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A320 flight crew experiences a TCAS RA to climb while being vectored during descent. Intruder aircraft also continued to climb.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 852998 |
| Time | |
| Date | 200909 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1201-1800 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | IAD.Airport |
| State Reference | DC |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | A320 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Descent |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Aircraft 2 | |
| Make Model Name | Medium Transport Low Wing 2 Turbojet Eng |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Pilot Flying First Officer |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 180 Flight Crew Total 10050 Flight Crew Type 4400 |
| Person 2 | |
| Function | Captain Pilot Not Flying |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 160 Flight Crew Total 12000 Flight Crew Type 2400 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | ATC Issue All Types Conflict NMAC |
Narrative:
Being vectored in descent to FL230. At about FL250 I noticed possible conflict from aircraft at 10 miles; I noticed aircraft was climbing and closing on us. Commented to captain about possible conflict. A couple of seconds later got 'traffic; traffic' TCAS alert. Shut off autopilot. Told him; 'we are going to get an RA'. A second or two later we got 'climb; climb' RA with the entire V/south indicator red; except for a sliver at the top. Went to toga and pitched up to sliver in top of vs indicator. We climbed up to 26;500 before TCAS commanded level off. At the same time that we got the climb RA; the controller asked us to expedite our descent; an instruction that might have killed us. During the event I noticed on the nd that the intruding aircraft (a regional jet) was still red (-500 feet) as he passed below us; meaning (to me) he never stopped climbing as he flew towards us. The captain said it was less than 300. This was my second RA that could have resulted in a mid-air in less than 2 months. The FAA; alpa; and the company might want to reconsider allowing TCAS to be an item that can be deferred; especially in congested areas. I commend the training though; as I was looking only at the vs indicator; as trained; and the aircraft had ample energy to complete the RA. The captain queried the controller after the incident; but received no response of consequence; and he elected not to pursue further action against the controller; who may have been task saturated.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: A320 flight crew experiences a TCAS RA to climb while being vectored during descent. Intruder aircraft also continued to climb.
Narrative: Being vectored in descent to FL230. At about FL250 I noticed possible conflict from aircraft at 10 miles; I noticed aircraft was climbing and closing on us. Commented to Captain about possible conflict. A couple of seconds later got 'Traffic; Traffic' TCAS alert. Shut off autopilot. Told him; 'we are going to get an RA'. A second or two later we got 'Climb; Climb' RA with the entire V/S indicator red; except for a sliver at the top. Went to TOGA and pitched up to sliver in top of VS indicator. We climbed up to 26;500 before TCAS commanded level off. At the same time that we got the CLIMB RA; the controller asked us to expedite our descent; an instruction that might have killed us. During the event I noticed on the ND that the intruding aircraft (a regional jet) was still red (-500 feet) as he passed below us; meaning (to me) he never stopped climbing as he flew towards us. The Captain said it was less than 300. This was my second RA that could have resulted in a mid-air in less than 2 months. The FAA; ALPA; and the company might want to reconsider allowing TCAS to be an item that can be deferred; especially in congested areas. I commend the training though; as I was looking only at the VS indicator; as trained; and the aircraft had ample energy to complete the RA. The Captain queried the controller after the incident; but received no response of consequence; and he elected not to pursue further action against the controller; who may have been task saturated.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.