03 Aopa Collision Avoidance Article
Content
S A F E T Y
A D V I S O
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Oper ations and Pr of iciency No.
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Collision Avoidance Strategies and Tactics Maintaining Separat ion D e s p i te im p r o ve me nt s in th e ge n e r a l avi a ti o n (G A ) sa f e t y
r e c o r d i n r e c e n t y e a r s , t h e n u m b e r o f m i d a i r c o ll i s i o n s (M AC s) shows no corr e sp ond ing d e cline . M AC s continue to occur about thirtee n times a year on ave rage, of ten resulting in mu l ti p le f at a lit ie s. O n th e gr o u nd , c o ll i si o n s c au se d b y runway incursions are still a conce rn f or GA. Instead of waiting until af ter tak eoff to begin the ir collision avoid ance scan,
p i lo t s ca n avo i d a r u nway in cu r si o n b y in cr e a si ng th e i r vigilance immediately af te r engine start.
C o o llisi llisi o o n n a v vo o i i d d a a n n c c e e , o t t h e a i i r r a n d b o h i n n t h h e n d e g r ro u o n n t h h e o un n d d , is a si c e o f f t h e m o s t b a s t n e h e o n r e e s sp p o o n n si si b b ili t t i i e e s s o f f a
p il il o o t t f l l y i i ng ng i n n v is is u u a a l l c o o n nd d i i t t i i o o n n s s .
C o ll is io n avo id an ce , b o t h in the ai r a nd o n t he gr o u nd , i s one of the most basic responsibilitie s of a p ilot f lying in visual conditions. During p prrimary training , p ilots are taught to k ee ee p their eye s o utside the cock pit and loo k f or traff ic. This Saf ety Advisor goe s a step f urther and teaches p ilots how to visually i d e n t i f y p o t e n t ia l c o ll i s io n t h r e a t s a n d co ve r s p r o c e d u r e s t h a t c a n l e ss e n t h e r i s k o f a n i n - fl i g h t c o ll i s i o n o r r u n w a y incursion.
H istory of MAC s M any of the rules and pr p rocedures that app ly to f light in cont r o ll e d a i r s p a c e a r e t h e l e g a c y o f M A C s . I n 1956, a ll 1 128 28 pe op le aboard lost their live s whe n a DC -7 and a Lock hee d Constellation collid ed ove r the Grand Canyon in VFR conditions. This tr agedy led to pub lic outcry f or the moder nizatio n of the air traff ic control syste m, re su lting in the mo re e ff e ct i ve sy s t e m t h at we have t o d ay.
D i e g o i n v o l v i n g a B o e i n g 727
A 1978 co ll ision o ve r S an
d a C e ss n a 1 72 — b o t h und e r r ad ar co ntr o l—cau se d the d e aths o f 144 144 p e op le and re sulte d in e ve n tighte r re strictions on flights in he avily traf f ick ed are as. C ongress p asse d the Airp ort and Airway Saf e ty Exp ansion Act af te r the 1986 co llision of a DC -9 and a sinan
gle -e ngine Pipe r over C erritos, Calif ornia, n th
a
a
t
an
which claime d the
n th
un
h
lives of 82 82 pe ople i e ircr f d 15 o e gro d. T e A ir p o r t a nd A ir wa y S a f e t y Ex p an si o n A c t n o w r e q u i r e s all
civil air carr ie r aircraf t to be e quipp e d with Traff ic Ale rt and
Collision Avoidance Systems (TC AS).
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Aircraf t Design
Considerat ions
T he d e s i gn o f t h e a i r c r a f t i ts e l f c a n a ls o h i n d e r v i si b i l i ty. Wi n d s h i e l d
d i s t o r t i o n , p l a c e m e n t o f wi n d o w a n d wi n d shield p osts, and other structural eleme nts can aff e ct what a pilot see s. The brain re quires input f rom both eyes to accur ate ly inte r p re t the visu al cu e s it r e ce ive s. If a wind shie ld p ost or othe r ob stru ction blo ck s the vision o f one e ye , the brain may not p erceive the o b je ct - even with the o ther eye
p r o v i d i n g i n p u t . Th e N TS B h a s c o n c l u d e d
th i s c o u l d b e a
causal f actor in some mid air coll isions. A high glare shie ld can also block vision, which is espe cially problematic during climbout.
H aze and f og can impact the eyes’ abilit y to discern collision threats.
T he p o si t io n o f th e su n mu st a ls o b e co n si d e r e d.
