Mid-air collision

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Mid-air collision

A mid-air collision is an aviation accident in which two or more aircraft come into unplanned contact during flight. Due to the relatively high velocities involved and any subsequent impact on the ground or sea, very severe damage or the total destruction of at least one of the aircraft involved usually results. The chance of surviving a major mid-air collision is virtually nil in the absence of ejector seat

Ejector seat

In aircraft, an ejection seat is a system designed to rescue the pilot or other crew of an aircraft in an emergency. In most designs, the seat is propelled out of the aircraft by an explosive charge or rocket motor, carrying the pilot with it....
s and parachutes, as indicated below

Mid-air collision

A mid-air collision is an aviation accident in which two or more aircraft come into unplanned contact during flight. Due to the relatively high velocities involved and any subsequent impact on the ground or sea, very severe damage or the total destruction of at least one of the aircraft involved usually results....
.

The potential for a mid-air collision is increased by miscommunication, error in navigation, and deviations from flight plan

Flight plan

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Ejector seat

Mid-air collision

A mid-air collision is an aviation accident in which two or more aircraft come into unplanned contact during flight. Due to the relatively high velocities involved and any subsequent impact on the ground or sea, very severe damage or the total destruction of at least one of the aircraft involved usually results....
.

The potential for a mid-air collision is increased by miscommunication, error in navigation, and deviations from flight plan

Flight plan

Flight plans are documents filed by aviator or a Flight Dispatcher with the local Civil Aviation Authority prior to departure. They generally include basic information such as departure and arrival points, estimated time en route, alternate airports in case of bad weather, type of flight , pilot's name and number of people on board....
s. However, the odds are fantastically slim that two aircraft could collide in a large and virtually empty three dimensional space, making mid-air collisions very rare events compared to other types of aviation incidents.

Recent efforts to prevent military collisions in the United States

There are many types and causes of mid-air collisions. On some occasions, military aircraft conducting training flights inadvertently collide with civilian aircraft. In 2005, as part of an effort to reduce such military/civilian mid-air collisions in U.S. airspace, the Air National Guard

Air National Guard

The Air National Guard , often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the fifty U.S. states, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories of Guam and the U.S....
Flight Safety Division, led by Lt Col Edward Vaughan, used the Disruptive Solutions Process

Disruptive Solutions Process

The Disruptive Solutions Process is a concept applied to the mishap prevention part of the combat operations process, often at tactical or operational level, primarily in Air National Guard applications....
to create the web portal. In late 2006, the U.S. Defense Safety Oversight Council (DSOC) recognized and funded the site as its official civil/military midair collision prevention website, with participation by all the services. In 2008, this site is expected to expand to include international airspace where U.S. military aircraft operate.

