Skyhawk 172/Cutlass 172
Flight Crew Private
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 7; Flight Crew Total 325; Flight Crew Type 151
Situational Awareness; Confusion
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation - Track / Heading All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance
Air Traffic Control Separated Traffic; Flight Crew Took Evasive Action; Flight Crew Became Reoriented
Human Factors
I was approaching the airport from the southeast; VFR; in a C172. I obtained the ATIS report Charlie and heard that the winds were calm and Runways 10R and 10L were in use. I was using flight following. At 10 miles from the airport; Approach transferred me to the Tower. I contacted the Tower and was told to plan for Runway 10R and to report 2 miles southeast of the field. At 3 miles from the airport the Tower cleared me to land on Runway 10R and did not specify how to fly there. I started a base to final approach to Runway 28R instead; but thought I was complying with the Tower's instructions. This airport has parallel east-west runways; 10R-28L and 10L-28R. As I turned base to final I saw a plane taxiing toward me on 10L-28R and then turn off the runway. I assumed he was back taxiing on 28R. Then the Tower cleared a plane to takeoff on 10L and that pilot said that he saw opposite direction traffic (me) and questioned the Tower. He did not start his takeoff roll. At that point I realized that I was in the wrong place and had mistaken Runway 28R for Runway 10R. I was turned around 180 degrees. I told the Tower I was going around and was diverting to the right of the runway and planned to fly west. The Controller asked me to fly northwest and I complied. Then; very quickly; I was cleared me to land on Runway 10R. I was not in a great position to do that. I was at about 900 feet AGL and configured for a climb. I was distracted by my error; looking for traffic and I also realized that I had been a little slow in reconfiguring my plane for the unexpected go-around. In an effort to comply with the Tower and avoid other traffic; I turned left and flew a base and final to Runway 10R and landed uneventfully. Just before I landed the Tower again cleared me to land on Runway 10R. That made me think that I had been cleared to land on 10L after my go-around and not 10R. I would not have been able to make the turn to 10L. After landing I taxied uneventfully to parking following instructions from the Tower and Ground Control perfectly. I think I was mentally planning for a landing to the west even though the ATIS said runways 10R and 10L; the Controller said Runway 10R; and I read back the correct runway. I am not sure why; but it may have had to do with the winds at my departure airport favoring a northwest landing or the report of calm winds at the destination airport. Also on the flight I was trialing different electronic navigation screen settings (track up; centered vs. track up; forward vs. north up) and that may have been disorienting. I did not check the runway heading on my plane's heading indicator as I was approaching the destination airport. If I had; I would have seen that Runway 10R (100 degrees) was almost opposite my direction of flight (approximately 310 degrees) as I approached the airport and that I needed to fly a downwind leg before landing. In the past my routine had been to review a paper airport diagram on my kneeboard before all landings. A few months ago I started using electronic information and most recently a small screen with difficult to read runway numbers. I am familiar with the destination airport and did not brief the VFR approach; as I would have at an unfamiliar airport. I slept the night before but it was not the greatest. The Tower did not pick up on my error until I was on final approach for the wrong runway. Was my error visible from the Rower visually or on radar? I know that separation and following Tower instructions are my responsibility in Class D airspace. Prevention: Verify takeoff and landing runways on a paper airport diagram for all airports and brief all VFR approaches on paper airport diagrams. Stick with paper navigation charts or large screen; north up electronic navigation charts. Check runway headings on the airplane's heading indicator when cleared for a runway. How does the runway direction compare to the direction of flight? Do not fly without good sleep. Do not assume that the Tower knows where you or other planes are. Realize that you and other pilots can make mistakes and remain vigilant.
The pilot of a C172 discovered that he was on approach to the incorrect runway when opposite direction traffic questioned a takeoff clearance due to his relative position.