This is an excerpt from a report made to the Aviation Safety Reporting System. The narrative is written by the pilot, rather than FAA or NTSB officials. To maintain anonymity, many details, such as aircraft model or airport, are often scrubbed from the reports.
My student and I were in the traffic pattern, taking off and landing Runway XX, which the winds were favoring at the time. No other traffic was in the area at the time of traffic pattern entry.
We did our first lap in the pattern and made all position reports on the CTAF.
On the second lap, we heard a hang glider, who acknowledged us in the pattern, and waited for our arrival on Runway XX. Initial contact with this individual was made during the final leg. I made a final leg call for touch and goes, for Runway XX.
No other traffic (other than the hang glider) had made any calls at this point.
After landing, a Cessna 208B calls in the CTAF and states that they are taking off Runway XY. As we accelerated for takeoff, we see the Caravan coming straight towards us from the departure end of the runway.
The hang glider warns us that there is another aircraft taking off.
Right as we lift off, I make a left turn, to side step the runway and we see the Caravan pass by right underneath us.
On the upwind, I ask if the Cessna heard us on frequency, and they stated that they did not, as they were not listening.
I made calls during each leg of the pattern, and the hang glider confirmed this during this conversation. We departed to the east to exit the airfield.
Primary Problem: Human Factors
ACN: 1837514
There is a reason that the plane in the air has the right of way, he is the busy, his Rick is the highest. He guy on the ground has the time to wait. A radio might not be required but if you have one it is your full responsibility to listen.
Now on to another rant. AWOS, winds calm, you chose the runway even if some other plane has been using he opposite runway. If the plane is coming from the west, he wants to land to the east, if at the same time another plane is coming from the east, he wants to land to the west. The runway is long enough and both can be successful in the landing. Wind is less than ten. AWOS, you choose be damned about the guy that has been in the pattern for 30 minutes or more.
Who decides the the “active”?
Throw in a higher powered engine that can over take the tail wind and don’t want to taxi to the west end, take off to the east when he wants to go west anyway. After all, gas is expensive.
The plane on the ground was probably listening to AWOS instead of CTAF.
Ideally a departing aircraft during taxi to the runway will monitor CTAF for situational awareness of activity in the pattern. But in some cases, the crew is running checklists and getting a clearance. They are proceeding safely as far as any risk on the ground, but not fully tuning in yet to activity in the air because of the workload between the ramp and the holding point. The pilot reporting I think made a questionable assumption that his reports in the pattern would have fully alerted this departing aircraft to his presence. Did the reporting pilot think that making the recommended calls in the pattern magically eliminates all risks and no other precautions are required on his part? Was he monitoring airplane movement activity on the ground while he had a bird’s eye view of the airport? Didn’t he see an airplane taxiing to and holding short of the opposing runway? That should have rung all sorts of alarm bells. Bottom line, it looks like both pilots could have monitored and communicated better.
two wrongs make a right as usual
I believe the protocol for a head on situation is for both aircraft to alter course to the right. Had the other aircraft followed protocol the results could have been disastrous.
My thought exactly….along with the thought that the Caravan driver is an egghead, as he admitted he wasn’t listening.
Indeed, RC!