List of notable civilian mid-air collisions

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Date		F	S	Flights involved	Site
1938	Aug 24	45		Two Japanese aircraft	Omori, Tokyo Omori is a district located a few kilometres south of Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan accessed by rail via the Keihin-Tohoku Line, or by road via Dai Ichi Keihin.... , Japan
1945	Jul 12	3		Eastern Air Lines flight US Army B-25 flight	?Syracuse
1949	Nov 1	55	1	Eastern Air Lines 537 Lockheed P-38 test flight	Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the Capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790....
1951	Apr 25	43	0	Cubana de Aviación 493 US Navy flight Cubana de Aviacion Flight 493 Cubana de Aviaci?n Flight 493, registration CU-T188, was a Douglas DC-4 en route from Miami, Florida, United States, to Havana, Cuba, on April 25, 1951....	Key West, Florida Key West, Florida Key West is a city in Monroe County, Florida, United States.The city encompasses Key West, the namesake island, the part of Stock Island, Florida north of U.S....
1955	Jan 12	15	0	TWA flight Private flight 1955 Cincinnati mid-air collision The 1955 Cincinnati mid-air collision occurred on January 12, 1955 when a Trans World Airlines Martin 2-0-2 on takeoff from Boone County Airport Mid-air collision with a privately-owned Douglas DC-3 that had entered the airport's control space without proper clearance....	Boone County, Kentucky Boone County, Kentucky Boone County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1798. The population estimate as of 2007 was 112,459. Its county seat is Burlington, Kentucky....
1956	Jun 30	128	0	UA Flight 718 TWA Flight 2 1956 Grand Canyon mid-air collision The 1956 Grand Canyon mid-air collision occurred on Saturday June 30, 1956 at 10:30 AM local time when a United Airlines passenger airliner Mid-air collision a Trans World Airlines airliner over the Grand Canyon in Arizona, resulting in the crash of both planes and 128 fatalities....	Grand Canyon Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided gorge carved by the Colorado River in the United States in the state of Arizona.... , Arizona, U.S.
1960	Dec 16	134	0	UA Flight 826 TWA Flight 266 1960 New York air disaster The 1960 New York air disaster was a collision on December 16, 1960, between two airliners over Staten Island, New York City, New York, United States, in which one plane crashed into Staten Island and the other airliner crashed into Park Slope, a Brooklyn neighborhood....	New York City New York City The City of New York is the List of United States cities by population in the United States, while the New York metropolitan area ranks among the List of urban areas by population.... , New York, U.S.
1963	Feb 1	87		Middle East Airlines Flight 265 Turkish Air Force flight	Ankara Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and the country's List of largest cities and second largest cities by country List of cities in Turkey after Istanbul.... , Turkey
1965	Dec 4	4	50+	TWA Flight 42 Eastern Airlines Flight 853 1965 Carmel mid-air collision The 1965 Carmel mid-air collision occurred on 4 December 1965 when Eastern Air Lines Flight 853 , a Lockheed Super Constellation en route from Boston Logan International Airport to Newark International Airport, Mid-air collision with Trans World Airlines Flight 42 , a Boeing 707 en route from San Francisco International Airport to...	Carmel, New York Carmel, New York Carmel is a town located in Putnam County, New York, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 33,006. It is the county seat of Putnam County, New York.... , U.S.
1967	Mar 9	26	0	TWA Flight 553 Private flight TWA Flight 553 TWA Flight 553, registration N1063T, was a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-15 en route from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Dayton, Ohio that Mid-air collision with a Beechcraft Baron over Urbana, Ohio on March 9, 1967....	Urbana, Ohio Urbana, Ohio Urbana is a city in and the county seat of Champaign County, Ohio, Ohio, United States, 47 miles west of Columbus, Ohio. Urbana was laid out in 1805, and for a time in 1812 was the headquarters of the Northwestern army.... , U.S.
1967	Jul 19	82	0	Piedmont Airlines Flight 22 Lanseair Inc. flight Piedmont Airlines Flight 22 Piedmont Airlines Flight 22 was a Piedmont Airlines Boeing 727 on a Scheduled air transport in the United States from Asheville Regional Airport in Asheville, North Carolina, North Carolina to Roanoke Regional Airport in Roanoke, Virginia, Virginia....	Hendersonville, North Carolina Hendersonville, North Carolina Hendersonville is a city in Henderson County, North Carolina, North Carolina, United States, 22 miles southeast of Asheville, North Carolina. In 1900, 1,917 persons lived in Hendersonville; in 1910, 2,818; and in 1940, 5,381 people lived here.... , U.S.
1969	Sep 9	82	0	Allegheny Airlines Flight 853 Private flight Allegheny Airlines Flight 853 Allegheny Airlines Flight 853, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9, Mid-air collision with a Piper Cherokee at approximately 3,550 feet on September 9, 1969, near Fairland, Indiana....	Fairland, Indiana Fairland, Indiana Fairland is a town in Shelby County, Indiana, Indiana, United States. The population was 1,276 at the 2000 United States Census, at which time it was a census-designated place .... , U.S.
