C152 HAS AN NMAC WITH ANOTHER CESSNA IN THE ATL AREA.
Synopsis
C152 HAS AN NMAC WITH ANOTHER CESSNA IN THE ATL AREA.
Narrative
I PASSED OVER ANOTHER CESSNA ABOUT 20-60 SECONDS AFTER TURNING FROM E TO N. THE OTHER CESSNA PASSED BELOW AND FROM R TO L. TFC IS DIFFICULT TO SPOT WHEN BELOW. ALTERNATING LNDG LIGHTS FLASHING WOULD HAVE BEEN HELPFUL. THE CITYSCAPE OBSCURED. MY SCAN MAY HAVE BEEN AFFECTED BY PHOTOGRAPHING; BUT I DID LOOK BEFORE TURNING. WHILE CARRYING A CAMERA WHILE ALONE WAS NOT WISE; SPOTTING THE OTHER AIRPLANE WOULD HAVE BEEN A COMBINATION OF FULL TIME SCANNING FOR TFC AND LUCK. SEEING OTHER ACFT BELOW YOU IS VERY DIFFICULT IN A CITYSCAPE BACKGND. STROBES OR OTHER LIGHTS WOULD HELP CONSIDERABLY. PLTS SIGHTSEEING CAN RELAX TFC SCANS. CONTRIBUTING TO THE RISK IS THE CREATION OF AIRSPACE ZONES RESTRICTING VFR SIGHTSEEING FLTS TO NARROW ALT BANDS. IMMEDIATELY S OF THE ATLANTA SKYSCRAPERS; AND OVER THE SKYSCRAPERS; THE ALT MUST BE 3100 FT TO 3500 FT MSL. THAT DOES NOT INCLUDE BEING 'AT AN ALT SHOULD A PWR UNIT FAIL; AN EMER LNDG WITHOUT UNDUE HAZARD TO PERSONS OR PROPERTY ON THE SURFACE' OR RELATED 'CARELESS AND RECKLESS' CONSIDERATIONS. YET SINGLE ENG SIGHTSEEING GROWS OVER ATLANTA AS TOURING AND BIPLANE OPERATORS GROW.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.