A mechanic qualified to taxi his carrier's md-80's; but not qualified on the airport he is at on a f...

Attributes
ACN	817071
Time
Date	200812
Place
Locale Reference	airport : zzz.airport
State Reference	US
Altitude	agl single value : 0
Environment
Weather Elements	Ice
Light	Night
Aircraft 1
Operator	common carrier : air carrier
Make Model Name	MD-80 Series (DC-9-80) Undifferentiated or Other Model
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	ground : taxi ground : maintenance ground : maintenance
Person 1
Affiliation	company : air carrier
Function	maintenance : technician
Qualification	technician : powerplant technician : airframe
Experience	maintenance technician : 25
ASRS Report	817071
Person 2
Affiliation	other
Function	maintenance : technician
Events
Anomaly	incursion : runway non adherence : clearance
Independent Detector	other other : 1
Resolutory Action	none taken : detected after the fact
Consequence	Other
Factors
Maintenance	contributing factor : weather performance deficiency : unqualified personnel
Supplementary
Problem Areas	Environmental Factor Maintenance Human Performance
Primary Problem	Maintenance Human Performance

Narrative:

I flew to work on aircraft X to repair a wiring problem. I worked the aircraft through the night and it was not fixed until the following day. It then needed to be taxied from the hangar to the gates. The flight crew was not available and there were no means to tow the aircraft. I am qualified to taxi the MD80 but I am not qualified to taxi at ZZZ unless there is a ZZZ qualified amt in the right seat working the radios. I contacted the contractor that provides maintenance to the air carrier and provided us with an amt to ride the right seat and work the radios. Before we started to taxi he called the tower and he wrote down all the instructions he was given. He was given many instructions -- many more than I could remember -- so I relied on him for accuracy. The conditions were dark; icy and very busy with all the maintenance repositions happening at the same time. The fact that this was the first time I had to taxi an aircraft at this unfamiliar airport was one more distraction. We began our taxi and before long we were instructed to follow a DC9. We followed him for quite sometime until he turned off to go to his company's gates and we turned to go to ours. While taxiing; we came to a runway intersection and I asked my radio man if we were ok to cross and he responded yes; so I proceeded. We turned right and came to another intersection and again asked him if we were ok and he responded yes. I am not sure if we were in error or not. The tower did not indicate that we were. But in retrospect; I do not remember receiving clearance all the way to the concourse. I did not realize how tired I was at the time; but if not so tired I do feel I would have made him call the tower again instead of taking his word that we were clear to cross.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A mechanic qualified to taxi his carrier's MD-80's; but not qualified on the airport he is at on a field trip; has to rely on a contract maintenance person to work the radios. He was so fatigued; he does not remember receiving clearances all the way to the concourse.

Narrative: I flew to work on aircraft X to repair a wiring problem. I worked the aircraft through the night and it was not fixed until the following day. It then needed to be taxied from the hangar to the gates. The flight crew was not available and there were no means to tow the aircraft. I am qualified to taxi the MD80 but I am not qualified to taxi at ZZZ unless there is a ZZZ qualified AMT in the right seat working the radios. I contacted the contractor that provides maintenance to the air carrier and provided us with an AMT to ride the right seat and work the radios. Before we started to taxi he called the Tower and he wrote down all the instructions he was given. He was given many instructions -- many more than I could remember -- so I relied on him for accuracy. The conditions were dark; icy and very busy with all the maintenance repositions happening at the same time. The fact that this was the first time I had to taxi an aircraft at this unfamiliar airport was one more distraction. We began our taxi and before long we were instructed to follow a DC9. We followed him for quite sometime until he turned off to go to his company's gates and we turned to go to ours. While taxiing; we came to a runway intersection and I asked my radio man if we were OK to cross and he responded yes; so I proceeded. We turned right and came to another intersection and again asked him if we were OK and he responded yes. I am not sure if we were in error or not. The Tower did not indicate that we were. But in retrospect; I do not remember receiving clearance all the way to the concourse. I did not realize how tired I was at the time; but if not so tired I do feel I would have made him call the Tower again instead of taking his word that we were clear to cross.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of May 2009 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.

A mechanic qualified to taxi his carrier's md-80's; but not qualified on the airport he is at on a field trip; has to rely on a contract maintenance person to work the radios. He was so fatigued; he does not remember receiving clearances all the way to the concourse.