Shades of Tenerife?

[Dummy Pilot]

Despite being told to wait, the Captain begins the takeoff roll with another aircraft still on the runway. Later in the article, it mentions that the crew may have been under "pressure" to hurry due to concerns regarding holdover time on their deicing.

Full Article

Pilot misheard 'wait' command
The Yomiuri Shimbun

SAPPORO--The captain of a Japan Airlines jumbo jet that nearly rear-ended another plane on the runway at Hokkaido's New Chitose Airport on Saturday after starting its takeoff run without permission has told investigators he misheard an instruction from the control tower to wait as permission to take off, it has been learned.

The Construction and Transport Ministry's Aircraft and Railway Accidents Investigation Commission found a recording in the cockpit voice recorder from air traffic control saying, "Prepare for immediate takeoff."

The commission was investigating the fact that the captain and crew on Flight 502--a Boeing 747-400 bound for Tokyo's Haneda Airport with 446 passengers and crew on board--may not have been paying sufficient attention to communications from the control tower.

Recordings in the cockpit voice recorder and a record of communications received from the control tower clearly confirm that air traffic control instructed the pilot to wait. The control tower instructed Flight 502 in English at about 10:30 a.m. to "Enter Runway B and wait," and shortly after to "Prepare for immediate takeoff. An aircraft has just landed and is on the runway."

According to the commission and other sources, the cockpit voice recorder and the record of communications were clear, and the instruction to "prepare" also could be clearly heard.

However, despite another passenger plane being on the runway in front of Flight 502, the pilot responded: "Roger." At 10:33 a.m. he applied full thrust and started the plane's takeoff run.

[einesellesenie]

Scary. Did anybody in the cockpit question the captain's decision?

[3WE]

Mega factless parlor talking:

We do have previous crashes with Oriental culture being cited that "you do not question the boss" (not that the Tenerife had anything to do with Oriental culture.)

Then we have Engrish being the "offical language of ATC" with that recent taxi incident of a Japanese airliner at New York (by the way, I don't neccesarily side with the NY ground guy....there was obviously a problem, but the NY dude kept repeating the exact same phrase....not the way to solve a language barrier and achieve the desired results...if the phrase didn't work twice now, try restating what you want to say.....)

Also, I have to question the exact phrases in this rear-end takeoff near total disaster!!!!!! The word "Cleared" is gospel and isn't listed there....But I assume this article may have been through a translation or two.

Don't know what to say as to why the guy thought he was "cleared" without the word being said.....

"Be ready for an immediate, traffic rolling out down field" is 1) a pretty standard event and 2) pretty dang obvious.....don't know what else you can say on this.

[RadarContactLost]

I think the US standard is to not use the word "Takeoff" except for the actually takeoff clearance. You'll hear something like, "After departure turn left heading one twenty, cleared for takeoff runway one seven."

[Dummy Pilot]

I think the US standard is to not use the word "Takeoff" except for the actually takeoff clearance

I would agree and add that "Prepare for immediate Takeoff" is perilously close to "Cleared for Immediate Takeoff". Furthermore, anyone who has ever seen a 747 during ground operations knows that there is nothing "immediate" about it.....if the Controller felt that spacing between arriving and departing aircraft was that tight that he needed to warn a 747 to to do something immediately, then perhpas he should have kept him clear of the runway.

From the pilot's side, they need to readback any runway instruction (Hold Short/Position and Hold/Line up and wait/Cleared for Takeoff) by repeating the instruction, not just saying "Roger".

[3WE]

I think the US standard is to not use the word "Takeoff" except for the actually takeoff clearance. You'll hear something like, "After departure turn left heading one twenty, cleared for takeoff runway one seven."

Ok....makes sense.....isn't the phraseology stuff like "an immediate" - the word "takeoff" missing as you say.

"Zippy 123, runway 37, position and hold, be ready for an immediate."

[Giles]

to "Enter Runway B and wait,"

B ???

[Dmmoore]

Standard phraseology would be "Prepare for immediate departure." However as has been noted, nothing happens rapidly on a 747 including spooling the engines after receiving take-off Clarence.

[Dummy Pilot]

to "Enter Runway B and wait,"

B ???

It's a Japanese thing. For local ops, they give all their runways letters in the order that they were constructed. At least this is the way it is at Narita and Haneda (at NRT the original runway 16R/34L is known as runway A and the newer 16R/34L is known as runway B). The runway marking/signage and approach plates use the traditional ICAO 'magnetic' numbering system, but I guess when the 'locals' are talking to eachother they may use the local reference of A,B, etc.

[AndyToop]

Mega factless parlor talking:

We do have previous crashes with Oriental culture being cited that "you do not question the boss" (not that the Tenerife had anything to do with Oriental culture.)

Disagree - Tenerife had a lot to do with Oriental culture. One of the contributing factors was the power gradient in the cockpit - while this is hopefully no longer an issue in the "west" it is definitely still witnessed in Oriental cultures, especially with an all Oriental crew.

Then we have Engrish being the "offical language of ATC" with that recent taxi incident of a Japanese airliner at New York (by the way, I don't neccesarily side with the NY ground guy....there was obviously a problem, but the NY dude kept repeating the exact same phrase....not the way to solve a language barrier and achieve the desired results...if the phrase didn't work twice now, try restating what you want to say.....)

