Flight of three, cleared to land
Formation flying, both as a hazardous thing to do and an art form practiced by pros, has been around for decades. Properly trained pilots may make it look easy, but in reality, doing it correctly is difficult and requires precision. There's no such thing as casual formation flying; any time you've gone somewhere in an airplane, accompanied by someone else flying in another airplane, you have subjected yourself to some of formation's demands. Did you prepare as though you were on a formation flight?
Whether the journey is a true formation flight, or a loosely structured "see you when we get there" kind of affair, it's still reflective of the fraternal nature of aviation.
What are the hazards of this fraternal flying? Bumping into someone in your flight is the most obvious. But it's not the only peril. When aircraft of different types form up for a flight, it may be difficult for one type aircraft to successfully emulate the maneuvers or airspeeds of another. Or a pilot fixed on following the leader could become distracted and lose control of his own craft.
I've only sat in an aircraft being flown in formation twice. Once I was essentially a right-seat passenger on a photo shoot conducted by AOPA's capable and experienced staff. Watching the well-practiced routine was impressive but still presented me with some anxious moments of not knowing what to expect. Fortunately this didn't show on my face in the photograph that appeared on the cover of the June 1996 AOPA Pilot. My second formation flight was of the inadvertent variety. I didn't know that I was in a formation--was the flight leader, actually--until an air traffic controller I had contacted for flight following into Class C airspace asked me to "confirm that you are a flight of two." I wasn't. Shortly after, a Cessna 180 on floats passed overhead with impressively little vertical separation. I doubt he ever knew I was there.
What reminded me about all this, and got me wondering how many general-aviation pilots take formation flying for granted as an easy thing to do, was a discovery in the AOPA Air Safety Foundation accident database. The report of the fatal mishap on December 2, 2006, described what happened to a Noble Vans RV-7A flying in a formation of three aircraft that was slowing to land at an airport in Norman, Oklahoma.
This seemed like a good time to stop and do a little research on formation flying. Searching for the word formation in the AOPA Online archives, I quickly found several excellent articles that any pilot could use as the foundation of an education on formation. The first was Alton K. Marsh's November 1996 "A Continuous Near-Miss," a title which sort of says it all. Next I absorbed Barry Schiff's January 2001 "Proficient Pilot" column on formation flight. Also don't miss Julie K. Boatman's January 2002 "Going F.A.S.T."
Just think about the details of formation flying, and the idea starts to branch off into multiple threads. Your first visual image about formation flight may be a flight of old warbirds rumbling overhead, or a military airshow team doing its routine. But there are other kinds of formations, raising other questions. A handful of Cessna 150s takes off from a grass strip on a Saturday morning and heads for breakfast. They make no effort to form up; they just take off when ready, fly as a flock (and chatter like one on the air-to-air frequency) to the destination, keeping each other in sight to the extent possible, and land. Are they a formation?
Suppose a Cessna 172 joins the group. Now it's a different kind of formation--one that includes aircraft of different types. Believe me, if you ever want to feel like you're flying something really hot, fly the only 172 in a flight of Cessna 150s. Even if you you're last to take off, a flight of any length guarantees you those exhilarating few minutes when you overtake and pass all the "little guys." Tight formations, loose formations, formations with different aircraft types, how to form up after departure--clearly it is a complicated subject.
Another critical bit of know-how that must be addressed is that when aircraft in formation get ready to land, they have to find a way to keep things orderly while slowing down, descending, and entering the traffic pattern. It was at this stage of a brief formation flight of three somewhat dissimilar aircraft that things went wrong on approach to the University of Oklahoma Westheimer Airport (OUN), in the case mentioned above. A pilot and passenger lost their lives at the end of the 11-nm flight from Twin Lakes Airport (2OK2).
"After the flight of three airplanes departed 2OK2, they lined up abreast with the accident airplane on the left, a Cessna 172 in the middle, and an RV-9A on the right side. The pilot of the RV-9A reported that as they approached OUN, the other two airplanes slowed to 65 mph, in order for him to land first, followed by the 172, and then finally the RV-7A (N216RV). The pilot of the 172 reported that as they approached the airport they slowed to 70 mph, and then to 65 mph for spacing, and the last time he observed the RV-7A, it was at the 7 o'clock position 'about quarter to half mile' behind," said the National Transportation Safety Board online accident summary.
"The air traffic control tower operator at OUN cleared the flight of three airplanes to land on Runway 3. The tower operator reported that as he watched the first airplane land, he noticed 'the sun reflect off the third airplane and observed it go below a tree line.' Shortly thereafter, the airplane was reported as having crashed in an open field between an automobile dealership and a Chinese restaurant, in a nose-low attitude."
The probable cause of the accident was determined to be the 325-hour, instrument-rated private pilot's "failure to maintain airspeed which resulted in an inadvertent stall. A contributing factor was the pilot's attempt at formation flying."
The eyewitness accounts painted pictures of an aircraft struggling to remain under control at low speeds and while maneuvering. One account stated the incident in the context of formation flying: "A fourth witness commented to his wife that 'it was strange that two airplanes were so close together, when the second plane fell from the sky and crashed.'"
The manufacturer's online specifications for the Vans RV-7A list the stall speed as 58 mph at gross weight (1,800 pounds).
By the way, if you don't recall the regulations concerning formation flight, a quick refresher. You'll find what you need to know in FAR 91.111, Operating Near Other Aircraft. It contains three terse provisions:
(a) No person may operate an aircraft so close to another aircraft as to create a collision hazard.
(b) No person may operate an aircraft in formation flight except by arrangement with the pilot in command of each aircraft in the formation.
(c) No person may operate an aircraft, carrying passengers for hire, in formation flight.
There are also some regulatory requirements for what information a formation flight should provide if filing a VFR flight plan. Other than that, you're essentially on your own.
If there might be formation flying in your future, work with a formation-qualified instructor to replicate the training described by the writers whose works are referred above, then take a few minutes out to study the plentiful accident reports that come up if you use formation as a search term. Then give the specific circumstances of any proposed formation flight a dose of skeptical scrutiny on the big questions before participating in what remains very well described as a continuous--not to mention intentional--near miss.
Dan Namowitz is an aviation writer and flight instructor. A pilot since 1985 and an instructor since 1990, he resides in Maine.
