WACO CABIN BIPLANE PLT FLEW CLOSE TO A GREAT LAKES BIPLANE; A FLT OF 4 OTHER ACFT; AND A FLT OF 3 FORD TRI-MOTOR ACFT; WITHOUT A PRIOR AGREEMENT TO FLY FORMATION WITH THE OTHER PLTS.
Synopsis
WACO CABIN BIPLANE PLT FLEW CLOSE TO A GREAT LAKES BIPLANE; A FLT OF 4 OTHER ACFT; AND A FLT OF 3 FORD TRI-MOTOR ACFT; WITHOUT A PRIOR AGREEMENT TO FLY FORMATION WITH THE OTHER PLTS.
Narrative
I WAS FLYING MY 1939 CABIN WACO BI-PLANE OUT OF DENTON; TX; AND OBSERVED A BI-PLANE PASSING OVERHEAD. THINKING IT WAS A FRIEND OF MINE; I CAUGHT UP WITH HIM AND CLOSED WITHIN A DISTANCE OF APPROX 500 FT WHERE I SAW THAT IT WAS NOT HIM BUT ANOTHER ACFT (A GREAT LAKES). WE WAVED AND EXECUTED A 360 DEG TURN. THEN WE NOTICED A FLT OF 4 ACFT OFF OUR L WING AND DRIFTED OVER CLOSE ENOUGH TO SEE BUT NOT INTERFERE WITH THEIR FLT IN ANY WAY. ALL ACFT WERE HOLDING ABOUT 80 KTS. WHILE WE WERE ABEAM THE 4 SHIPS; A FLT OF 3 TRI-MOTOR ACFT TRAVELING FASTER CAUGHT UP ON OUR R WING. THEY DID NOT GET CLOSER TO US THAN 500 FT; BUT THE SIT WAS THAT THEY HAD US IN THE MIDDLE OF THEIR 2 FORMATIONS AS THEY WERE APCHING TO LAND AT MEACHAM FIELD IN FORT WORTH. NOT WANTING TO DISTURB THEIR ARR INTO MEACHAM; I PUSHED OVER; ACCELERATED TO 130 MPH AND WHEN CLR BELOW BY 500 FT I EXECUTED A L 360 DEG TURN AND SEPARATED FROM THEM AND MADE MY OWN ARR INTO MEACHAM ON THE TWR FREQ. I ELECTED TO LOITER TO THE E OF THE AIRFIELD; UNDER TWR COM; UNTIL ALL ACFT WERE ON THE GND.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.