Narrative:

Arriving at bos; the weather was reported as visibility greater than 6000 ft RVR. Solid CAT I conditions. We briefed the ILS to 04L. Radio chatter indicated no problems with arriving aircraft getting in. We shot the approach down to minimums and missed; because we never saw the ground or runway environment. We were then vectored around for another approach. Fuel was not a huge concern at this point. We agreed that we should brief and execute the CAT III ILS to ensure a successful arrival. We briefed the approach and ran checklists for the second try. It would have been nice to have more time to brief but we did what we thought was a thorough brief. All the while receiving turning vectors and instructions from ATC. We were vectored onto the localizer; and somewhere either just before or just after crossing the marker; we were told to contact tower. Upon switching frequencies (and waiting for frequency congestion) I contacted tower and the tower controller advised a ship in the channel. At this point I remembered that on the CAT I approach that [a] ship in the harbor increased the minimums on the minimums section of the approach chart. A quick scan of the CAT III chart in the same minimums section indicated no notes about ships. I told the captain about the CAT 1 approach but that I saw no indication of restrictions on the CAT III. We did continue the approach and the captain got the runway in sight above CAT I minimums. We landed uneventfully.in the comfort of the crew room later; I did find on the approach plate a note that indicates CAT III not authorized when 'tower reports tall vessels in the approach area.' a review of the CAT III approach chart shows a note in the notes section that indicates the same. On the CAT I chart the increased minimums are located on the bottom of the chart in the minimums section. With the task loading of a missed approach followed by vectors for a different approach and briefing the approach; and a restriction that is unique to bos; it was missed. I think that in low IFR conditions; being told inside the marker that ships are in the harbor is a recipe for the same mistakes to occur in the future. When you brief a CAT III; and are cleared for the approach; to then be given a tidbit of information that makes the approach unusable is a 'gotcha.'

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: B737-700 First Officer reported landing in BOS in instrument conditions after a ship was reported in the channel. He did not realize at the time the approach should have been terminated.

Narrative: Arriving at BOS; the weather was reported as visibility greater than 6000 ft RVR. Solid CAT I conditions. We briefed the ILS to 04L. Radio chatter indicated no problems with arriving aircraft getting in. We shot the approach down to minimums and missed; because we never saw the ground or runway environment. We were then vectored around for another approach. Fuel was not a huge concern at this point. We agreed that we should brief and execute the CAT III ILS to ensure a successful arrival. We briefed the approach and ran checklists for the second try. It would have been nice to have more time to brief but we did what we thought was a thorough brief. All the while receiving turning vectors and instructions from ATC. We were vectored onto the LOC; and somewhere either just before or just after crossing the marker; we were told to contact Tower. Upon switching frequencies (and waiting for frequency congestion) I contacted Tower and the Tower Controller advised a ship in the channel. At this point I remembered that on the CAT I Approach that [a] ship in the harbor increased the minimums on the minimums section of the approach chart. A quick scan of the CAT III chart in the same minimums section indicated no notes about ships. I told the Captain about the CAT 1 Approach but that I saw no indication of restrictions on the CAT III. We did continue the approach and the Captain got the runway in sight above CAT I minimums. We landed uneventfully.In the comfort of the Crew room later; I did find on the approach plate a note that indicates CAT III not authorized when 'Tower reports tall vessels in the approach area.' A review of the CAT III Approach chart shows a note in the notes section that indicates the same. On the CAT I chart the increased minimums are located on the bottom of the chart in the minimums section. With the task loading of a missed approach followed by vectors for a different approach and briefing the approach; and a restriction that is unique to BOS; it was missed. I think that in low IFR conditions; being told inside the marker that ships are in the harbor is a recipe for the same mistakes to occur in the future. When you brief a CAT III; and are cleared for the approach; to then be given a tidbit of information that makes the approach unusable is a 'gotcha.'

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.