I propose to launch a thread of flight tracks which look weird
Is it truly 600kts at 700ft in class G ? How do they avoid midair collisions ?
At these speeds, even TCAS are useless, aren’t they ?
Its military. The military do what they like. VFR see and avoid rules.
I don’t think they flew 600kts at very low level. It’s an adbs approximation as the transponder signal is often weak and lost at those altitudes.
The speed (kts) & altitude (ft) settings are:
300/300
400/400
500/500
skydriller wrote:
VFR see and avoid rules.
Officially/legally. I expect they have rather advanced onboard radar that they do use to avoid traffic?
I expect they have rather advanced onboard radar that they do use to avoid traffic?
The radar in military aircraft is not designed or used for traffic avoidance, its either for targeting or interception.
Away from aerodromes at 500ft agl, the probability of hitting traffic is 0.0000000001%, the probability of hitting terrain is 99.9999999%, I think one should get the priorities right in aerodrome visual circuit, things are different, 400kts & 400ft agl is a bit tight ?
Some military airprox or mid-air happened in valleys and ridges versus gliders & pistons due to 1D geometry and relaxed low flying rules
One could argue it’s the same thing between hitting traffic and hitting terrain when operating in cruise between obstacle altitudes and radar altitudes in clouds, there are far more important things to worry about than “lack of see & avoid”
I had a close encounter with KC135 in TMG (SF25) right at FL100, they overtake us passing really nearby, it was intentntional as they told Brize “they have us in sight and they will stay clear”, I am not sure about their tolerances as they were passing from behind at few wing spans, I think they were making sure no one ever fly in that corner again
Some years ago a Cessna was hit by an RAF (I think) Tornado at a very few hundred feet AGL and speed of several hundred knots. The Tornado took out the Cessna by colliding from the Cessna 7 o’clock position. The official RAF Board of Enquiry declared the accident was a “result of the two pilots to see each other”
Whitewash or not?
The Cessna pilot was reportedly orbiting, taking photos of his girlfriend’s house, so for sure he wasn’t seeing the RAF jet
Yes I think those in the OP are low flying military jets, flying standard practice routes which they must know backwards, and they have procedures to avoid each other.
Carno – a one man photography business Cessna vs a Jaguar. The second pilot in the Jag had returned to fly after a heart and lung transplant.
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/542300e1ed915d1371000ae7/2-1992_XX843_and_G-BMHI_.pdf
We now use a online system called CADS which runs everything together and highlights conflicts and makes crews acknowledge or reroute, civil low level stuff needs to be raised through CANP though.