Maybe he was English - thats how we communicate to foreigners - if they don't understand it - say it again, but LOUDER

Also, I have to question the exact phrases in this rear-end takeoff near total disaster!!!!!! The word "Cleared" is gospel and isn't listed there....But I assume this article may have been through a translation or two.

Don't know what to say as to why the guy thought he was "cleared" without the word being said.....

"Be ready for an immediate, traffic rolling out down field" is 1) a pretty standard event and 2) pretty dang obvious.....don't know what else you can say on this.

I don't think its so much the absence of the word cleared, but the presence of the word takeoff. I hadn't really thought about it before this, but on reflection when I've been listening into the tower at Stansted, they only use the word takeoff in the clearance. If they are not issuing the clearance then they use the word departure. This is pure parlour, but I know myself, that if I'm busy the first word gets my attention, but I do sometimes mishear it - usually its clear fro the context of the rest of the sentence. So I could imagine as you are lining up on the runway, the first word could be misheard.
"Cleared for immediate takeoff"
"Prepare for immediate takeoff"
are very easy to confuse, having other key words makes the distinction easier.
"Cleared for immediate takeoff"
"Prepare for immediate departure"

[3WE]

We do have previous crashes with Oriental culture being cited that "you do not question the boss" (not that the Tenerife had anything to do with Oriental culture.)

Disagree - Tenerife had a lot to do with Oriental culture. One of the contributing factors was the power gradient in the cockpit - while this is hopefully no longer an issue in the "west" it is definitely still witnessed in Oriental cultures, especially with an all Oriental crew.

Ok....word games.....the KLM crew wasn't oriental, but CRM and "power issues" were part of the equation.

[FrankM]

I'd think it isn't exactly "cultural", but as someone said the gradient. If I was a 22 yo F/O with 200 hours I'd rather doubt myself than a 55 yo line captain/chief pilot. I think you'd have to be *very* sure that the old wolf made a big mistake. In the Tenerife case (and also the American in Little Rock comes to my mind) things happened very quickly in a very busy situation.

In the Hapag-Lloyd case the FO had plenty of time to think about everything before coming to the conclusion that continuation was wrong. Not that it helped though ...

[PurduePilot]

Maybe he was English - thats how we communicate to foreigners - if they don't understand it - say it again, but LOUDER

Works for me when someone's speaking to me in Spanish.

[Gabriel]

I agree that "prepare for an immediate take off" is not a happy choice of words. But having it between "Enter runway and wait" and "there is another plane in the runway" makes the mishearing inexcusable.

Also, as true as the readback "Roger" is not acceptable to give, isn't it equally unacceptable to accept it? Shouldn't the tower have repeated the instructon and ask for a full readback?

[3WE]

Also, as true as the readback "Roger" is not acceptable to give, isn't it equally unacceptable to accept it? Shouldn't the tower have repeated the instructon and ask for a full readback?

I am fascinated by the interactions of "condescending overkill" vs. mundane task, vs. the fact that once every zillion operations or so someone (or some crew) does something that is SEEMINGLY very stupid (collectively).

My first gut reaction is "Oh come on Gabe, get real, that's overkill...if two professionals know what they are doing with an incredibly common procedure, we don't have to play "kindergarten-teacher/read-back-nazi.".

But then again, excrement transpires. Two 747's collided in Tenerife, A plane took off on the wrong runway at Lexington, KY, etc. etc. etc. AND CRM has the pilots telling each other very mundane things, just so they are sure what the other is doing.

I don't know if being anal and forcing folks to read back when the don't is needed or not. I do recall a NY clearance person going at it with a pilot over leaving one word out on a read back that was still crystal clear. Again, the NY guy could not quite bring himself to say (early on), SORRY BUT, I need you to say this word for the sake of legalities

[AndyToop]

I agree that "prepare for an immediate take off" is not a happy choice of words. But having it between "Enter runway and wait" and "there is another plane in the runway" makes the mishearing inexcusable.

Gabe - just playing devils advocate here.

"Enter runway and wait" was the previous comunication. This is usually because of traffic on the runway, yet this wasn't explicitly mentioned.
Imediate departure/takeoff is issued because of incoming traffic, not traffic already on the runway, and the atc usually mentions the incoming traffic.
I'm not excusing the pilots mistake, but personally I can see some aspects of the atc communication in this case which in my opinion could be contributory to a misunderstanding in a high workload situation.
Having already issued the line up and wait instruction the ATC then uses the words prepare immediate and takeoff, followed by a reason to not takeoff immediately without re-including the word wait. The only "wait" trigger words in there are prepare and runway. Unfortunately these are the first and last words. The first easy to miss as it is the attention grabber. The last would then be easy to mishear/ignore because every other word has already geared your mind into the normal phraseology for an immediate takeoff because another plane on final. In other words you have actually stopped listening because everything else has already matched up nicely with your pre-conception of what the controller would tell you next.

"Enter runway and wait"
followed by
"Prepare for immediate departure after other plane clears runway"

no incident?

Agree completely regards roger. ATC should have balled him out for not reading back (possibly did especially after he also assumed clearence as well )