Incident Overview
A midair collision occurred between a Cessna 305E (registration N305JH) and a Piper J3C-65 (registration N804DA) approximately 2 miles west of their departure airstrip. The Cessna had been airborne for about 11 minutes at the time of the collision, while the Piper had been airborne for about 2 minutes.
Witness Account
A witness reported hearing a loud sound before observing both airplanes flying northeast-bound. When first seen, the aircraft appeared side by side at the same altitude, with the left airplane in a slight bank and the right airplane in a right bank. Both airplanes subsequently entered uncontrolled descents and crashed.
Collision Dynamics and Damage
Evidence indicated that at the moment of impact, the Piper was below and to the left of the Cessna. The upper surface of the Piper's left wing collided with the left side of the Cessna's empennage, just forward of the left horizontal stabilizer. The collision damaged several longerons on the Cessna and the cambered surface of the Piper's left wing.
Aircraft Examination
Examinations of the airframes, engines, and flight controls of both airplanes revealed no evidence of preimpact failure or malfunction. No adverse weather conditions were reported at the time of the accident.
Pilot Background
The pilot of the Piper had logged 2.0 hours of formation flying time. The pilot of the Cessna, who was the son of the Piper pilot, was a military pilot and had received military flight training in formation flying.