woodstock said:
Has anyone here been involved in a NMAC? or God forbid an actual? I'm surprised the number is 60% - that could be an old stat, but still...
NMAC, yes... actual collision, thank God, no.
Situation: Angel Flight, passenger in the rear seat, my then-13-year-old-daughter in the right seat.
Mooney M20, IFR flight plan from the DFW area down to Galveston to return the patient to his home.
Houston Approach was the last approach facility to handle me.
Galveston is a non-towered airport. It was a VFR day, I was just on an IFR plan to help manage the transition through Houston's class B and because I always file IFR on Angel Flight missions.
Houston Approach hadn't yet released me to CTAF, but cleared me down to 2000 feet. I did not yet have KGLS in sight, but was monitoring CTAF on the #2 COM. I was now about 15 miles out.
This is when I experienced my first "loss of comm" situation with ATC. I didn't lose a radio... I could hear ATC, they just couldn't hear me. I heard the controller call, several times "N211SC, Houston Approach". I'd reply, "Houston Approach, N211SC, go ahead, I read you loud and clear." It was like he didn't hear me at all. Finally, after about the 3rd round of this, with the controller's voice getting increasingly anxious, and with me getting closer to KGLS (about to cross the bay, now) and starting to think I should just switch frequencies to report my position on KGLS CTAF, an aircraft at a higher altitude relayed to the controller "Approach, 211SC is calling you, you just can't hear him...".
Approach jumped back quickly "Tell him to squawk VFR, frequency change approved." I replied and the other aircraft relayed, and I quickly flip-flopped to CTAF to make my initial report. Just as I finished talking, and was making my traffic scan, my eye picked up movement off my left (the airport was at my 11:00 and I was entering from the NW on a 45 for downwind to Rwy 35). About 500 feet away, climbing RIGHT AT ME was a Bonanza that had just departed KGLS and was climbing out on a modified crosswind.
I had no "choice" here, nor any time for thought... the action was as instantaneous as it was instinctive. The throttle went to idle and I pushed sharply forward on the yoke as the Bonanza roared JUST overhead (within 20 feet). My passengers had not seen our impending situation, just asked, "what was that?!". I am still not sure if their question was directed at the sudden pitch change or the 300hp Continental swirling a 3-bladed prop that just pierced our conciousness with its split-second Doppler effect. I directed their attention out the right-hand windows, and we all got very quiet and reflective.
My heart pounding, I trained my mind on the task at hand, responding only once to the "WHO THE HELL WAS THAT!?! I WANT YOUR N-NUMBER!" screams in the radio from the Bo driver... I had a job to do, and that was to not let this event start a chain of events that would lead to a distraction-based accident. I don't think I've ever checked "GEAR DOWN" more times in my life!
We joined the pattern, made a smooth touch down, we had a brief discussion amongst ourselves about what had happened, and I seemed more shaken about it than either of my passengers... they were "well, close is close, but we're all still here, right?!"
An hour later, after my nerves had a chance to relax, my daughter and I climbed aboard to begin what would now be a night-flight back to DFW. Over the bay just north of KGLS, I wondered if I was having engine problems. We just weren't getting the speed we should.
Oh... "Gear Up"
There, that's better.