Pilots avoid head-on crash after 'late sighting'

Two light aircraft could have been involved in a head-on crash above Northamptonshire if not for a "late sighting", an investigation concluded.

The near-miss, which occurred near Sywell on 24 May, involved a white DA40 plane and a red, white and grey RV6 model.

After being made aware of a plane travelling at 12:00 BST and at the same altitude, the pilot of the DA40 initiated a climb before it flew just underneath them.

The UK Airprox Board considered pilot accounts, radar imagery and reports before assessing the collision risk as Category B, which is the second highest possible risk.

During the investigation the pilot of the DA40 said they believed it was likely a collision would have happened if they had not taken "immediate avoiding actions".

The pilot of the RV6 aircraft, however, said they did make visual contact with a few aircraft but did not deem any to be within “close proximity”.

Investigators concluded the situational awareness of the RV6 aircraft had been "ineffective" as they were unaware of the presence of the DA40.

As a result it was ruled the safety margins had been reduced and, although the DA40 pilot had executed a late avoidance manoeuvre, there had been a risk of collision.

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