Investigation reveals shock details of pilot’s scary mid-air drama flying into path of F-35 fighter jets over NT base
Australia’s transport safety watchdog has determined that a pilot who trespassed into controlled airspace came within meters of two F-35 fighter jets about to land at a Northern Territory RAAF base.
An investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) found that the pilot of the Piper PA-28 lost power and was unable to communicate with air traffic control while participating in an outback air race.
The pilot entered controlled airspace near RAAF Base Tindal, about 332 kilometers south-east of Darwin, and came within 7.6 meters of two fighter jets attempting to land in August last year.
After the pilot noticed a circuit breaker had tripped earlier in the day, a licensed aircraft maintenance engineer checked the aircraft and advised him to fly to Tindal to have it repaired.
ATSB Commissioner Angus Mitchell said the engineer then charged the plane’s battery and encouraged the pilot to take the flight without considering the time the battery could provide electrical power to the plane.
“Despite the high potential for loss of electrical power, the pilot did not undertake contingency planning before departing for Tindal,” Mr Mitchell said.
The aircraft lost electrical power en route to Tindal, leaving the pilot without radio communications and unable to be detected by air traffic control when the transponder stopped transmitting.
The pilot told investigators that they were unable to call air traffic control on a cell phone because of noise in the cockpit, but they did communicate with members of the air race group chat using a cell phone.
Members of the group chat contacted Tindal air traffic control and were told that it was not safe for PA-28 to land at Tindal due to the large number of aircraft and PA-28 was instructed to remain outside controlled airspace or land at Homebush Park.
The PA-28 pilot informed the group chat that they were tracking Tindal directly, and a member of the chat asked if they would like a PAN distress signal to be declared on their behalf, but none of the air traffic controllers remembered the PAN being declared.
Mr Mitchell said the pilot did not head for the nearest airport or follow advice to stay outside controlled airspace, but instead climbed into controlled airspace without the necessary clearance.
He said that while the aircraft continued to land at Tindal, two RAAF F-35 jets returned to Tindal, unaware of PA-28.
“As the second F-35 entered final approach, PA-28 also joined final approach; the distance between the 2 aircraft decreased laterally to 72 meters and vertically to 25 ft (approximately 7.6 meters),” Mr. Mitchell said.
The PA-28 pilot then maneuvered his aircraft to the right, increasing the distance as he continued towards the runway. Both aircraft landed without further incident.
“This incident serves to highlight the importance of pilots conducting emergency planning prior to flight in the event of an increased risk of an abnormal event and, in the event of such an event, following published emergency procedures to ensure their actions are consistent with air traffic control expectations,” Mitchell said.
