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.
Class D tower, Cessna No. 1 turns crosswind further out than Cessna No. 2. Both airplanes and tower realize close proximity later than what felt safe.
Two Cessna 172s (of different performance specs) departing. I am No. 2 to depart.
I do my run-up while No. 1 departs. After the run-up, tower instructs me to line up and wait, then clears me for takeoff behind Cessna No. 1.
There is a thin cloud layer about one mile upwind of the runway at about 1,500 feet.
I takeoff and turn crosswind at 1,100 feet (field elevation 427 feet, pattern 1,427 feet).
I see Cessna No. 1 emerge overhead, 100 feet above and 300 feet upwind.
It was close and startling, but there was enough time to turn downwind in front.
Extending upwind not possible due to low cloud layer just ahead, extending crosswind not possible due to Class B military airspace adjacent to the field.
Tower angrily informs me that I have cut in front of the above Cessna, who is also on downwind departure. I apologize and said that I was unaware of their position and presumed that I was far behind them.
Essentially, No. 1 took a long upwind close to the clouds and I took a short upwind to avoid the clouds.
The tower told me to increase speed and the plane now behind to decrease speed and follow me.
Being somewhat new to this airport, I asked what the typical crosswind turning point is, but tower was busy and did not answer, and I was told to change frequency and continue.
My concern is that none of us were in gross violation of rules and norms, but somehow two planes were not far from collision.
I feel like Cessna No. 1 is totally exempt from fault, and while myself and tower could’ve conducted better procedures, there was a gap in protocol that led to this situation.
There was no actual incident or formal complaint (to my knowledge). I just want to examine this potential gap in controlled protocols.
What bothers me is that there is very little in the form of standards for traffic patterns. There are published recommendations, like turning crosswind at 300 feet below pattern, but as we can see two airplanes with different climb profiles (even one practicing Vy and the other practicing Vx climbs) that start far apart can easily find themselves on overlapping paths.
Altitude is not an appropriate measure for crosswind turns. There is a “half-mile” general recommendation for traffic pattern distance, but Cessna No. 1 was just over a half mile out, and I was just under a half mile out.
My suggestion would be to have the airport declare common turning points to ensure everyone maintains separation close to what they start with.
What I can do better:
- Request longer wait before takeoff following traffic.
- Immediately note to tower that any ahead traffic is no longer in sight.
- Ask tower to call my crosswind if there are any airplanes in the vicinity.
- Delay run-up to listen to ahead traffic’s departure clearance first.
What ATC can do better:
- Always call crosswinds when planes are close in pattern.
- Provide more spacing (although it felt adequate here).
What protocols could prevent this from ever being an issue: Per airport visual waypoint suggestions of where VFR light aircraft in busy pattern make their turns.
Primary Problem: Human Factors
ACN: 1907319
Once again why I align for base or final when inbound to minimize the who’s where and who’s going around and around in the pattern guessing game.
Sounds like aircraft #1 might not have complied with basic VFR cloud clearance requirements in Class Delta airspace. And if clouds were infringing on the traffic pattern, then either or both pilots should have informed tower of such. And as I think someone else mentioned, losing site of traffic, d/t clouds or otherwise, is also something to inform ATC about without delay.
Might not have been a good day to operate VFR. Lessons learned hopefully.
I fly at a busy Class D airport with a flight school. On TO we’re instructed to fly runway heading until tower calls your crosswind.They will ask when you the other aircraft is abeam your wing tip then call your crosswind.
I think the tower was angry because they felt responsible for the near miss and that’s why it went unreported. They make mistakes too.
Once you acknowledge instructions to follow an aircraft, an immediate report to the tower is needed if visual contact with the other aircraft is lost. I think he realized that later in his second bullet of ‘what I can do better’. And from the numbers he gave, it appears he could have extended the upwind by leveling off.