Apparently midair at Gympie at 3pm today, 9/11/22

[Jase T]

News says very little 

[Kyle Communications]

just a report of a accident on the local news in brisbane

two died i believe

 

[Blueadventures]

Terrible news. Condolances to family and friends.

[BrendAn]

How many accidents have there. Been so far this year. I know we discussed this a few weeks back but there seems to be one every couple of weeks.

[kgwilson]

A midair? Terrible news. So sad if two died. My condolences to family & friends. I assume more details to come.

[JEM]

ABC says glider and ultralight

 

[Blueadventures]

10 minutes ago, JEM said:

ABC says glider and ultralight

 

Image on 7 news shows white slender glider like fuse on ground.

[turboplanner]

34 minutes ago, BrendAn said:

How many accidents have there. Been so far this year. I know we discussed this a few weeks back but there seems to be one every couple of weeks.

Not a lot in RA, people have been posting about GA accidents, helicopters, gyros, and all sorts of crashes overseas where the aircraft and operating regulations are different. RA has lifted compared with the last two or three years, but that's because of non-flying due to covid.

[Blueadventures]

ABC images, not confirmed but likely correct.

[BrendAn]

Does anyone else think that looks like a hummelbird tail

[plugga]

Looks a bit more substantial than a Hummelbird to me, but I guess looks can be deceptive with that level of damage. 

 

I was sent a link to a Daily Fail piece which claims that it was a towplane and glider under tow that collided, sounds odd but I suppose stranger things have happened.

[BrendAn]

45 minutes ago, plugga said:

Looks a bit more substantial than a Hummelbird to me, but I guess looks can be deceptive with that level of damage. 

 

I was sent a link to a Daily Fail piece which claims that it was a towplane and glider under tow that collided, sounds odd but I suppose stranger things have happened.

That rules out a hummelbird then.

[Blueadventures]

55 minutes ago, plugga said:

Looks a bit more substantial than a Hummelbird to me, but I guess looks can be deceptive with that level of damage. 

 

I was sent a link to a Daily Fail piece which claims that it was a towplane and glider under tow that collided, sounds odd but I suppose stranger things have happened.

Hard to see in image, but doesn't look to have a tow hook.  Also webb page says tug is a C150G.

[red750]

Quote from a witness:

 

"We saw two aircraft spiralling out of the cloud to the ground," she said.

[onetrack]

Media reports state the victims were an 80-year-old Caboolture man and a 77-year-old Glenwood man. No identification of the aircraft, rego numbers are blanked out in videos, and it's almost impossible to tell the make of aircraft, but I'd have to guess it's an ultralight. Doesn't seem to be any mention of the ATSB getting involved at this point. This is certainly a real tragedy, and just another reminder to stay aware of other aircraft in your area.

 

https://www.9news.com.au/national/fatal-aircraft-mid-air-crash-queensland-gympie-kybong/e32ae0b9-225f-4fad-9a98-131bee6f97ee

[plugga]

34 minutes ago, Blueadventures said:

Hard to see in image, but doesn't look to have a tow hook.  Also webb page says tug is a C150G.

Yeah, subsequent reports have retracted that version, I see.  It did seem odd.  The rego was visible in at least one news report, sad, I didn't know the pilot but have seen the aircraft at more than one flyin.

Edited November 9, 2022 by plugga
Add info

[Blueadventures]

30 minutes ago, plugga said:

Yeah, subsequent reports have retracted that version, I see.  It did seem odd.  The rego was visible in at least one news report, sad, I didn't know the pilot but have seen the aircraft at more than one flyin.

Police at scene state aircraft a Kappa KP 2U model in Onetracks link.

[BrendAn]

12 hours ago, turboplanner said:

Not a lot in RA, people have been posting about GA accidents, helicopters, gyros, and all sorts of crashes overseas where the aircraft and operating regulations are different. RA has lifted compared with the last two or three years, but that's because of non-flying due to covid.

The fatality near Townsville. The one at mt beauty. 2 yesterday. 1 of them ra. That's just in the last few weeks. Seems a lot to me when you consider how small rec aviation is in Australia.

[turboplanner]

26 minutes ago, BrendAn said:

The fatality near Townsville. The one at mt beauty. 2 yesterday. 1 of them ra. That's just in the last few weeks. Seems a lot to me when you consider how small rec aviation is in Australia.

It does and sometimes has an emotional impact; the "how can I avoid this happening to me thought" which is why I talk a lot about fatalities.

Whether you like it or not they need to be identified on a measurable grid, for which I use one year.

For many years Pilot/Passenger deaths consistently averaged 12 per year.  

This year without checking I'd say so far it's about 5, and even before Covid the numbers were dropping.

By comparison in the Victorian truck industry,a few years ago after introducing fatlgue regulations we got the driver deaths down to 47. An industry official told me a couple of weeks ago this year it's 200.

The sort of Speedway in Victoria has not killed any car drivers for over 50 years.

These low numbers you can work with, dissect, categorise and make changes mush easier than the bigger numbers like the total road toll where the causes can get into the hundreds and people just use a generic control.

Putting it another way, if you know several people who've died doing what they do it's worthwhile looking very closely at the reasons.

The GA accident where the Chipmunk hits the tower is a worthwhile look; easy to avoid, fly legally.

[onetrack]

A mid-air collision is pilots simply not being aware of other traffic in the area they're flying into. Use every means at your disposal to alert others to your presence, especially as you approach heavily-trafficked areas such as airfields.

[turboplanner]

1 minute ago, onetrack said:

A mid-air collision is pilots simply not being aware of other traffic in the area they're flying into. Use every means at your disposal to alert others to your presence, especially as you approach heavily-trafficked areas such as airfields.

It's not clear what happened; the report of tow aircraft and glider could indicate a towing mishap.

[onetrack]

The tow aircraft report has been proven to be just media inaccuracy. The evidence seems pretty simple to me - two aircraft that fell out of the sky, totally destroyed by an MAC.

The exact reasons for the MAC are certainly not clear, but given the age of the victims (if accurately reported), then a medical episode leading to incapacity is quite possible - but regardless, even if that was the case, then the other pilot should be totally alert, and on the lookout for the other aircraft, and still be able to avoid it, even if it wasn't tracking as advertised.

I guess if one pilot had been incapacitated for some time, and gave no radio calls, that also might help explain it.

 

With both pilots deceased and no CVR's or FDR's, the investigation is totally reliant on anyone in the area on frequency who heard and remembered important calls - or ground witnesses who actually saw the aircraft.

With one witness reporting they simply heard a loud bang, and two damaged aircraft "fell out of the clouds", then visibility levels is going to be another important question.

 

Edited November 10, 2022 by onetrack

[Teckair]

How does a tug aircraft collide with the glider? I'm surprised there are not more mid air accidents. Speaking from experience it's nearly impossible to see a aircraft approaching towards you head on.

[Blueadventures]

1 minute ago, Teckair said:

How does a tug aircraft collide with the glider? I'm surprised there are not more mid air accidents. Speaking from experience it's nearly impossible to see a aircraft approaching towards you head on.

Incorrect turn after release. Tug one way glider the other. In the SOP.

[Carbon Canary]

Coincidentally, I have ordered avionics with both ADS-B in & out + FLARM today.