Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Communication Breakdown; Confusion; Situational Awareness; Workload
ATC Issue All Types; Airspace Violation All Types; Conflict Airborne Conflict
Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Flight Crew Became Reoriented; Flight Crew FLC complied w / Automation / Advisory
Procedure; Environment - Non Weather Related; Human Factors
The First Officer was flying. We were turned right; off the GRNPA arrival; to a heading of around 280 and cleared the visual approach to Runway 01R in LAS (behind traffic). The vector took us directly over the top of Henderson airport. When descending through 5;100 the Controller said 'do not descend below the Class B (floor is 5;000 there).'Right after that we got a monitor vertical speed TCAS RA for an aircraft right below us over the Henderson airport. Within five seconds the Controller advised we were below her minimum vectoring altitude and 'correct your altitude immediately' or some words close to that. I may have the order of events wrong. All three events happened within about 20 seconds. We leveled off at 5;050 FT until turning inbound which put us a little high over GALNE the FAF for the RNAV 01R approach. Altitude over GALNE is depicted as 4;000. We were able to make a stabilized approach with flaps full. The fix outside GALNE is KIBSE and its altitude is 5;100 FT. Altitude wise we were right where we needed to be. Crews are not given Minimum Vector Altitude charts. Only the Controller has those. At no time was there any yellow or red showing on my terrain mapping which was on at the smallest possible scale. Nor was there ever a terrain call out from the GPWS. This night visual approach from the southeast is a bad idea when vectored over the Henderson airport; too much chance of an RA. No idea why the Controller felt we were too low for the terrain. I looked the next day on departure to the south and it looks flat to the west of that airport for at least a few miles. It is true that any terrain and obstacles are mostly unlighted but they are primarily southwest of Henderson when on a base leg. The terrain is irregular however.I think we need a charted RNAV visual approach built similar to the one built for Runways 19R/L. It should have suggested altitudes and speeds and configurations for each point (see the RNAV visual for 19R/L). In this way we remain clear of all terrain and do not conflict with their MVA chart. The charted base leg should be south of the Henderson airport traffic area. The aircraft will be on glideslope and on speed and everyone knows what to expect. I will no longer accept visuals approaches at night to those runways until a charted procedure is published. I will only accept the ILS 01L or the RNAV 01R. It is way too stressful to have 2 Controller warnings and a RA on a visual approach. Lets get an RNAV visual built to Runways 01L/R.
An A320 crew on a visual approach to Runway 1R at LAS was instructed not to descend below the floor of the Class B; encountered a TCAS RA for traffic at HND; and then were advised that they were below the minimum vectoring altitude and told to correct their altitude immediately. The reporter suggests night visuals from the southeast over HND are a bad idea.