and our dispatcher approximately 1 hour to find the specific NOTAM on the flight plan after the incident occurred. It would seem pertinent enough information to have been put in the field conditions report or to have been more distinctively placed on the release and to have been disseminated to us by the tower. Callback conversation with reporter revealed the following information: a conversation with the first officer revealed that a copy of the NOTAM, indicating that taxiway E3 was closed, had been included in the release paperwork. Its presence was missed due to its being located in an obscure location near a fold in the paper.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A B757 CREW, AFTER LNDG AT MDPC, TURNED ONTO A TXWY THAT WAS NOTAMED CLOSED.

Narrative: AFTER CLRING CUSTOMS AND IMMIGRATION IN MIA, WE PROCEEDED TO GATE FOR THIS FLT'S DEP TO PUJ. AS I APCHED GATE, I SAW A LARGE CROWD AROUND THE GATE AND AS I NEEDED TO RETRIEVE THE PAPERWORK FOR THIS FLT, I WENT TO ANOTHER GATE, AS IT WAS EMPTY, TO USE THAT COMPUTER AND PRINTER. A WOMAN CAME UP TO ME THAT I RECOGNIZED AS ONE OF THE 'VIP' MEETERS AND GREETERS. SHE SEEMED TO BE A BIT FRAZZLED THIS FLT, HOWEVER, AND STARTED TALKING TO ME. I ASKED HER TO GIVE ME A CHANCE TO MAKE THE 'JP' ENTRY, AS IT WOULD TAKE A WHILE TO PRINT OUT. SHE SAID 'OF COURSE,' I MADE THE ENTRY AND AWAY WENT THE PRINTER TO MY SATISFACTION. SHE AND I ENTERED INTO A CONVERSATION ABOUT THE VIP'S THAT WERE TO BE ON MY FLT. WE ALSO DISCUSSED THEIR ARMED ESCORTS AND SHE WAS UNSURE HOW MANY THERE WERE TO BE AND WHERE THEY WOULD BE SITTING AND WHETHER OR NOT SOME HAD CHKED THEIR WEAPONS. I HEARD THE PRINTER STOP PRINTING, AND EXCUSED MYSELF TO TURN AROUND AND FIND THAT THE PRINTER HAD RUN OUT OF PAPER! I LOOKED AT WHAT IT HAD PRINTED PRIOR TO RUNNING OUT OF PAPER AND THOUGHT I HAD EVERYTHING I NEEDED EXCEPT THE TPS. I SAW FLT PLANS, WX, F-4 NOTAMS, FIELD RPTS. I THEN ASSIGNED THE PRINTER AND ENTERED THE WBDF ENTRY TO OBTAIN A TPS. I WAS NOW DOWN TO ABOUT 17 MINS PRIOR TO DEP. I FINALLY WALKED ONTO THE AIRPLANE ABOUT 14 MINS PRIOR TO DEP TO HAVE MY COPLT TELL ME THIS WAS AN ORIGINATION PREFLT AND HE WAS HEADED OUTSIDE. I SET UP MY COCKPIT WITH THE USUAL INTERRUPTIONS FROM ALL WHO NEEDED SOME SORT OF INFO. HEREIN LIES PART OF THE PROB. I WAS TRYING TO READ THE PAPERWORK I HAD PULLED UP AND THE MOUNTAINS OF INTO IT HOLDS. I THOUGHT I HAD IT ALL. I DID NOT, AS I WOULD FIND OUT UPON ARR IN PUJ. I WAS MISSING THE NOTAMS THAT WOULD HAVE TOLD ME THAT TXWY E3 WAS CLOSED! WE DEPARTED AND HAD AN UNEVENTFUL FLT TO PUJ UNTIL WE WERE OVERHEAD AND WERE TOLD TO HOLD FOR ABOUT 20 MINS. WE HELD DIRECTLY OVERHEAD THE ARPT AND IF ONLY I HAD