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American Eagle pilot diverts after unable to activate runway lights
American Eagle Flight 2536 was scheduled to fly about 125 miles from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport to Wichita Falls, Texas, on Sunday night. The plane left nearly a half-hour late, and when it got to Wichita Falls, the pilot told passengers that the runway lights were turned off and there was nobody at the airport to turn them on. Wichita Falls said pilots can operate the lights using a specific frequency on their radio system, but the Eagle pilot had the wrong frequency. (thetandd.com) Más...Sort type: [Top] [Newest]
There are more than a "handful" of airport that use PCL. Maybe not many that handle commercial traffic, but lots of GA airports.
There is still a whole lot more here than is being told. Last I heard, Sheppard had a
24 hr tower and they brought up lights on one runway. Even their shortest one was 5 grand, plenty of room for an RJ of some type. I'm like te poster below, pilot didn't do his homework and then probably got flustered. Time to go back to the SIM.
24 hr tower and they brought up lights on one runway. Even their shortest one was 5 grand, plenty of room for an RJ of some type. I'm like te poster below, pilot didn't do his homework and then probably got flustered. Time to go back to the SIM.
Maybe that's part 91 that doesn't require lights.
I haven't reviewed the airport, but the Pilot Controlled lighting may be on a discrete frequency, other then CTAF. This is fairly uncommon, but could and does create confusion.
In defense of the American Eagle pilot, I seriously doubt this pilot had the wrong frequency. I had this happen to me before at my home field that also uses PCL. There is no doubt I was using the correct frequency. I called flight service to confirm there were no NOTAMs for the lights being out. I tried three different radios including a handheld radio, but could not get the lights to turn on. My local field is a towered field, but the tower was closed. If found out later, from one of the controllers, that the PCL function has to be activated manually when the controllers leave for the evening. Apparently, someone forgot to turn on the PCL that night. It's conceivable that this happened here too. The city of Wichita Falls may not want admit it as it is easier to blame this on pilot error.
I'm still hard pressed to figure out why Sheppard AFB, with the biggest training base in the U.S., has less than a 24 hour tower. I can agree with the PCL not being activated but why is it dark in the 1st place?
After reading the article, it may lead one to believe that American Eagle is now flying single pilot operations.