W he n
l o w o n t h e h o r i z o n , i t m a k e s a n y t r a ff i c b e t w e e n t h e
o b se r ve r an d
t h e s u n v e r y d i ff i c u l t t o s ee .
O p e r a tin g in
these cond itions r equ ires extra vigilance.
Opt ical Ill usions
O ptical illusions can aff ect what we see in flight. For examp le , an a ir cr af t at a sli ghtly lo we r alt itu d e co ming to wa r d you may loo k lik e it’s above you and app e ar to d esce nd as scanning f or t raff ic, the pi ot must be aware of th the b ind spots l that can be creat ed by aircraf t del sign. When
it come s close r. At night, a p ilot’s ab ility to ju d ge d istance pprroach to a ru nway is ab o ve the gr o u nd while o n visu a l app imp aire d. Fortunate ly, sp otting aircraf t in f light isn’t usually
prr o b le m at nigh t, mu c h o f a p a
prr o p e r ly ill u mina te d since a p
i r c r a f t i s m u c h e a s i e r t o s e e a t n i g h t t h a n a n a i r c r a f t
o p e r a t in g i n d a yl i g ht ho u r s . T he e x ce p t io n to t hi s r u le i s ide ntif ying aircraf t be low you that blend in with lighting on the grou nd.
No matt e r ho w goo d a
t h e v i s i b i l i t y i s f r o m t h e c o c k p i t ,
ir cr af t have b lind sp o ts.
a
ll
High -win g air cr af t have r e d uc e d
d can have the ir vie w of t r a ff i c b l o c k e d w h e n m a k i n g t u r n s i n t h e p a tt e r n a s t h e wing is lo we r e d in the d ir e ctio n o f the tur n. Lo w -wing air visibility of aircraf t above the m,
an
c r a f t h a v e a l a r g e b l i n d s p o t b e n e a t h t h e m t h a t m a y Other Factors
obscure conflicting traff ic when d esce nding into the p attern
In add ition to atmosp heric cond itions and op tical illusions,
or while on f inal app pprroach. Pilots must recognize and com-
ge , r e sid u al a lco ho l in t he
p e nsate f or visual limitations, whe the r it’s raising a wing to che ck f o r t r a ff i c b e f o r e mak i ng a tu r n in a h igh- wi ng a ir -
i r r i t a n t s i n t h e a i r, f a t i g u e , b l oo d st r e am, ab
an
a
d lo we r o xy ge n le ve ls c an all i mp ac t t he
ility of your eyes to pe rf orm at the optimum level.
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p l a n e , o r m a k i n g s h a l l o w S - t u r n s w h e n c l i m b i n g o r descend ing in any aircraf t.
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Side-to-side scanning method.
Front -to-side scanning method.
Start at the lef t of your visual area and mak e a methodical sweep to the right, pausing in each block o of viewing to f ocus your eyes. At the end of the scan, r e turn to the p ane l.
Start at the center block o of your visual f ield (center of f ront windshield); move to the lef t, f ocusing in each block then swing quick ly back to the ce nte r block af te r re aching the last blo ck o on the lef t and repeat the perf ormance to the right.
Figure 3. Block Syst em Scan
to e ach o the r.
Wh e n o b s e r v e d
f rom the cock p it,
t he co n
-
flicting target will loo k lik e a small, stationary speck until it is
distance f rom which it may be too close to avoid. This is called the “ blossom e ff e ct.” If a p ilot see s an aircraf t that r e m a i n s i n t h e s a m e s p o t i n t h e w i n d s h i e l d ( u n l e ss i t i s at a
Eff icient
scanning requires eff ect ive management of oth other f light task s. s.
Today ’s GP S re ceivers are extre mely capable,
Blossom Eff ect
a
but they are
lso p ilot wo rk lo ad inte nsive – p articu lar ly whe n mu ltip le
directly ahead and moving in the same d ire ction), there is a h i g h p r o b a b i l i t y t h e t w o a i r c r a f t w i ll c o ll i d e u n l e ss o n e changes their course . O nce a thre at has bee n identif ied, it’s essential to k ee ee p the other aircraf t in sight until the threat is
waypo ints must be inserted into a f light p lan. GPS receive rs
resolved.
Phases of Flight M idair collisions can happ e n in any p hase of flight. Avoidance strate gie s nee d to be ad ju ste d to re fle ct the flight e nvironment and risk s associate d with each particular phase.
