Mid-Air Collision Between Two Cessna 172M Aircraft in Gauteng Province (ZS-PXI and ZS-OMN)

Accident Overview and Location On the evening of 26 April 2021, at 1711Z, a mid-air collision occurred between two Cessna 172M aircraft, registered as ZS-PXI and ZS-OMN. The accident took place near the Golf Alpha Victor (GAV) beacon in Gauteng Province, South Africa, at GPS coordinates 26°29’44.05” South, 027°43’00.30” East, and an elevation of 5,082 feet. The collision was recorded by Secondary Surveillance Radar (SSR) at approximately 17:11:29Z, about 1.4 nautical miles north-east of the GAV beacon at an altitude of 6,700 feet. ## Flight Operations and Personnel Both aircraft were engaged in training flights under Part 141 of the Civil Aviation Regulations (CAR) 2011. ZS-PXI departed from Lanseria International Aerodrome (FALA) and was conducting a night navigation exercise (Exercise 18A). ZS-OMN was operating a local training flight in the Johannesburg flying training area (FAD 182) and was conducting a night instrument rating exercise (Exercise 19). Each aircraft carried two occupants: a student pilot and an instructor. All four individuals on board were fatally injured. ## Meteorological and Communication Conditions Visual meteorological conditions (VMC) prevailed at the time of the accident. Surface wind was 270º at 03 knots, with a temperature of 19ºC, a dew point of 0ºC, and visibility reported as CAVOK. The QNH was 1021 hPa. ZS-PXI was broadcasting on VHF 125.80 MHz, while the designated frequency for FAD 182 was 122.35 MHz. A pilot from the same aviation training organization reminded the ZS-PXI pilot to change to the designated frequency, which was acknowledged. ## Probable Cause and Contributing Factors The probable cause of the accident was a mid-air collision between ZS-PXI and ZS-OMN while flying in FAD 182, resulting in both aircraft crashing to the ground. Contributing factors included ZS-PXI not being on the designated VHF frequency for the danger area, which prevented other traffic from being aware of its presence. Additionally, flight path data indicated that neither aircraft initiated an evasive maneuver, suggesting that the pilots did not have visual contact with each other and were unable to take action to avoid the collision.