1971	Jul 30	162	1	ANA Flight 58 JASDF flight All Nippon Airways Flight 58 All Nippon Airways Flight 58 was a Boeing 727 aircraft that collided with a Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-86 Sabre while en route from Chitose Air Base in to Tokyo International Airport in Tokyo on 30 July 1971....	near Shizukuishi Shizukuishi, Iwate Shizukuishi is a towns of Japan located in Iwate District, Iwate, Iwate Prefecture, Japan.As of 2003, the town has an estimated population of 19,353 and a population density of 31.78 persons per km?.... , Japan
1976	Jun 6	50	1	Hughes Airwest Flight 706 US Marines flight Hughes Airwest Flight 706 Hughes Airwest Flight 706 was a Hughes Airwest commercial flight that flew from Los Angeles, California, to Salt Lake City, Utah. Following a mid-air collision with a fighter jet, the flight crashed into the San Gabriel Mountains near Duarte, California, killing all 49 people aboard....	San Gabriel Mountains San Gabriel Mountains The San Gabriel Mountains are located in northern Los Angeles County, California and western San Bernardino County, California, United States. The mountain range forms a barrier between the Greater Los Angeles Area and the Mojave Desert.... , California
1976	Sep 10	176	0	BA Flight 476 Inex-Adria Flight 550 1976 Zagreb mid-air collision The 1976 Zagreb mid-air collision occurred on 10 September 1976 when British Airways Flight 476, a Hawker Siddeley Trident en route from London London Heathrow Airport to Atat?rk International Airport, Istanbul, Mid-air collision with Inex-Adria Aviopromet Flight 550, a Douglas DC-9 en route from Split Split Airport, Croatia, to...	near Zagreb Zagreb Zagreb is the Capital and the largest city of Croatia. Zagreb is the Culture of Croatia, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Cinema of Croatia, Economy of Croatia and Government of Croatia center of the Croatia.... , Croatia
1978	Sep 25	144	0	PSA Flight 182 Private flight PSA Flight 182 Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 182, registration N533PS, was a Boeing 727 commercial airliner that collided over San Diego, California with a private Cessna 172 on September 25, 1978....	San Diego, California San Diego, California San Diego is the second largest city in California and the List of United States cities by population, located along the Pacific Ocean on the West Coast of the United States of the Western United States.... , U.S.
1979	Aug 11	178	0	Aeroflot 65816 Aeroflot 65735	Dniprodzerzhynsk Dniprodzerzhynsk official_name = Dniprodzerzhynsk\|native_name = ????????????????\|other name = Dneprodzerzhinsk\|image_skyline =\|imagesize =\|image_caption =\|image_flag =... , Ukraine
1986	Aug 31	82	0	Aeroméxico Flight 498 Private flight Aeroméxico Flight 498 Aerom?xico Flight 498, registration , was a Douglas DC-9 en route from Mexico City, Mexico to Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, California, United States on August 31, 1986....	Cerritos, California Cerritos, California Cerritos is a charter city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, and is one of several cities that constitute the Gateway Cities of southeast Los Angeles County.... , U.S.
1996	Nov 12	349	0	Saudi Airlines Flight 763 Kazakhstan Airlines Flight 1907	Charkhi Dadri Charkhi Dadri Charkhi Dadri is a town and a municipal committee in Bhiwani district in the state of Haryana, India. The town was made by joining the villages of Charkhi and Dadri after urban development.... , India
2002	Jul 1	71	0	Bashkirian Airlines Flight 2937 DHL Flight 611 Bashkirian Airlines Flight 2937 Bashkirian Airlines Flight 2937, registration RA-85816, was a Tupolev Tu-154 passenger jet en route from Moscow, Russia, to Barcelona, Spain. SNAS/DHL Flight 611, registration A9C-DHL, was a Boeing_757#757-200PF_and_757-200SF_freighters Cargo airline jet flying from Bergamo, Italy, to Brussels, Belgium....	Überlingen Überlingen ?berlingen is a city in the Bodensee district in Baden-W?rttemberg in southwestern Germany. It is located on the northwest shore of Lake Constance and has a population of just over 21,000.... , Germany
2006	Sep 29	154	7	Gol Transportes Aéreos Flight 1907 ExcelAire flight Gol Transportes Aéreos Flight 1907 Gol Transportes A?reos Flight 1907 was a Boeing 737-8EH SFP, Aircraft registration PR-GTD, on a scheduled passenger flight from Manaus, Brazil to Rio de Janeiro, which collided in mid-air with an Embraer Legacy business jet on September 29, 2006 over the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso....	Amazon Rainforest Amazon Rainforest The Amazon rainforest , also known as Amazonia, or the Amazon jungle, is a Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America.... , Brazil
2007	Jul 27	4	0	KNXV-TV news helicopter KTVK news helicopter 2007 Phoenix news helicopter collision The 2007 Phoenix news helicopter collision occurred on July 27, 2007 at around 12:45pm Mountain Standard Time when two Eurocopter AS350 helicopters from KNXV-TV and KTVK news stations Mid-air collision above Steele Indian School Park in Phoenix, Arizona, Arizona while covering a Car chase....	Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix is the capital and largest city in the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the fifth most populous city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,552,259 residents, and is the anchor of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area with 4,179,427 residents....

