Close Calls

[flying dog]

Story #1.

 

I'm doing circuits. Dual while learning. Had done a few and was on downwind. There is another cessna buzzing around. I am flying RAA.

 

Radio call, turning base.

 

Radio call, turning final - touch and go.

 

Shorly after: Aircraft on final (airport name) (runway name) what are your intentions.

 

I give a blank look at my instructor sitting beside me. I've done my radio calls.

 

Obligingly I repeat "On final for touch and go"

 

"We were here first." was their comeback.

 

They seemed to think that they didn't need to do any radio calls - and I guess at that time they didn't - but because they didn't and didn't have to, they had right of way over us who were making the radio calls and didn't see them in the circuit.

 

Some people.

 

 

[flying dog]

Was approaching the airport. Cross strips. Meat-bombers just landed. Helo's flying and a couple of planes in the circuit.

 

Runways 05, 23, 14, 32 I think. (It isn't home anymore so sorry.)

 

05 was active.

 

Northern end of 05 was the exit to parking.

 

Synced with other traffic and landed without trouble. Taxiing planes obliged by turning off onto cross runway as I turned base.

 

I got past them and they resumed taxiing. Meat bomber was one of the planes taxiiing. Full load of boddies.

 

I taxi off the runway and look up. GA plane screams overtop of airport/runways. NO CALLS.

 

The plane the flew off to the southwest-ish area.

 

The skydiver plane did a "Rolling" when this other plane flew straight at him flying 230. He had to abort his takeoff.

 

Then we heard, (airport name) (his call sign) turning base 14. The plane then landed on 32.

 

 

[Yenn]

Ozzie.

 

What is the legality of using the grass verge. I assume you mean the mown grass strip beside the sealed runway. In most places this is still part of the runway and if someone lands on the sealed section while you are using the grass they could be illegal. If there are cones or other markers out in the grass that is the edge of the runway. I prefer to land on the grasss, but will still have to taxi across the sealed area at some places, so would come into conflict with others using the sealed strip.

 

 

[Sam]

Sam, if someone in a faster aircraft asks you to 'expidiate' or vacate, consider the grass verge if it is in good nick, usually 20 mts or so is available in most of the bigger airports.

Yea thats all well and good, but not really an option when still travelling at 60kts and nosewheel hasn't even settled yet. I believe that it could have been simply avoided if the RFDS plane extended downwind or circled/ weaved on final.

 

 

[PaulN]

This is not exactly a close call but could well have been. I relate it here only to benefit readers from my experience.

 

Only yesterday I was flying a lovely scenic up the coast from Port Mac with intentions of turning around at Nambucca. While over Nambucca I thought it a good idea to do a mock T&G on the private strip there to get an idea of the lay of the land. The strip was far too wet to touch down anyway. When overflying at around 50ft over rwy 18 we observed considerable bird activity causing us to fixate on the feathered traffic and begin an early climb out. Just as well ... right across the end of the strip was a string of three power lines clearly marked with balls but not noticed earlier due our fixation with the birds. Perhaps, had we flown the full length of the strip those same power lines may have ruined our day.

 

Oops :ah_oh:

 

 

[Yenn]

PaulN Could the be construed as low flying?

 

We have to have the owners permission to low fly and while an airstrip may look inviting to get down there and have a look may not be legal. Of course there is always the temptation to do a precautionary search and it is good flying practice. A bit of a problem in an emergency to find the strip you were aiming for has power lines, but all in a days work.

 

 

[dazza 38]

Thanks guys for sharing, i hope people get a benefit from this, we are here to learn.

 

 

[Ben Longden]

To Yenn's Point,By way of some advice, the first pass in a precautionary search should be done NOT below 200ft, that way you will avoid power lines but hopefully be able to see them. 50 feet on a first pass is way to low, 50' would only be appropriate once you had identified any hazards from 200'.

David

Some folks, now deceased, found that a power pole search at 50ft was the perfect way to find power lines. It was easy because they filled the windscreen..... :yuk:

 

Ben

 

 

[Guest Maj Millard]

Years ago whilst returning to a local airport in my replica biplane, I entered downwind only to hear a Baron announce straight-in to the same runway. As was the requirement at that time, I gave way to him, and backed off till he touched down.

 

After what I thought was a reasonable time, I went in and flared above the runway. Whilst waiting for the mains to touch, the right wing/s completely stalled and the lower wingtip contacted the runway with minimal damage. The rest of the landing once I recovered, was uneventual.

 

Obviosly I had encountered his wake turbulance above the runway in the no-wind early morning conditions,as the plane had never shown any tendenacy to do that at any other time. I'm only thankfull it happened where it did and not 20-30 feet higher..............Maj...

 

 

 

 

 

[Tomo]

To Yenn's Point,By way of some advice, the first pass in a precautionary search should be done NOT below 200ft, that way you will avoid power lines but hopefully be able to see them. 50 feet on a first pass is way to low, 50' would only be appropriate once you had identified any hazards from 200'.

David

I'm sure this is already known, but if you have the time in a precautionary search and landing - I do the inspection like this -

 

- 200ft over fly (no lower) Check for obstructions, powerlines, old telecom lines, fences etc...

 

- Next run at 100ft of so - this time you check the length, maintain a solid speed and time it.

 

- 50 ft run - check the surface, wet, holes, sticks, logs, wheel ruts etc...

 

- Land.

 

I will come to Paul defense in his thinking, it's a strip - what's the issue? A thought I'm sure a lot of us would have thought I'm sure, if we were in his situation.

 

My strip has a power line over the northern threshold area... one of the reasons it is strictly a PPR one.

