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B737NG flight crew reported receiving a 'caution obstacle' GPWS alert on a night visual approach to dal runway 31R.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1341449 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201603 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1801-2400 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | DAL.Airport |
| State Reference | TX |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Night |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | B737 Next Generation Undifferentiated |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Final Approach |
| Route In Use | Visual Approach |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Captain Pilot Flying |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 194 Flight Crew Type 12000 |
| Person 2 | |
| Function | First Officer Pilot Not Flying |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 178 Flight Crew Type 7500 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy Inflight Event / Encounter CFTT / CFIT |
Narrative:
On downwind abeam the field; we were given a right turn and cleared for a visual approach to runway 31R at dal. Another company aircraft was reported to us; we acquired it visually and it was cleared visual approach to 31L. The other a/c had already slowed way down to burn excess fuel and both a/c were converging towards the same point in space on final. There were 38 knots of overshooting crosswinds at 2200 ft AGL and it was imperative that I not overshoot the final approach course to keep safe separation on the other a/c. While turning and descending to line up on the runway; the first officer pointed out a tall building located off the approach end of 31R. A second later we received a single 'caution; obstacle' alert. I immediately disconnected the autopilot; applied full thrust; and climbed until we were clear of the obstacle. We then continued our approach to a normal landing. After landing; the first officer and I debriefed the event and we realized after checking the fom that even though we were in VMC; night time requires a mandatory go-around for a GPWS caution on final approach. I confused the recovery procedures for a GPWS caution alert at night VMC with day VMC procedures. Better fom knowledge would have prevented this mistake.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: B737NG flight crew reported receiving a 'Caution Obstacle' GPWS alert on a night visual approach to DAL Runway 31R.
Narrative: On downwind abeam the field; we were given a right turn and cleared for a visual approach to Runway 31R at DAL. Another Company aircraft was reported to us; we acquired it visually and it was cleared visual approach to 31L. The other a/c had already slowed way down to burn excess fuel and both a/c were converging towards the same point in space on final. There were 38 knots of overshooting crosswinds at 2200 ft AGL and it was imperative that I not overshoot the final approach course to keep safe separation on the other a/c. While turning and descending to line up on the runway; the FO pointed out a tall building located off the approach end of 31R. A second later we received a single 'Caution; Obstacle' Alert. I immediately disconnected the autopilot; applied full thrust; and climbed until we were clear of the obstacle. We then continued our approach to a normal landing. After landing; the FO and I debriefed the event and we realized after checking the FOM that even though we were in VMC; night time requires a mandatory go-around for a GPWS Caution on final approach. I confused the recovery procedures for a GPWS Caution Alert at night VMC with day VMC procedures. Better FOM knowledge would have prevented this mistake.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site 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.