Near Mid-Air Collision Between Commercial Jetstream and Military T-33

Casualties unknown • Department of National Defence, CA

A commercial flight and a military training jet narrowly avoided a collision over New Brunswick after passing within 100 feet of each other.

What happened

On a flight from Saint John to Fredericton, a Jetstream 41 carrying 16 passengers and a crew of three was operating under instrument flight rules. To avoid a restricted military area, the crew utilized an informal procedure to fly visually along the Saint John River. Simultaneously, a military T-3/3 was conducting a training mission near the same river, performing a holding pattern at a nearby waypoint.

As the two aircraft approached each other head-on, the Moncton Area Control Centre alerted the Jetstream crew to the presence of westbound traffic. While the Jetstream's collision avoidance system (TCAS) indicated the presence of the other aircraft, the crew could not visually locate it. The Jetstream crew eventually saw the military jet only seconds before the encounter, at which point the aircraft were estimated to be less than 100 feet apart. The pilot of the T-33 did not visually identify the Jetstream until after the near-collision had occurred.

The investigation

The investigation examined the effectiveness of the see-and-avoid principle during high-speed encounters. Investigators looked into the equipment capabilities of both aircraft, the flight paths used, and the environmental conditions. The study focused on why the crew of the Jetstream failed to visually acquire the target despite receiving multiple traffic advisories, and why the T-33 pilot was unaware of the approaching commercial flight.

Findings

  • The primary cause was that neither flight crew identified the other aircraft in time to take evasive action.
  • The encounter involved a high closure rate of approximately 400 knots, which significantly reduced the time available for visual detection.
  • The T-33 was equipped only with a UHF radio, preventing the pilot from receiving traffic information from civilian air traffic controllers, and lacked TCAS equipment.
  • The military aircraft's grey camouflage pattern made it difficult to distinguish from the terrain, while the Jetstream's blue and grey livery blended into the cloud cover.
  • The use of an informal "visual, around the camp" routing placed commercial traffic in close proximity to military holding points.
  • The small visual profiles of both aircraft when viewed head-on further hindered detection.

Probable cause

The failure of both crews to visually detect the approaching aircraft was driven by the high closing speed of 400 knots and the lack of visual contrast between the military aircraft's camouflage and the landscape.

Frequently asked questions

What happened in the 1997-04-17 Jetstream 41 C-FTVQ and accident near Department of National Defence, CA?

A commercial flight and a military training jet narrowly avoided a collision over New Brunswick after passing within 100 feet of each other.

What aircraft was involved and where did it happen?

The accident on 1997-04-17 involved a Jetstream 41 C-FTVQ and, operated by Air Atlantic British Aerospace, at Department of National Defence, CA.

What was the probable cause of the accident?

The failure of both crews to visually detect the approaching aircraft was driven by the high closing speed of 400 knots and the lack of visual contrast between the military aircraft's camouflage and the landscape.

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