A B737-800 captain reported that using the HUD during the landing flare; touchdown and roll out sign...

Narrative:

Arrival weather was reported below minimums with light rain. Just before holding fix weather reported improvement from 1 kilo visibility to 5 kilo visibility. We executed ILS. Runway lights visible at 600 ft AGL with moderate rain; smooth ride. Flare and touchdown and rollout visibility severely impaired by hgs blocking view of the runway; rain and dark hole conditions severely added to the problem. The hgs was far more impairment than help. The visibility was near 0 with runway lights barely distinguishable. Definite hydroplaning with maximum autobrakes and maximum reverse. First officer reported reasonable visibility on his side with no hgs. Rain with hgs is dangerous. Hgs is impairment in certain situations. HUD needs to be optional use. Rain repellant would be a huge help. Some are carrying their own bottle of rainex and applying it when expecting rain during approach. Great idea and a bottle should be available on all aircraft.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A B737-800 Captain reported that using the HUD during the landing flare; touchdown and roll out significantly impaired visibility of the runway environment in rain. No rain repellent adds to the problem.

Narrative: Arrival weather was reported below minimums with light rain. Just before holding fix weather reported improvement from 1 kilo visibility to 5 kilo visibility. We executed ILS. Runway lights visible at 600 FT AGL with moderate rain; smooth ride. Flare and touchdown and rollout visibility severely impaired by HGS blocking view of the runway; rain and dark hole conditions severely added to the problem. The HGS was far more impairment than help. The visibility was near 0 with runway lights barely distinguishable. Definite hydroplaning with maximum autobrakes and maximum reverse. First Officer reported reasonable visibility on his side with no HGS. Rain with HGS is dangerous. HGS is impairment in certain situations. HUD needs to be optional use. Rain repellant would be a huge help. Some are carrying their own bottle of Rainex and applying it when expecting rain during approach. Great idea and a bottle should be available on all aircraft.

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.

Attributes
ACN	903576
Time
Date	201008
Local Time Of Day	1201-1800
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZZ.Airport
State Reference	FO
Environment
Flight Conditions	IMC
Light	Night
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	B737-800
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Landing
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Heads-Up Display
Person 1
Function	Pilot Flying Captain
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence

A B737-800 captain reported that using the HUD during the landing flare; touchdown and roll out significantly impaired visibility of the runway environment in rain. No rain repellent adds to the problem.