Cock pit Resource Management Eff e ctive cock p it re sour ce manage me nt (C RM ) re q uire s an
e ff ic ie n t sca n . Th e m o r e q u ic k ly i ns t r u me nt s an d ga u ge s can be monitored and inte rpreted , the more time available t o s can f o r t r aff i c. An e x p e r i me n t co nd u c te d wi th mi li tar y p ilots f ound the ave rage time nee d e d to cond uct an e ff e ctive scan was a to tal of 20 20 seconds – 17 seconds f or the outside scan, and three se cond s f or the p ane l scan. As d emonstrate d by the military p ilots, consid erably more time should be de voted to scanning outside than inside. C RM a l s o in c lu d e s e ff e ct i ve ma n a ge me n t o f d i s t r a c t io n s such as passe ngers, avionics, and chart manage ment task s.
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prr o gr amm e d o n th e gr o u nd to p prr o vi d e sh o u l d a lwa ys b e p more time f o r scanning in the air.
and C limb Tak eoff an
Nearly 11 percent of all midair collisions occur d uring tak e -
o ff a n d c l i m b . E n s u r e t h a t t h e r u n w a y i s c l e a r b e f o r e
de parting and listen f or other inbound aircraf t. Don’t f orget to mak e p o sitio n r e po r ts and u nde r stand o the r ’s r e p o r ts at nontower ed airpo rts. During climb out use shallo w S -turns o r lowe r the no se o cc asio nall y to ge t a b e tt e r vie w o f the
rea d ire ctly in f ront of the aircraf t. Pilots can also transition - c l i m b s p ee d s t o g a i n b e tt e r f o r w a r d v i s i b i l i t y (although some climb pe rf ormance will be sacrif iced ). a
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p o ss i b l e t ha t t he p il o t may no t e ve n k no w whe r e h e i s i f h e ’ s u n f amil iar with th e f ie l d.
Typ icall y, incu r sio ns b y GA
ircraf t result in go-around s or reduced separation betwee n
a
conflicting traff ic rather than accide nts. To reduce the chances of a runway incursion, always revie w t h e l a y o u t s o f d e s t i n a t i o n a n d d e p a r t u r e a i r p o r t s d u r i n g
your f light planning .
Accidents A C e ssna 172 and a C e ssna 152 collide d on the runway at Sar asota, Flo rid a’s towe r e d air p or t, re su lting in f o ur f atalitie s .
Accord ing to the NTSB re p ort, conf usion in the towe r
d lack of attention in the cock pit we re f actors in the accid e n t . T h e 152 h a d b e e n c l e a r e d f o r t a k e o ff . T h e 172, which was ho ld ing sho rt f o r an inte r se ctio n de p ar tur e , was then cle are d onto the r unway, and taxie d right into the path of the 152 on its tak eoff roll. The controlle r thought the 172 an
he ’d
cleared onto the active was the aircraf t waiting behind
the 152.
And
those aboard the 172
involve d in the accide nt
pp are ntly d idn’t look f or traff ic bef ore p prrocee ding onto the active ru nway. This accid e nt und e rsco re s the f act that p ilots n ee d t o m a i n ta in c o n s t a n t v ig i l a n c e , w h e t h e r u n d e r t h e a
control of ATC p ersonnel or not.
Avoiding Runway Incursions The No ve mb e r, 1996 co ll isi o n o f a Bee ch King A ir a nd a
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Bee ch 1900 in Q uincy, Illinois illustrate s the potential con-
se q u e n ce s o f i nc u r sio ns a t n o n to we r e d a ir p o r ts. C o ck p i t
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Vo i ce Re co r d e r (C V R) t a p e s f r o m t h e 1900 i nd i ca t e th a t
Re view the anticipate d taxi route bef ore taxi (prior to d eparture) and en route (prior to land ing). Listen caref ully to ATC instructions at towered f ield s. The route you’re given may not be the one you expected.
conf usion and lack of attention and comm unicatio n p laye d mmu
prominent roles in this disaste r. The 1900 1900 was on a straight-
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in app pprro ach f o r Runway 13, and anno unce d its inte ntions on the C TAF. The King Air announce d it was going to tak e -
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o ff o n Ru nway 4 4.. The cr e w o f the 1900 ask e d if the King Air was go ing to ho ld u ntil the y land e d.
