A B767 EICAS alerted left bld duct leak and because the planned destination had icing conditions the...

Narrative:

Takeoff; climb and cruise were routine. Just prior to top of descent we were alerted by an EICAS message left bld duct leak. We accomplished the QRH procedure. The QRH procedure contains the statement 'avoid icing conditions'. At this time; our destination was experiencing icing conditions with cloud tops above 20;000 feet. When we decided that our planned destination was not a suitable destination we used ACARS to check the weather for several other airports and to communicate our situation to the dispatcher. We then initiated a VHF phone patch to dispatcher and made the decision to proceed to a down line airport. We obtained an ATC clearance to that airport but the headwinds increased to the point that we decided it would be unsafe to continue. We again consulted with dispatch and decided to land at a closer airport. The approach and landing were routine. Left bleed duct leak required we avoid icing conditions. The information we needed to make proper decisions would have been easier to obtain if we had a satellite phone available. Obtaining current weather and field conditions and communicating to dispatch using phone patch technology was very cumbersome.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A B767 EICAS alerted L BLD DUCT LEAK and because the planned destination had icing conditions the flight diverted to a second airport but head winds presented fuel considerations so a closer airport was selected.

Narrative: Takeoff; climb and cruise were routine. Just prior to top of descent we were alerted by an EICAS message L BLD DUCT LEAK. We accomplished the QRH procedure. The QRH procedure contains the statement 'Avoid icing conditions'. At this time; our destination was experiencing icing conditions with cloud tops above 20;000 feet. When we decided that our planned destination was not a suitable destination we used ACARS to check the weather for several other airports and to communicate our situation to the Dispatcher. We then initiated a VHF Phone Patch to Dispatcher and made the decision to proceed to a down line airport. We obtained an ATC clearance to that airport but the headwinds increased to the point that we decided it would be unsafe to continue. We again consulted with Dispatch and decided to land at a closer airport. The approach and landing were routine. Left Bleed Duct Leak required we avoid icing conditions. The information we needed to make proper decisions would have been easier to obtain if we had a satellite phone available. Obtaining current weather and field conditions and communicating to Dispatch using phone patch technology was very cumbersome.

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	932088
Time
Date	201102
Local Time Of Day	1201-1800
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.ARTCC
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	B767-200
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Cruise
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Engine Air Pneumatic Ducting
Person 1
Function	Captain Pilot Flying
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Inflight Event / Encounter Fuel Issue Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence

A B767 EICAS alerted left bld duct leak and because the planned destination had icing conditions the flight diverted to a second airport but head winds presented fuel considerations so a closer airport was selected.