Feds: Formation flights risky

SPRUCE CREEK FLY-IN — A federal investigation into the cause of a tragic mid-air collision that killed two highly experienced local pilots appears to question pre-flight decisions made by the group the pilots were flying with, an informal formation flight group commonly referred to as The Spruce Creek Gaggle.

But a community spokesman thinks the investigation into the Edgewater plane crashes overstepped its bounds.

The clash of ideas between the Spruce Creek Fly-In's Gaggle Flight and the report's critique of the formation-flight group's practices pits the freedoms inherent in flight against oversight in an aviation-heavy region of Florida.

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At least one national air safety expert says the community should strongly consider the report's findings. While it remains unclear whether the community has, there are indications at least a few pilots are reconsidering taking part in formation flight.

The 'dissimilar aircraft' issue

On April 1, 2017, pilots Gary Somerton, Anne Edmonson and three other pilots in a Gaggle flight were five of roughly 40 pilots heading from Spruce Creek Airport to Titusville's Arthur Dunn Airport for breakfast — a traditional jaunt that group members have participated in for decades, mostly without incident.

The final National Transportation Safety Board report released Sept. 10 blames pilot error in the mid-air collision, but also blames poor visibility from two different planes flying in close proximity to one another — a tradition among pilots who take part in The Gaggle, an informal group of resident pilots who gather weekly to fly together and sometimes perform in regional events.

According to the investigation, the group of five were sliding from a V-shaped formation into what is called a left echelon — where each plane is stacked up behind each other in a staggered format — essentially forming one half of an upside-down V.

The maneuver, suggested by flight leader Jeff Edwards, was aimed to get the pilots out of the sun's glare. But Somerton’s high-winged Cessna 170B flew into Edmonson's low-winged Grumman American AA-5B as they tried to shift.

The remaining pilots took evasive maneuvers as the two planes began to tumble from the sky and horrified I-95 motorists watched as parts of aircraft landed on the interstate and in an Edgewater field.

Despite extensive experience between them — Somerton had more than 14,000 flight hours and Edmonson more than 11,000 hours of both commercial and general aviation experience — both pilots were killed.

After a two-year analysis of the wreckage and interviews with multiple witnesses, pilots and Fly-In residents, the investigation concluded that the combination of biplane, two high-wing aircraft and two low-wing aircraft — aircraft with "potentially significant blind spots" — may have led to an increased risk of collision.

Spruce Creek Property Owners Association President Paul Brevard said while he doesn't completely dismiss investigators' conclusions, he doesn't agree with several parts of the report.

"The reason why that is the probable cause, and the probable finding, is because they can't find anything else," said Brevard, a pilot, aircraft mechanic and former inspector, who has led several NTSB investigations and served as an expert witness. "It isn't to say that that is exactly what happened."

'We are a non-entity'

The group of roughly 100 pilots, according to documents, have gathered for practice weekly. The morning of the crash, documents state 40 pilots were briefed before the Titusville trip. 

Documents state longtime Gaggle pilots claim to be careful about choosing new recruits and several, but not all, have formal formation flight training. The Gaggle says it isn’t meant to be a formal entity, more of a loose assembly. Those same documents show no single person or entity takes responsibility for planning and safety.

But the lack of a structured program is stressed heavily in the report.

Although Keith Phillips is listed in the report as the "Head of Gaggle Flight/Flight Coordinator," when an NTSB investigator asked him who was in charge of organizing and overseeing "all these formation flights," he said the Gaggle is a non-entity.

"Mr. Phillips advised that no one was in charge, they were not an organization, no one paid any dues," the report states.

Specifically, the report:

• explains formation flight safety training and notes the group stepped away from it “because it got into a clique thing.”
• critiques the group’s “Gaggle Flight” Formation Manual, stating that it “did not reveal any evidence of a structured program that provided standards for formation training and flying, a system for proficiency evaluation, a method for monitoring (competence) or any formation standards evaluation guides or forms."
• Finally, the report goes on to cite a Federal Aviation Administration Advisory and cautions pilots to “recognize the high statistical probability of their involvement in midair collisions.”

But what is the precise statistical data that led the FAA to draw that conclusion? That remains unclear.

