Originally Posted by
pattern_is_full
@smott999 - It was a visual approach. Therefore theoretically flyable using only the Mk. 1 eyeball, without any ILS tuned (and the visual approach is at a slight converging angle to the ILS track, so one would not be using the ILS to the fullest extent). However, tuning the ILS can be a useful backup, but then one gets into specific airline policies (use it, don't use it) or aircraft operational differences.
@PaxBritannica - CVR was wiped before the NTSB could get to it. See numerous previous posts (including the one immediately above yours!). It is interesting that ,while SFO was supposedly quiet enough at midnight for one controller to handle things, there were four planes lined up for departure at this critical moment (gotta love those west-coast red-eyes!)
Trained, experienced commercial pilots line up with, and sometimes land on, taxiways on the order of once or twice a year. It happens. Usually, there is no traffic on the taxiway - or we'd have heard about it big-time before now. This time was different.
I can feel for the crew. They tried to do everything right (saw the NOTAM, noted the risks of an oh-dark-thirty arrival on their own human performance) - but in the end, they still "lost the picture" in a critical phase of the flight, were slow to respond to their own growing doubts, and nearly produced a major catastrophe. Things slipped through the cracks or "lined up in the cheese," and Murphy was riding in the jump-seat. An object lesson for everyone.
Not only were there four planes lined up, there were a lot of flights landing. The report states that the UAL flight of 'He's on the taxiway' fame, had been waiting 30 mins at the time of the near-incident, and had made at least one query of ATC about whether a hole might be found in the the long queue of landing flights.
It would have made no difference to this particular flight, but I imagine passengers arriving at SFO might be surprised that ALL ops at the airport were being handled by just one person.