What happened
On August 6, 2024, a mid-air collision occurred at Grudzi andzią-Lisie Kąty airport (EPGI) involving two aircraft engaged in glider towing operations. The incident took place during a period of high traffic density due to ongoing glider competitions.
Two aircraft, a PZL-101A Gawron (registration SP-CEY) and a Skylane v.5 (registration OK-CUO), were performing simultaneous approaches to the right side of runway 13. During the approach, the Skylane flew over the Gawron. The towline trailing from the Skylane struck the right wing of the Gawron, causing structural damage and destroying the skin of the right flap.
Following the impact, the pilot of the PZL-101A Gawron elected to execute a second approach before landing safely at EPGI. The pilot of the Skylane landed immediately, still trailing the severed towline; the aircraft itself sustained no damage. There were no injuries to the pilots involved.
The investigation
The PKBWL examined the circumstances surrounding the simultaneous approaches, the radio communications during the event, and the management of airfield traffic. The investigation focused on the pilots' situational awareness, the effectiveness of air traffic monitoring, and the impact of increased operational volume on safety margins.
Findings
Several contributing factors led to the collision:
- Limited situational awareness of both towing pilots due to the high volume of aircraft in the airport circuit.
- Inadequate visual scanning of the airspace, which resulted in a failure to maintain visual contact or predict the relative positions of the two aircraft.
- A failure to maintain proper separation between multiple aircraft landing at the same time.
- The pilot of the Skylane was distracted by another aircraft approaching on a long straight.
- Communication chaos caused by an excessive volume of simultaneous radio transmissions, which prevented pilots from hearing all relevant instructions.
- An insufficient assessment of the traffic situation by the flight controller.