LOOKED DOWN, I WOULD HAVE SEEN TXWY E3 AND WHY IT WAS CLOSED. I BRIEFED THE APCH. THE COPLT HAD BEEN TO PUJ THE WK BEFORE AND E3 WAS NOT CLOSED THEN. ON APCH, I HEARD THE PREVIOUS ACFT SAY HE WAS TAKING IT TO THE END AND WOULD DO A 180 DEG TURN. I THOUGHT THAT ODD, AS IT IS A LONG RWY AND PLENTY OF ROOM TO STOP PRIOR TO E3 TO ENABLE AN EASY TURNOFF, BUT IT WAS A B767 AND I ASSUMED HE LANDED LONG OR WAS HVY AND ROLLED OUT. HE CLRED THE RWY AND WE WERE CLRED TO LAND (I HAD NEVER BEEN TO PUJ PRIOR TO THIS). I LET IT ROLL TO TXWY E3 AND TURNED R ONLY TO STARE AT 2 707'S PARKED ON THE PARALLEL PORTION OF THIS TXWY. I STOPPED AND ASSESSED WHETHER I HAD ROOM TO TURN L BACK ONTO THE RWY (AFTER CONSULTING WITH THE TWR WHO WAS WONDERING WHAT WE WERE DOING, BUT NEVER TOLD US TO TAKE IT TO THE END AS E3 WAS CLOSED). I DECIDED TO BITE THE BULLET AND HOLD WHERE I WAS AND RECEIVE INSTRUCTIONS FROM THE TWR. WE WERE STILL NOT CLR OF THE RWY WHEN THE TWR CLRED ANOTHER COMPANY FLT TO TAKE OFF AND I FORCEFULLY TOLD THEM NOT TO CLR ANOTHER ACFT TO TAKE OFF AS WE WERE NOT CLR OF THE RWY. WE TAXIED AHEAD AND PARKED THE BRAKES CLR OF THE RWY AND AWAITED A TUG TO PUSH US BACK ONTO THE RWY (AFTER CLRNC FROM TWR), UNHOOK AND THEN WE TAXIED TO THE RAMP, ARRIVING LATE. I ALLOWED MYSELF TO BE RUSHED AND 'MISSED' THE NOTAM ABOUT THE CLOSURE OF E3 (AS I DID NOT EVEN HAVE IT). THAT WAS MY FAULT. PERSONALLY, HOWEVER, I THINK THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN AN F4 NOTAM OR AT LEAST IN THE FIELD RPT AND THE TWR SHOULD HAVE INFORMED US. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 565891: NEITHER OF US PICKED UP ON THE NOTAM CLOSING TXWY E3 WHICH WAS IN AN OBSCURE SPOT IN THE ARPT NOTAMS. THE FIELD CONDITIONS RPT WAS 24 HRS OLD AND HAD NO MENTION OF THE TXWY CLOSURE. NO MENTION WAS MADE BY THE TWR OF THE TXWY CLOSURE. WE ELECTED TO PULL STRAIGHT AHEAD, CALL FOR A TUG AND TO PUSH US BACK ONTO THE RWY AND RESTART TO TAXI TO TXWY E2. THE ONLY COMMENT THE TWR HAD IS THAT THEY HAD SENT IT TO OUR COMPANY 3 WKS AGO. IT TOOK THE CAPT, MYSELF, AND OUR DISPATCHER APPROX 1 HR TO FIND THE SPECIFIC NOTAM ON THE FLT PLAN AFTER THE INCIDENT OCCURRED. IT WOULD SEEM PERTINENT ENOUGH INFO TO HAVE BEEN PUT IN THE FIELD CONDITIONS RPT OR TO HAVE BEEN MORE DISTINCTIVELY PLACED ON THE RELEASE AND TO HAVE BEEN DISSEMINATED TO US BY THE TWR. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: A CONVERSATION WITH THE FO REVEALED THAT A COPY OF THE NOTAM, INDICATING THAT TXWY E3 WAS CLOSED, HAD BEEN INCLUDED IN THE RELEASE PAPERWORK. ITS PRESENCE WAS MISSED DUE TO ITS BEING LOCATED IN AN OBSCURE LOCATION NEAR A FOLD IN THE PAPER.

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.