Widebody Transport
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 100; Flight Crew Total 12000; Flight Crew Type 350
Communication Breakdown; Fatigue; Training / Qualification
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation - Track / Heading All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Returned To Clearance; Flight Crew Became Reoriented
Company Policy; Human Factors; Procedure
Received digital PDC from VHHH delivery. We printed out and reviewed the frequencies and transponder code and verified our pre-briefed speed constraints on the departure (SID). The company filed SID for this leg was the OCEAN 2A; however the clearance we received was for the RASSE 3A. Expecting the OCEAN 2A we missed the change in our clearance as this is not only the SID we 'always' receive on this leg but; also the one listed in our flight plan. After departure; with the autopilot engaged we mistakenly began following the OCEAN 2A. The Controller asked us to verify that we following the RASSE 3A and I responded that we were following the OCEAN 2A. He said; 'No problem; I can fix that;' and gave us a series of headings to fly. Shortly thereafter the Controller cleared us direct to OCEAN Intersection and explained that at this time of night they use the RASSE 3A for noise abatement purposes. All 3 pilots were in the cockpit when we reviewed the clearance; and we all missed the change of departure procedure. Even though we had a 30 hour layover in VHHH; none of us were able to get good sleep prior to the flight which had a hotel departure time of shortly after midnight local.I believe this contributed to us making 2 major procedural errors. First; when the PDC was received; we did not thoroughly read aloud; word for word; the body of the clearance. Second; we neglected to write the clearance down on the MFP; as is standard procedure; in addition to creating a printed copy. Adherence to these procedures would have alerted us to the change in the SID and we would have modified the FMC loaded flight plan accordingly. After the incident; while enroute; we all reviewed the chart departure notes and found that the RASSE departures are normal night time noise abatement procedures. Unfortunately; none of us usually fly this particular (late night) trip and the fatigue feed complacency sent us down a path of 'doing what we're used to.'In the future; I'm sure this experience will cause all of us to more closely adhere to the standard procedures. Another help would be if the dispatchers were also familiar with the operating procedure at the airport and filed the appropriate departure. Maybe he or she was in the same boat as the crew and was just used to always filing this plan the same way. I'm not trying to criticize or blame the Dispatcher. The responsibility rest solely with the crew; specifically with me as the PIC; but had we noticed an 'unusual' SID on the flight plan maybe we would have caught it there.
In the future I will double check the clearance received versus what was filed and make sure the other crew members are involved in reading the clearance. In addition; when checking in with Departure; it would be prudent to state which departure we are flying; giving us another chance to catch the error. I believe a contributing factor to this event was fatigue due to circadian rhythm disruption since the event happened at very early morning local time.
A cargo flight left VHHH very early morning with a the pilot crew all of whom misread the PDC revised clearance and mis-programmed the FMS because of fatigue and circadian rhythm effects.