PA-20 Pacer/PA-22 Tri-Pacer
Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP); Flight Crew Flight Instructor
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 25; Flight Crew Total 11900; Flight Crew Type 40
Human-Machine Interface; Communication Breakdown; Confusion; Situational Awareness
Deviation - Altitude Excursion From Assigned Altitude; Deviation - Altitude Overshoot; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Inflight Event / Encounter CFTT / CFIT
Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Became Reoriented
Chart Or Publication; Human Factors
Both the instrument rated pilot and the instructor missed a change to an old familiar approach. Neither of us had shot this approach since the change. The minimum altitude on the arc had changed from 3;200 to 3;700 and we both saw what we expected to see. It looked like a '2' to me until passing 3;300 when approach told us to maintain 3;200 (the MVA). Then I saw that it was a '7'. Another factor that may have had an effect was that we were both trying out smaller format electronic approach charts. From this I re-learned the importance of challenging each number on the approach chart to verify that they haven't snuck in a change.
A failure to note changes in the MEAs on an IAP to EUG resulted in the two pilots aboard a PA22 descending below the MEA while flying an arc transition.