SEE AND AVOID

I ended a series on traffic pattern management last month. It leads fairly naturally into another concern: traffic avoidance.

I don't know about you, but when I learned to fly, nobody even thought to suggest I lift the wing to check for traffic before starting a turn. Big sky--little airplane. Of course, you'd have to be pretty unlucky to hit someone else if there are only a couple of other people up there, so perhaps my instructors were justified in thinking things would work out if we never looked where we were going.

That doesn't sound right, does it?

If two airplanes collide, it's because the pilots didn't see each other. If they didn't see each other, assuming visual conditions, neither was doing a good job of looking. And if that was the case, they were guilty of violating the most fundamental safety principle there can be for the operation of moving vehicles--watch out where you're going.

When you get down to it, it doesn't make any difference whether a mid-air happens in Class B or over top of a mountain range: it's not like aircraft are limited to regulated airspace. They fly all over the place--even airlines: into Durango, into Orange County, into LAX. When an incident occurs, it’s not caused by airspace violation, but rather because two pilots aren't looking where they're going.

So...do you look where you're going? All the time? Probably not. The trick is to make sure that your moments of inattention don't occur when you are most at risk.

TURNS
When you change lanes on the freeway, you first make sure no one is next to you (if you don't, this article may well be the last thing you read). Most pilots seem to understand that the same general rule applies in the air, but the principles are different, primarily because of the higher speeds involved and the lack of exact lane control. A glance over your shoulder, followed immediately by a turn, isn't enough. Airplanes aren't always precisely where you first look and are often hard to see. The fast closure rates make it necessary to look hard and carefully before you dart off in a new direction.

The situation is further complicated if you fly a high wing: once a turn is started, the lowered wing effectively blocks all possibility of clearing as you go, so your clearing must be completely finished before starting to turn. The ideal method of doing this is to gently lift the wing on the side towards which you want to turn and scan for as long as it takes to be sure there's no one there–then turn. If you make this whole procedure unrushed and coordinated, your passengers will soon find it comfortable.

CLIMBS
According to statistics and logic alike, more mid-airs occur near airports than anywhere else. In addition to the obvious observation that mid-airs will be found where the concentration of aircraft is greatest, there are specific aspects of airport operations that tend to create conflicts. When you climb, your nose high attitude inevitably makes you blind to traffic directly ahead. Add to this the cockpit distractions of getting the aircraft transitioned from takeoff to climb, and it becomes likely that luck, rather than good judgement, is all that stands between disaster and safety for a good many pilots.

To reduce the risk, you must either periodically lower the nose to clear the airspace ahead, or, even better, gently S turn as you climb out. Generally speaking, S turns are likely to be more comfortable for your passengers and are a bit more thorough. The procedure is made even more desirable because the changing attitude of your plane make it much easier for others to see you.

DESCENTS
Descents are as hazardous as climbs: a descending airplane is constantly lowering itself into uncleared airspace. A classic accident involves a low wing airplane letting down onto a slower high wing--both unable to see the hazard as it develops. Avoidance of this situation requires that you make the same S turns you became familiar with during climbout.

Next--traffic patterns and traffic avoidance.

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