Wake-up call

In the month since we’ve started, three papers have come across my desk, all reporting the same thing: “near midair,” “close call in the pattern,” and “airplane cut us off on final.” Our flight school operates at a busy Class Delta airport, underlying the Memphis Class Bravo airspace. There are four flight schools on the field, not to mention a fair amount of corporate traffic. These busy, flight-school-dominated airports face a challenge. One of those schools, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, is called the beehive because when you view it on ADS-B, there’s so much traffic, it looks like a swarm of bees. I’ve had several nerve-racking encounters there personally, despite making multiple position reports on the radio.

As we discuss this alarming safety trend, the conversation feels eerily similar to the post-crash discussion surrounding the January 2025 Washington, D.C., midair collision between an Army helicopter and a passenger jet that killed 67 people. As reported by the Associated Press in a March article about the FAA’s response to the D.C. crash, “Investigators have highlighted 85 close calls around Reagan Airport in the three years before the crash that should have signaled a growing safety problem.” But, like so many adjustments in aviation and in life, we rarely make sweeping changes until the painful wakeup call. If only we could do something in our general aviation community to prevent a similar tragedy.

If I were a lawmaker, I’d consider incentives to encourage pilots to equip with ADS-B In. If I were in ATC, I’d look at ways to limit how much authority we give student pilots in the pattern. If I were the chief instructor of a flight school and an aviation writer (oh, wait, I am), then I’d focus on educating pilots about the potential traffic pattern pitfalls that could lead to a midair collision.

The first school safety report was written by a pilot who had been flying the downwind leg of the pattern when an aircraft on short final executed a go-around and made an early crosswind turn at midfield, putting the two aircraft perilously close. The aircraft on downwind saw what was happening and was able to turn left to widen out the downwind. Remember, just because you are executing a go-around does not mean you should change the way you fly the pattern. The Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge says, “After takeoff or go-around, continue straight ahead until beyond departure end of runway.” Also, once you are safely climbing away from the ground and have configured your aircraft for climbout, make a radio call as soon as possible so ATC and other traffic are aware of the change.

The second report was written by the pilot of a downwind aircraft that narrowly avoided a departing aircraft that made a crosswind turn despite being assigned “runway heading” by tower.

Here’s what happens: Nine times out of 10, you are given the same departure clearance. “Cleared for takeoff from Runway One-Eight. On departure, turn left to heading zero-niner-zero.” However, the tenth time, tower says, “Cleared for takeoff from Runway One-Eight. Fly runway heading.” If you don’t have good task management procedures in place, chances are when you get to 500 feet agl on departure, you go ahead and make that eastbound turn, the same way you have the past nine times. To avoid this force of habit, I’d suggest doing two things. First, set the heading bug or the OBS needle to the assigned heading. Don’t simply trust yourself to remember. Second, give a takeoff briefing of the heading and altitude out loud, even if no one is sitting in the passenger seat.

The third safety report was from a CFI who was the second aircraft on long final for Runway 36 when another aircraft turned base between the two. The now third aircraft on final (the CFI who had written the safety report) had to execute a climbing right turn to avoid a collision. The offending aircraft had been told by the tower to follow the second aircraft on final. He simply found an aircraft on final and started the turn onto base, not realizing his error. Make sure you understand all traffic instructions from the tower. If you feel unable to manage at any time, simply ask them to call your base instead of accepting the responsibility to see and maintain traffic avoidance.

I suspect that our new safety reporting system is highlighting a problem that has actually been rampant for years. Instead of asking, “What could we have done to prevent that tragedy?” I’d much rather have conversations like these. Hopefully, together, we can avoid the systemic complacency that leads to midair collisions.

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