List of notable military mid-air collisions

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Date		F	S	Aircraft involved	Site
1966	Jun 8	2	1	XB-70 Valkyrie prototype F-104 Starfighter XB-70 Valkyrie The North American Aviation XB-70 Valkyrie was a prototype version of the proposed B-70 Nuclear bomb-armed deep penetration bomber for the United States Air Force's Strategic Air Command....	near Barstow, California Barstow, California Barstow is a city in San Bernardino County, California, California, United States. The population was 21,119 at the 2000 census.Barstow is a major regional transportation center....
1985	Jul 5	1		Two A-4F Skyhawk aircraft of the Blue Angels Blue Angels The United States Navy's Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, popularly known as the Blue Angels, first performed in 1946 and was the world's first officially sanctioned military aerial demonstration team....	Niagara Falls Niagara Falls The Niagara Falls are massive waterfalls on the Niagara River, straddling the Canada?United States border between the Provinces and territories of Canada of Ontario and the U.S....
1988	Aug 28	75		Three Aermacchi MB-339PAN aircraft Ramstein airshow disaster The Ramstein airshow disaster was one of the world's worst airshow disasters. It took place in front of an audience of about 300,000 people on 28 August 1988, in Ramstein-Miesenbach, state of Rheinland-Pfalz, West Germany, near the city of Kaiserslautern at the United States Ramstein Air Base airshow Flugtag '88.... of the Frecce Tricolori Frecce Tricolori The Frecce Tricolori , officially known as the 313? Gruppo Addestramento Acrobatico, is the aerobatic demonstration team of the Italian Air Force, based at Rivolto Air Force Base, in the north-eastern Italian region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, province of Udine....	Ramstein Air Base Ramstein Air Base Ramstein Air Base is a United States Air Force base in the Germany state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It serves as headquarters for the United States Air Forces in Europe and is also a North Atlantic Treaty Organization installation.... , Germany
1996	June 12	18	10	Two UH-60 Black Hawk Helicopters of the Australian SAS	Townsville, Australia Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
1997	Sep 13	33		Luftwaffe Tu-154 USAF C-141	Namibia, Africa
2009	Feb 11	4		Two Grob Tutors of the R.A.F.	Porthcawl Porthcawl Porthcawl is a town on the south coast of Wales in the Bridgend , 25 miles west of the capital city, Cardiff and 19 miles south-east of Swansea.... , Wales Wales native_name = Cymru\|conventional_long_name = Wales\|common_name = Wales\|image_flag = Flag of Wales 2.svg\|national_motto = ...

External links

, CBC
, DoD Civil-Military Midair Collision Prevention Portal
, DefenseLink Press Release

Mid-air collision

Recent efforts to prevent military collisions in the United States

List of notable civilian mid-air collisions

List of notable military mid-air collisions

See also

External links