 

Lesson from this - and thanks for enforcing it Paul - just because it's a strip, doesn't mean it's all rosy. Consider it a paddock and check it out above first.

 

 

[turboplanner]

Many people have been caught by thinking an airstrip is an airstrip.

 

I checked out the Booligal "Airport" one day and found a crab hole about 300 mm dia, and 300 deep.

 

Private properties are classics - heavy rain falls so the owner grades a trench across the strip to drain a paddock, intending to grade it back in before he flies again (which could be next year!). Within a couple of weeks the new grass is growing and it trakes a very careful look to notoce it.

 

 

[Guest eland2705]

Years ago whilst returning to a local airport in my replica biplane, I entered downwind only to hear a Baron announce straight-in to the same runway. As was the requirement at that time, I gave way to him, and backed off till he touched down.

Was that the "Bloody Red....." Maj?

 

OK - I'll go away now

 

(Blatant bump - think this topic should stay at the top for a while longer. Maybe it'll help/save someone - like me, who reads it)

 

 

[flying dog]

Way back when.....

 

Near the first X-Country trip I was on.

 

Landed at a new airport. Looking for fuel.

 

Taxiied over and saw the fuel bowser. Headed for it and NEARLY did a close turn to the pump - similar to how you would pull up to a pump in a service station with your car.

 

SUDDENLY I REMEMBERD: This is a plane and I have wings on it!

 

Brakes applied suddenly and I stopped before the wing hit the structure around the pump.

 

(Underpants subsequently changed).

 

Remember: You can't treat a plane like a car when taxiing. You MUST keep a good distance from things at all times!

 

 

[dazza 38]

Hi FD (Under pants subsequently changed),That cracked me up, thanks Andrew

 

 

[turboplanner]

This afternoon over the Moorabbin Training area - two GA aircraft, low wing above, high wing below, converging course, missed by about 30 metres, both aircraft unaware.

 

 

[Guest ozzie]

Yeah i remember that one. also recently repeated over in the west i think with a brand new sting jumped on by a C172 i think it was chop marks behind and in front of the pilot

 

 

[Boofhead]

In my skydiving days we used to have a club-house and drop-zone at Collector, near Goulbourne, NSW. Normally we used a Cessna 182 as a jump-ship but on this particular day a chap had arrived with his GAF Nomad (Turboprop twin).

 

Normally we took off downhill to the north-west as there was a large hill to the east, however on this particular day the wind necessitated otherwise.

 

With all the seats removed a load of about 9 of us parachutists packed up against the back of the pilot and co-pilot seats sitting on the floor facing backwards. The last two jumpers towards the tail kneeling up and forwards to keep the COG as far forwards as possible. My mate who was a video cameraman for the jump was kneeling up in front of me in that position, and we taxied off down the strip and commenced our takeoff run. We lifted off and I was looking directly at my mates face who was himself looking out of the front windscreen. Within a few seconds his jaw dropped and he went flat-white like a ghost. I have never seen anyone so terrified in my life. I couldn't hear him but was able to lipread him as he mouthed "We're not going to make it!".

 

I sat up so I could almost see out of the small window, but I couldn't get myself into a position where I was level with it, I could only look up at a shallow angle to the horizon but I did see the chilling sight of treetops going past. I braced myself as best I could but there was not too much to be done really.

 

After a tense couple of moments we did manage to make it though and my mate nearly collapsed with relief. All he could say for the next 15 minutes as we climbed up to 14,000ft was "F^{( that was close. F^{( that was close" repeatedly.

 

We actually had a really good skydive and completed two or three freefall formations which was good for us. After the jump walking back to the hanger I caught up to my cameraman friend and he estimated we were around 10 ft off of the hilltop at the closest point and it was sheer luck that the trees were sparse through the trajectory we were flying.

 

Pity he didn't have the camera rolling !

 

 

[Guest ozzie]

Lucky you had only nine and not the usual sixteen. what year was that? Been to Collector a few times. Including wittnessing the beat up fatality. that place seemed to attract "wrong decisions".

 

 

[Boofhead]

Ozzie I was trying to remember if it was 8 or sixteen. I'm pretty sure we were doing 8-way competition jumps, but maybe you are right and there were two teams in the plane as they rarely did anything other than full loads to be as economical as possible (And financially viable). I only jumped out Nomads 3 or 4 times, they were much better than Cessnas from a jump-ship perspective. I always worried about that tail issue they had.

 

It was either the late eighties or early nineties,I'd have to check my log book which is packed away somehere.

 

I'm sorry you were there to witness that aweful and tragic flyby incident. Luckily for me I wasn't. I only heard of a couple of skydiving fatalities out there, and two seperate pilots fatalities which unusual and obviously not a very good record from a flying perspective.

 

 

[Guest ozzie]

If you jumped the Otters and as you were doing 8 way i guess you did you know me.

 

 

[dazza 38]

Yeah i remember that one. also recently repeated over in the west i think with a brand new sting jumped on by a C172 i think it was chop marks behind and in front of the pilot

Hi Ozzie, i remember that one, i have seen pictures of it on the net.I cant remeber where though, i think it was either you tube, or from another web site. From memory it had only just been ferried to WA, from Qld as you said Brand new.

 

 

[Ben Longden]

Any chance we can send stories like this to Flight Safety magazine?

 

That way more folks will realise they are not alone in the sky.... or on the ground... and that a radio isnt there for decoration...

 

(I mention the last one because a chipmonk flew into Shepp with a straight in approach on R36, when 18 was the active, and had AC in the holding bay... No radio calls whatsoever, and yes, there was a radio there.)

 

Ben