Narrative:

I think this report shows that south america and bolivia in particular are not just another set of airports; despite what our flight department says. As you can see; the company is totally unprepared to handle these events; which is in itself a safety issue. We were in bound to slvr with the copilot flying. Surface winds were reported down the runway at about 35 KTS; gusting up to 50. Not at all unusual at slvr. Additionally there was convective weather in the area. Enroute we were deviating south around some severe thunderstorms. Descending into santa cruz; we went through several levels of greatly changing winds aloft. (Once again not unusual; I've been there hundreds of times and have never seen wind phenomenon like there is in santa cruz.) through 7-5000 ft; winds were less than 10 KTS and we experienced moderate turbulence in the descent. Through 5000 to 3300 ft winds were progressively stronger from the south. In fact; they were as strong as 86 KTS. And the ride was smooth. Visibility was about 7 kilometers and we were in and out of light rain and virga. We crossed the VOR at 5000 ft; procedure turn outbound and descended 3300 ft. Tailwinds were about 70 KTS. The ride was smooth. On final at 3300 ft we had a 68 KT headwind; giving us a ground speed of 80 KTS; smooth ride; runway in sight. (Once again; perfectly normal at slvr.) surface winds reported 150/32 gust to 42. (Much earlier we briefed and set up for a flaps 25 landing -- also common at slvr due to winds.) on descent to MDA we were once again in and out of light rain and virga and the ride getting progressively worse. At about 1500 ft AGL the ride was getting real bad. At about 1200 ft AGL we got the full 'windshear' warning and went around. In the go-around we entered a severe micro-burst (good visibility). Climbing through it we were unable to maintain any given altitude due to severe turbulence. Because of this I declared an emergency; 'mayday' three times. After getting through this we certainly didn't want to repeat it; so we diverted to our alternate; landing was uneventful. There we waited it out for a while. While no one was hurt in the incident; we did have a few emotional wrecks that required the assistance of a doctor. While waiting there; the temperature greatly increased making us illegal for takeoff. We had to remove 11 passengers. I convinced the officials there to take them. Some time later we left; with the relief pilot now flying. Weather had improved but winds still gusting to 45 KTS. Throughout descent and approach we experienced moderate chop; but landed safely with another flaps 25 landing. Now for a few comments. All three pilots were very experienced in this arena and we did a good job. Ditto for the flight attendants and the job that they did with the passengers. With an inexperienced crew (which has been sent down there recently) the results could have been different.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Air Carrier Captain describes an approach at SLVR and windshear missed approach in strong gusty winds. The flight then diverted to their alternate and waited for winds to subside.

Narrative: I think this report shows that South America and Bolivia in particular are not just another set of airports; despite what our flight department says. As you can see; the company is totally unprepared to handle these events; which is in itself a safety issue. We were in bound to SLVR with the Copilot flying. Surface winds were reported down the runway at about 35 KTS; gusting up to 50. Not at all unusual at SLVR. Additionally there was convective weather in the area. Enroute we were deviating south around some severe thunderstorms. Descending into Santa Cruz; we went through several levels of greatly changing winds aloft. (Once again not unusual; I've been there hundreds of times and have never seen wind phenomenon like there is in Santa Cruz.) Through 7-5000 FT; winds were less than 10 KTS and we experienced moderate turbulence in the descent. Through 5000 to 3300 FT winds were progressively stronger from the south. In fact; they were as strong as 86 KTS. And the ride was smooth. Visibility was about 7 kilometers and we were in and out of light rain and virga. We crossed the VOR at 5000 FT; procedure turn outbound and descended 3300 FT. Tailwinds were about 70 KTS. The ride was smooth. On final at 3300 FT we had a 68 KT headwind; giving us a ground speed of 80 KTS; smooth ride; runway in sight. (Once again; perfectly normal at SLVR.) Surface winds reported 150/32 gust to 42. (Much earlier we briefed and set up for a flaps 25 landing -- also common at SLVR due to winds.) On descent to MDA we were once again in and out of light rain and virga and the ride getting progressively worse. At about 1500 FT AGL the ride was getting real bad. At about 1200 FT AGL we got the full 'WINDSHEAR' warning and went around. In the go-around we entered a severe micro-burst (good visibility). Climbing through it we were unable to maintain any given altitude due to severe turbulence. Because of this I declared an emergency; 'mayday' three times. After getting through this we certainly didn't want to repeat it; so we diverted to our alternate; landing was uneventful. There we waited it out for a while. While no one was hurt in the incident; we did have a few emotional wrecks that required the assistance of a doctor. While waiting there; the temperature greatly increased making us illegal for takeoff. We had to remove 11 passengers. I convinced the officials there to take them. Some time later we left; with the relief pilot now flying. Weather had improved but winds still gusting to 45 KTS. Throughout descent and approach we experienced moderate chop; but landed safely with another flaps 25 landing. Now for a few comments. All three pilots were very experienced in this arena and we did a good job. Ditto for the Flight Attendants and the job that they did with the passengers. With an inexperienced crew (which has been sent down there recently) the results could have been different.

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.