Asked about the report’s warning, FAA spokeswoman Arlene Salac released statement from the agency.

“A search of Federal Aviation Administration records regarding Advisory Circular 90-48 did not produce a specific report regarding the accident rate on formation flights by non-professional air show pilots,” the email stated. “You can search the NTSB Aviation Accident Database & Synopses for statistics under the formation flying category.”

Brevard hasn’t been able to find the statistical data either, which is why he disputes the warning.

"Are they correct about it being more risky than other types of flying? Sure," said Brevard, who said he has been flying since he was 16. "But is it probable that if you engage in formation flight that you will have a mid-air? … I don't think so."

The HOA president felt the report delved unnecessarily into the way the Gaggle conducted its flights.

"The NTSB, they don't like the fact that people are flying in formation without having the structure in place that says, 'all your airplanes will be the same. All your skill levels will be exactly the same," said Brevard. "They don't like the freedom."

Most mid-air crashes from behind

The Edgewater crash was one of 100 aviation incidents in Florida in 2017, 10 of which occurred in Volusia and Flagler counties. Between 2006 and 2018, 111 Volusia-Flagler incidents resulted in at least 33 fatalities, according to federal data. Of the local incidents in that 11-year period, at least 20 flights originated at Spruce Creek or were bound for the community.

Data also shows at least four formation flight pilots and passengers have died in incidents over the past 11 years. In addition to the Edgewater crash, in 2008, after a Gaggle formation landed at Titusville's Arthur Dunn Airport, another plane taxiing for takeoff ran into a formation plane as it was arriving, causing a fiery crash and killing at least three people.

Of the 76 aviation incidents reported this year so far, three occurred in Volusia-Flagler and recently, the number grew again. Three people were killed Sept. 29 when a Cessna 421 crashed in a wooded area south of State Road 44 near DeLand. The NTSB is investigating the crash.

The mid-air collision in Edgewater is unusual, in part, because Federal FAA statistics show most midair collisions — 82 percent — are from behind.

Like a rear-ender on a highway, crashes tend to be the result of faster aircraft overtaking slower aircraft, according to a 2011 MIT study of mid-air collisions from 2000 to 2010, which notes that out of 112 investigations, nine occurred during formation flights, and blind spots caused by wings, as well as sun glare, were recurring themes.

Popularity vs limitations

Over the last 10 to 15 years, Brevard said, there has been a surge in participation in formation flying. While formation flying is a “disciplined hobby,” said Brevard, there are no particular requirements about what type of aircraft will be used and few restrictions on where pilots elect to fly.

And according to Richard McSpadden, the national executive director of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association's Air Safety Institute, the flights can be very safe, as long as pilots prepare well.

McSpadden digs though NTSB crash reports all the time, and when the final Edgewater crash report came out, he read it. He also reviewed it from a unique perspective, as a former flight leader for the Air Force Thunderbirds.

"You have to have a good pre-flight briefing," said McSpadden. "From the NTSB report, it's not clear that that was conducted as thoroughly as it needed to be. I'm not saying that it wasn't. I'm just saying that it's not clear (from the report) that it was."

According to the report, Gaggle members hold a briefing every time they fly and the day of the crash was no exception. According to flight leader Edwards, he briefed “about 40 pilots” Saturday morning before takeoff to Titusville.

McSpadden said whatever the community takes away from the report, they should at least take a step back and review their planning process.

He said if he were a Gaggle member, the question he would be asking himself is whether complacency may have been a factor after years of safe formation flights.

"We know that 'Three' hit 'Two' and he shouldn't have done that. He had a clear obligation to clear his flight path," said McSpadden. "But why? What caused that? What were the dynamics that led to that action? I'm hoping that's what they're asking down there."

In speaking to Brevard, the community may be doing just that.

Brevard said while he has not participated in formation flights, others in the 1,500-home neighborhood have, and accepting a measure of risk in what you do is extremely rewarding.

But he also acknowledged the reality of the Edgewater crash, which he said has led some residents, including him, to rethink whether they're willing to take the additional risk that accompanies formation flight.

“I think a lot of folks kind of stepped back from it a bit,” said Brevard. “I think, as an honest answer, that's what has happened here.”