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A VFR aircraft encountering IMC conditions was directed to a near by airport without the issuance of a legal clearance given the current weather conditions. The reporter suggested increased controller training.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1014915 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201206 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1201-1800 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Skyhawk 172/Cutlass 172 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 91 |
| Flight Phase | Cruise |
| Flight Plan | VFR |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Approach Departure |
| Qualification | Air Traffic Control Fully Certified |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Inflight Event / Encounter VFR In IMC |
Narrative:
Aircraft called an adjacent controller having encountered IMC conditions VFR at 700 MSL. He was incapable of IFR flight. At the time I was an over-overlap on another position and was told to go assist this adjacent controller and did not complete overlap with required two minutes because they had an emergency. The aircraft was vectored to a nearby airport which was BKN007 at the time with two miles visibility. With no other choice to ensure safety; the aircraft was told to proceed visually into the airport; and was switched to the tower; despite it being solid IMC; eventually landing safely. Providing clarification as to what should be done in these situations. Basically he received an emergency SVFR clearance that the pilot never requested. Compounding the issue was a language barrier with the pilot which is a common occurrence with training aircraft in the area.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: A VFR aircraft encountering IMC conditions was directed to a near by airport without the issuance of a legal clearance given the current weather conditions. The reporter suggested increased controller training.
Narrative: Aircraft called an adjacent Controller having encountered IMC conditions VFR at 700 MSL. He was incapable of IFR flight. At the time I was an over-overlap on another position and was told to go assist this adjacent Controller and did not complete overlap with required two minutes because they had an emergency. The aircraft was vectored to a nearby airport which was BKN007 at the time with two miles visibility. With no other choice to ensure safety; the aircraft was told to proceed visually into the airport; and was switched to the Tower; despite it being solid IMC; eventually landing safely. Providing clarification as to what should be done in these situations. Basically he received an emergency SVFR clearance that the pilot never requested. Compounding the issue was a language barrier with the pilot which is a common occurrence with training aircraft in the area.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 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.