A PA-28 instructor pilot declared an emergency in order to receive an immediate approach clearance a...

Attributes
ACN	820587
Time
Date	200901
Local Time Of Day	1201-1800
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	IMC
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	PA-28 Cherokee/Archer/Dakota/Pillan/Warrior
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Cruise
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Intake Ice System
Person 1
Function	Instructor Pilot Not Flying
Qualification	Flight Crew Commercial Flight Crew Instrument Flight Crew Multiengine Flight Crew Flight Instructor
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 30 Flight Crew Total 7300 Flight Crew Type 750
Events
Anomaly	Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence

Narrative:

I was working with an instrument student doing air work when we started picking up some rime ice. I decided we had better get on the ground and asked for vectors from approach to the ILS 31. We were at 3;000 ft MSL on the downwind and I asked for a close turn-in because I was a little worried about the ice; although there wasn't much -- maybe 1/2 inch or so. I was told by approach that there was faster airplane ahead of us. It was an rj and had deice and we did not; so I declared an emergency to get in front of him. We then broke into VMC and I asked for the 'contact approach' and went direct to the airport. We landed under VMC and it was VFR at the airport. If I had waited and followed the rj I'm just not sure how much ice we would have gotten. I hated to declare that emergency; but that was the only way I knew to get 'up front.'

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A PA-28 instructor pilot declared an emergency in order to receive an immediate approach clearance ahead of an air carrier because his aircraft began collecting ice. The PA-28 did not have de-ice equipment.

Narrative: I was working with an instrument student doing air work when we started picking up some rime ice. I decided we had better get on the ground and asked for vectors from Approach to the ILS 31. We were at 3;000 FT MSL on the downwind and I asked for a close turn-in because I was a little worried about the ice; although there wasn't much -- maybe 1/2 inch or so. I was told by Approach that there was faster airplane ahead of us. It was an RJ and had deice and we did not; so I declared an emergency to get in front of him. We then broke into VMC and I asked for the 'contact approach' and went direct to the airport. We landed under VMC and it was VFR at the airport. If I had waited and followed the RJ I'm just not sure how much ice we would have gotten. I hated to declare that emergency; but that was the only way I knew to get 'up front.'

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.