Transcription
[Applause] It's the 6th of February 2005 on this Super Bowl Sunday. The afternoon has turned cloudy in Chile, and we know Nevada winter weather is making its way toward the gambling mecca. And the 54-year-old pilot of a Cirrus SR22 doesn't like his odds of getting out the next day. Although the airplane is equipped with a weeping wing ice protection system, it is not certified for flight into known icing conditions.
With a big game underway, most of Reno is transfixed, but the 500-hour instrument-rated Cirrus pilot is hedging his bets. He's decided to return home to Oakland, California, a day early, intending to depart within the hour. He calls Reno Flight Service to get a standard weather briefing and file an IFR flight plan.
"Hello, Reno Flight Service. How may I help you?"
"This is 286 Charlie Delta, a Cirrus 22. I wanna go IFR from Reno to Oakland. You know, I'd like to file a flight plan and get a weather briefing."
"Okay. The time of departure?"
"FB 7. 01:15."
"So that's, that's at 5:15. Is that what you want?"
"Yes."
"Okay. And what type of equipment do you have on your aircraft?"
"I'm an SR22 slash Gulf. Airspeed 180."
"Okay. Altitude?"
"12,000."
"Okay. And the route?"
The pilot and the briefer discuss IFR routing options for the one-hour flight. The pilot intends to leave Reno via the Mustang Six Standard Instrument Departure from the Mustang Four. He will follow Victor 200 to the Sigma intersection, then continue on Victor 392 to the Sacramento VORTAC. At that point, he will be clear of the Sierra Nevada mountain range and able to proceed direct to Oakland.
All continues with the flight service briefer describing the weather along the intended route. An upper-level low-pressure system is dominating, with a cold front approaching from the northwest. There are no SIGMETs or AIRMETs for the route of flight. The briefer then provides current weather conditions, starting with Reno.
"Okay, current weather at Reno. Went on visibility nineer. Few clouds at 5,000, 9,000 scattered. Ceiling 1,000 broken. Temperature 6. Altimeter 29.98."
"Checking the weather reporting stations along our flight. Let's see here. Over the Sierra, the stations that are coming up are reporting, let's say, clouds from 2,000 feet up to 12,000, and those are ceilings. So you have some lower clouds. You're probably going to be either in clouds or in between layers, part of the route at least."
The briefer continues, noting that conditions are better along the second half of the intended route, west of the Sierra Nevada mountains. She finds no pilot weather reports for the route of flight but does note precipitation approaching the area from the north.
"Don't have any pilot weather reports to give you at this time along that route of flight. And I'm looking for precipitation echoes. And let's see what I show here. I'm showing some precipitation echoes in ahead of that a frontal system. Well, there's liquid precip just north of your route at this time, moving towards your route in a south-southeasterly direction."
The briefer then reviews relevant area forecast with the pilot. Broken clouds are expected over Northern Nevada and the California mountains, the first half of the pilot's route, with bases ranging from 12,000 to 15,000 MSL and tops at 18,000 to 20,000 MSL. After giving the pilot winds aloft data, the briefer points out the relatively low freezing level.
"Now, just for your information, just in case you do get into some precipitation, the freezing level there, let's see, it's forecast to be according to the winds and aloft, we look here in the Reno area, it should be about 6,000 feet according to the winds aloft. And then Sacramento about 6,500, San Francisco about 7,000."
The briefer then provides the pilot with relevant Notices to Airmen, files his flight plan, and reminds him that PIREPs are appreciated. The pilot says he'll try to provide them.
The pilot makes his way to Reno-Tahoe International Airport. He's running about a half hour behind his estimated departure time. The sun has set, and civil twilight is ending as November 286 Charlie Delta taxis into position for takeoff. At roughly the same time, about 25 miles to the southeast, Southwest Airlines Flight 2757 is descending through 17,000 feet. The Boeing 737 begins picking up moderate rime ice as it enters the cloud layer. The pilot passes this information along to Reno Approach and later reports exiting the clouds at 15,500. The PIREP is the first indication of unfrocast icing in the Reno area that evening.
Meanwhile, Cirrus 6 Charlie Delta is executing the Mustang Six departure out of Reno. After initially flying southbound, he makes a 180-degree climbing left turn toward the Mustang via WARR. He contacts Reno Departure and is cleared to climb to his filed altitude.
"5,500. Climb and maintain 10,000."
"286 Charlie Delta, climb and maintain 10,000."
Three minutes later, ATC asks the pilot if he could accept a higher altitude to accommodate IFR traffic operating out of nearby Truckee Tahoe Airport. The Cirrus is equipped with a supplemental oxygen system, and the pilot accepts the new altitude.
"Discard everything under one four thousand. Yes. Shall we build a double using one four thousand or that they do have IFR traffic, several of them coming off a Truckee Tahoe? Fall 407. Court seemed out of it. Did you manage to better work? Very well. Regular women fella. Two hundred climbing all for about the Victor ID. Okay. Hold up. Thanks a lot."
Shortly thereafter, Reno's South radar controller hands the pilot off to the North radar controller. After checking in with North Radar, the pilot is given a vector to intercept Victor 392.
"Six Charlie Delta, fly heading seven zero degrees. Okay. Left a two seven zero. Join Victor three nine two. Zamalka had six. Go, go, go."
Seven minutes later, the Reno North controller hands Cirrus 6 Charlie Delta off to Oakland Center. The pilot checks in with Oakland.
"Oakland Charlie Delta one one three zero zero five one eight. What course? Out of Sarah six Charlie Delta. Oakland that and Roger. And maintain one four thousand."
"By making one four thousand. Kind of roughly."
Two minutes past, the pilot calls Oakland and asks for a higher altitude. The request is the first indication that the airplane might be picking up ice, although the pilot doesn't say anything about it to ATC.
[Music]
"And at Spirit 286 Charlie Delta, affirmative. I maintain one six thousand. Authors always better. Once a Selva secreta."
About five minutes later, ATC clears the pilot direct to the Sacramento VOR, which he acknowledges. Soon after, the pilot radios he's still in the clouds at 16,000 feet. He requests his center.
"286 Charlie Delta, Roger. Stand by one."
While waiting for his clearance to descend, the pilot changes his mind. If the airplane were to climb just a few hundred feet higher, he reasons, he'd be in the clear. At first, ATC is confused by the pilot's request, but the controller eventually grants him a block altitude. The pilot still says nothing about ice.
"Okay, you want to go up or down? Six rows up. If I'm actually a merciless girl. Got to maintain the block one six thousand three one seven thousand."
The pilot begins to climb, but the ice-laden aircraft struggles to gain altitude. By the time the pilot reaches 16,700 feet, he realizes he's made a mistake. The icing has only become worse in the colder air above him. He's still in the clouds, and the Cirrus, already nearing its service ceiling, is close to stalling as the pilot struggles to maintain control. The southwest-bound aircraft's heading begins drifting to the south, then the southeast. The pilot finally admits his problem to ATC, but his lack of urgency fails to catch the controller's attention. Fifteen seconds pass before ATC responds. By then, the situation is dire.
"Cirrus six Charlie Delta has Kurtis deep dive of 5,000 feet per minute, dropping off the radar at fifteen thousand seven hundred feet."
The pilot manages one last desperate transmission, followed by loud static.
"And Delta, singing to help out. Coming down. Hey, luster was unreadable. Like you. A 600 Delta. Oakland."
[Applause]
"Remember 286 Charlie Delta. Oakland."
[Applause]
"Herbert 286 Charlie Delta."