History of Flight
On November 2, 2013, about 1750 central daylight time, a Cessna 185F (N94059) and a Cessna 182L (N70520) collided during a formation skydiving flight near Superior, Wisconsin. Both aircraft were operated by Skydive Superior under 14 CFR Part 91 and Part 105. They had departed from Richard I. Bong Airport (SUW) about 1720. The Cessna 185F sustained substantial damage; the pilot landed at SUW. The five skydivers aboard jumped free during the collision and deployed their parachutes; they were not injured. The Cessna 182L experienced an in-flight breakup and was destroyed. The four skydivers and the pilot jumped free; the pilot received minor injuries, and the skydivers were not injured.
The pilots had flown about seven jump flights earlier that day. Before the formation flight, they briefed with the skydive operator's designated chief pilot. The Cessna 182 was the lead aircraft, and the Cessna 185 was the trail aircraft. The Cessna 185 had two radios; the pilot made radio calls to Duluth Approach Control. Inter-airplane communications were on Unicom frequency 122.7. The Cessna 182 pilot was to call out door open, jumpers climbing out, and jumpers away. The briefed separation called for the Cessna 185 to maintain position on the left side, 20 to 30 feet aft, at or below the Cessna 182's altitude until jump altitude and through the jump. After the jump, the Cessna 182 was to make a descending right turn to the northeast, and the Cessna 185 a descending left turn to the southwest. If the Cessna 185 pilot lost sight, he was to break off.
Both aircraft climbed to 12,700 feet mean sea level. The Cessna 182 established a heading of 330 degrees magnetic, with the Cessna 185 to the left and aft. The Cessna 182 pilot called door open and jumpers climbing out. Four skydivers on the Cessna 182 climbed onto the right wing strut and wheel step. Almost immediately, the Cessna 185 struck the Cessna 182. The Cessna 182's windshield shattered; the aircraft entered an uncontrollable descent. The right wing separated, and the fuel tank exploded. The Cessna 182 pilot exited and parachuted safely. All nine skydivers safely parachuted to the ground.
The Cessna 185 pilot reported that the two planes drifted together and collided, with the bottom of the Cessna 185 and the top of the Cessna 182 meeting. After the collision, the skydivers jumped free as the Cessna 185 went inverted. The pilot recovered and landed at SUW. He reported forgetting to wear a parachute during the formation flight.
Video from helmet-mounted cameras on five skydivers recorded the collision. The footage showed the Cessna 182 to the right of the Cessna 185, lower, at about a 45-degree bearing. The chief pilot climbed onto the strut and then moved in front; a second jumper climbed onto the step. Lateral separation decreased, and the Cessna 185 became higher. The aircraft collided; two skydivers were wedged between the Cessna 185's strut and wing and the top of the Cessna 182's wing and cabin. As the aircraft separated, the Cessna 182's right wing fuel tank exploded. All skydivers jumped free; the Cessna 182 descended out of control with its separated right wing on fire, and the Cessna 185 was inverted. The skydivers and the Cessna 185 landed safely.
Personnel Information
The Cessna 182 pilot held a commercial certificate with single-engine land and instrument ratings and a first-class medical certificate. He had 428 total flight hours, with 65 in make and model. He learned to fly skydivers at another operation and received 5 to 6 training flights there. He started at Superior Skydiving in July 2013 and received no training there. His first formation flight at Superior Skydiving was on the day of the accident.
The Cessna 185 pilot held a commercial certificate with single-engine land and instrument ratings and a second-class medical certificate. He had 535 total flight hours, with 72 in make and model. He started at Superior Skydiving in March 2012 but did not fly much that season due to military commitments. He returned to regular flying in spring 2013. He had flown several formation flights, usually as lead. For the accident flight, he was trail and planned to maintain 1 to 2 airplane lengths behind at the same altitude. He initially thought they were in position but after the door opened, believed they were slightly higher than the lead.
The chief pilot held commercial certificates for single- and multi-engine land, instrument, and CFI ratings, with over 2,200 flight hours. He started at Superior Skydiving in January 2010. He considered the Cessna 185 pilot competent but did not train him for formation flight. The operator did not keep training records. According to the chief pilot, new pilots typically flew 10 hours of training before carrying skydivers unsupervised, including door operation, aircraft performance with jumpers on step, stable climb, and return with full load. Then a supervised jump flight followed by a flight where the chief pilot departed as a jumper. Formation flight training was not provided; pilots were expected to fly about 100 hours before flying formation. Consequently, pilots at Skydive Superior first operated in formation while carrying skydivers.
Aircraft Information
The Cessna 182L, serial 18259286, was manufactured in 1968. Its tachometer was not located after the accident. The last documented annual inspection was on February 8, 2013, with a tachometer time of 4,960.1. The aircraft flew about 339 hours since, for an estimated tachometer time of about 5,299.0 at the time of the accident.
The Cessna 185F (N94059) was listed in maintenance records as a Cessna 185R, serial 18503275, manufactured in 1977, with a total airframe time of 4,241 hours at the accident. The last 100-hour inspection was on September 25, 2013, at a tachometer time of 4,198.6. The last annual inspection was on September 23, 2012, at a tachometer time of 4,012.7, 14 months before the accident. On November 13, 1981, the door was modified for skydiving per Supplemental Type Certificate SA462WE, which included the provision: "Pilot shall wear a parachute."
The Cessna 182 pilot reported that he did not have access to the aircraft's logbooks and relied on the chief pilot's assurance that required maintenance was completed. He noted that there was no status sheet or board informing pilots of upcoming maintenance.
Meteorological Information
At 1755, the surface weather observation at SUW reported wind light and variable, visibility 10 miles, sky clear, temperature 4°C, dew point -3°C, and an altimeter setting of 30.06 inches of mercury.
Additional Information
Federal Aviation Administration regulations classify skydiving flights as commercial operations, requiring 100-hour and annual inspections, and pilots must hold at least a commercial certificate and second-class medical. 14 CFR Part 91.111 prohibits operating an aircraft so close as to create a collision hazard and prohibits formation flight carrying passengers for hire, but a 1992 FAA legal interpretation stated that this should not be viewed as prohibiting formation flight carrying parachutists.
The FAA Advisory Circular AC 105-2E provides recommendations for jump pilot training but does not address formation flights. The United States Parachute Association's Skydiver's Information Manual includes Part 105 and AC 105-2E but also lacks formation flight guidance. A USPA article, "Formation Flying 101," offered voluntary guidelines such as planning on the ground, altitude separation, smooth control for lead, and the trail pilot's sole responsibility to hold position and keep the lead in sight. According to the chief pilot, Superior Skydiving did not provide formation flight training, and no regulation required it.