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Aviation safety reports, made easier to study

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December 19, 2015 · Boeing 737 990ER · N477AS

Seattle, WA

Overview

Report Status
Final with probable cause
Event Type
Incident
Date
December 19, 2015
Injury Outcomes
No injuries (153 uninjured)
Location
Seattle, WA
Aircraft
Boeing 737 990ER (2015)
Tail Number
N477AS
Operator
Alaska Airlines
Injuries
None
NTSB Number
DCA16IA036

The flight crew inadvertently landed on a taxiway that ran parallel to the intended landing runway. About 5 miles from the runway and having been cleared to land on runway 16R, the tower controller asked if the flight would like to sidestep to runway 16C which had recently opened. The flight crew accepted and visually lined up with taxiway T, instead of the intended landing runway 16C. Although visual meteorological conditions were present, the sun was reflecting off taxiway T resulting in the flight crew visually focusing on it during landing. The flight crew and controller did not recognize the error until after landing.

NTSB Probable Cause

Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Identification/recognition-Flight crew - C

Full Narrative

On December 19, 2015, about 0831 pacific standard time, Alaska Airlines flight 27, a Boeing 737 airplane, N477AS, landed on taxiway T instead of the intended runway 16C at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Seattle, Washington. There were no injuries to the 153 passengers and crew onboard and the airplane was not damaged. The flight was conducted under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121 as a regularly scheduled passenger flight from Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), Chicago, Illinois, to SEA. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the incident. The captain reported that the descent and approach were normal. They had been cleared for the instrument landing system (ILS) approach to runway 16R. Just inside of 5 miles, the tower controller offered runway 16C that had recently opened. The captain lined up the airplane to land on what he believed was 16C. He noted that runways 16C and 16R and taxiway T were wet and reflected the morning sun, whereas 16L and the terminal were in a shadowed area and not readily visible. He further noted that the distance from 16L to 16C is less than the distance between 16C and 16R so it may appear that 16C is the left runway with taxiway T being the middle runway. The captain suggested that runway lead-in lights should remain on to prevent future similar events. The first officer reported that both pilots were focused on landing what they thought was runway 16C, but was taxiway T. Although the first officer had retuned the captain's ILS for 16C, he was puzzled that the flightpath indicator showed on-glideslope while the localizer showed off course. Although he casually mentioned the discrepancy, since they were visually aligned with the runway, he did not give it further attention. The first officer noted that he had been focused too much on secondary tasks and neglected the big picture of ensuring the airplane was lined up on the proper runway.

Flight

Event TypeIncident
Event Time08:31 PST
Nearest AirportSeattle-Tacoma Intl (1nm N)
Runway16C
Runway Length9426 ft
Runway Width150 ft
Flight Plan FiledIFR
Flight Plan ActivatedYes
Aircraft FireNo
Aircraft ExplosionNo

Aircraft

AircraftBoeing 737 990ER
Tail NumberN477AS
Aircraft CategoryAir
OperatorAlaska Airlines
Operating RulePart 121
Engines2
Engine TypeTurbofan
Engine DetailsCfm International · CFM56-7B27E · Turbofan · 27000 | Cfm International · CFM56-7B27E · Turbofan · 27000
Seats191

People & Injuries

Injury SummaryNo injuries (153 uninjured)
Fatal0
Serious0
Minor0
Uninjured153
Total153
Crew 1Age 58 · First Class · None
Crew 2Age 41 · First Class · None

Conditions

ConditionsVMC
LightDawn
Wind140° @ 7 kt
Visibility10 sm
CeilingBroken clouds 2500 ft
Temperature / Dew Point37 C / 36 C
Altimeter29.89 inHg
Observation Time15:53
Weather SourceWFAC

Appendix: Source Data