Thu, Aug 02, 2007
Says Pilot Hadn't Received Adequate Training
A report released this week by the Canadian Air Force's
Directorate of Flight Safety says the December 2004 mid-air
collision of two members of the Snowbirds demonstration team was
caused not by defects with their aging Tutor jets, but by
inadequate training and experience.
The Canadian Press quotes the report as determining Captain
Miles Selby did not have either the "training or experience" to
conduct the co-loop maneuver, which led to the collision over
Saskatchewan.
News reports state Selby had flown the maneuver less than 14
times in training, and had never hit the mark precisely. The Surrey
Leader newspaper reports Selby missed the mark by about 200
feet.
Due to a personnel transfer during the spring and summer of '04,
Selby never actually performed the maneuver with a training officer
-- as the previous pilot wasn't available to ride along with him,
and provide feedback.
The accident report refers to Selby, in his third year
with the Snowbirds at the time of the accident, as a "gifted
natural" who took to the team quickly -- and was ahead of the
curve in flying the more challenging sequences of the team's
performance routine.
As ANN reported, Selby was
lost during a December 10, 2004 training exercise, in which his
aircraft collided with a CT-114 Tutor flown by Captain Chuck
Mallett at the top of the co-loop maneuver. Mallett was able to
eject safely, suffering only minor injuries... but Selby went down
with his plane.
The Flight Safety Investigation Report also recommends a number
of initiatives to improve training.
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