Ho we ve r,
th i r d aircraf t at the airp or t, a Pip e r C he rok ee ee behind the King Air o n Ru n w a y 4 , r e s p o n d e d t h a t h e w o u l d h o l d , a n d t h a t t r ans miss i o n was p ar t iall y b l o c k e d , app ar e n tl y le ad in g th e 1900 cr e w to b e lie ve the tr ansmiss io n was f r o m t he Kin g a
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A i r. T h e 1900 co n t i n u e d wi t h i t s l a n d i n g a s t h e Ki n g A i r
comme nced its tak e off roll. The y collide d
the intersection o f the two r u nways, claiming the live s o f all tho se ab o ar d both aircraf t. at
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Re ad
back all taxi instructions.
If unce rtain, conf irm pe rmission to cross any and all runways prior to cro ssing them. Acquire airport diagrams f or all airports, espe cially those with which you are unf amiliar. To p prrint f ree airport dia.org / ta taxi. grams, go to www.asf .o If in d oubt, ask f or p prrogre ssive taxi instructions. Look f or traff ic bef ore tak ing the runway. Ensure that no conflicting traff ic exists be f ore be ginning the tak eoff . At nontowered airports with inte rse cting runways, check f or traff ic on the crossing runway as we ll as the one you intend to use f or de parture ; do the same when land ing at these airports.
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Collision Avoidance Check list You
now have the k no nowledge to minimize the threat of collisions in the air and on the ground. Use the f oll owing tact ics to enhance the saf et y of every f light.
Use sunglasses Sunglasses that block out UV rays help protect your vision and
red uce e ye f atigue. Re d / yellow spectrum lenses mak e it easier to see through haze. Polarized le nses reduce glare , but this may be a d etr iment to spo tting traff ic as the glint of light bouncing o ff an aircraf t is o f ten the very thing that helps mak e it visible.
Observe proper procedures Use corr ect cruising altitude s and traff ic patte rn p roced ure s. Announce your p osition at nontowere d airp orts. Re cognize that not e ve ryone f ollows the ru les.
Plan your f light Kn o w y o u r r o u t e , t h e f r e q u e n c i e s y o u ’ ll n ee d a l o n g t h e w a y, a n d t he p e r t i n e n t in f o r m at i o n f o r y o u r d e s t in a t io n . Fo ld char ts and p r e se t navigational aid s to maximize scan t i m e . Pr o gr a m y o u r av i o n i c s ( i n c l u d i n g G P S u n i t s ) o n t h e ground to minimize he ads- down time in the air. Anticipate where you may f ind high traff ic / high work lo ad are as. Avoid the se areas if possib le o r plan on be ing extr a vigilant dur ing tho se phase s of the f light. Equip yourself If yo u o p e ra te an a ir cr a f t witho u t ra d io s o r tr ansp o nd e r s, conside r installing them to enhance your saf e ty. Re gulations re quire that aircraf t e quipp e d with transp onde rs must have the m on during flight in controlled airsp ace. Educat e passengers A s p a r t o f yo u r p r e fl i g h t b r i e f i n g , e x p l a in b a s ic s c ann i ng p r oce d u re s to p ass e nge rs and have the m assist in sp otting tr aff ic. Exp lain FAA r ad ar ad viso r y p prroce d ure s, so the y can help locate traff ic called by ATC.
Communicat e When flying in co ntr olle d airsp ace , f amiliar ize yourse lf with th e r e q u i r e d c o mm u nicatio n p prro ce d u r e s. At no ntowe re d mmu a
ir p o r t s,
out.
b e g in a nn o u n c in g y o u r p o si t i o n w h e n 1 10 0 m il e s
Improve your visibilit y
Bu gs or othe r co ntaminants o n you r wind shie ld can block
i r cr af t f r o m vie w an d mak e i t m o r e d iff i cu lt t o f o cu s p rop e rly. During climb out, mak e S -turns f or imp rove d f orw a r d v is i b il i t y. O n c e y o u ’ v e r e a c h e d a s a f e a l t i t u d e , u se cruise -climb airspee ds to get a better view over the nose . an a
Scan f or t raff ic! U se t he t e c hn i q u e s p r e s e n t e d i n th i s S a f e t y A d vi s o r ( see
Pa ge 5 ). Re m e mb e r to d e vo t e mo r e ti me to sca nn in g f o r traff ic ou tside than scanning the instru ments inside .
Use aircraf t lights I n s t a ll a n d u s e a d d i t i o n a l l i g h t i n g t o h e l p o t h e r p i l o t s
s ee y o u r a i r c r a f t . U s e y o u r l a n d i n g l i g h t o n a pp r o a c h ,
dep arture, airp ort.
d climbout – e specially within 10
an
miles o f any
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