Before we get into this month’s story I’d like to point out that this article (#48) marks four years of Close Calls! As we move into year five I’d like to thank our readers for their loyalty and encouraging words over the years. I’d especially like to thank the dozens of very generous pilots who have shared their stories with us. It’s an absolute certainty that their experience has taught many pilots a lesson or two and may have even resulted in our skies being just a little bit safer for us all.

As we begin production of season two of our popular TV show, The Aviators, we would like to invite readers to submit their in-flight video footage for broadcast consideration. Whether you’ve actually captured a close call on video or just have some beautiful and interesting in-flight shots, we’d love to take a look. For more information, please visit www.TheAviators.TV . Now onto our story…

It was back in 1968 and our pilot had been with his airline for about two years. He was serving as co-pilot (first officer) on a trip with a newly minted captain in their CV-580. Also aboard was a check pilot from the airline who was on the jump seat for their first leg from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia. The end of the leg concluded the observation flight for the new captain and the check pilot left our crew in Philly.

The next leg, our new captain’s first without a check pilot along, was from Philadelphia to Providence, RI. Weather at Providence was reported as 1,800 feet overcast with visibility at just 3 miles in haze. The initial approach altitude was 1,800 feet and our crew was inbound on the localizer at 1,800 when approach control came on the radio and reported traffic at 12 o'clock and 4 miles, opposite direction.

Four miles became three, then two, then one at which point our captain suggested "This guy might be scud running. I am going to pull up into the clouds.”

Our captain had just begun to apply backpressure on the yoke when our co-pilot “suddenly had a windshield full of round engine!” Our co-pilot instinctively grabbed the yoke and pulled back and right… hard… all the while waiting for the thump of a collision!

Our captain's head whipped to the left and then back towards our co-pilot. “His eyes were as big as dinner plates” recalls our co-pilot, “and he said, in a rather squeaky voice, the guy had a white helmet with a black lightning bolt and his name was Lt. JG something!”

“No question, had (our captain) not began to pull up before I took the yoke I guarantee we would have hit the guy” surmises our co-pilot.

Our crew contacted approach and they “professed to not know who the traffic was.” Apparently though it was determined that the conflict aircraft may have been a Navy T-28 from a nearby Naval Air Station. Our crew landed at Providence without further incident although a couple passengers did make comments about how close that other airplane was. Our crew went so far as to file near miss reports but never heard any more about it.

Our co-pilot concludes “In more than 47 years of professional flying I have never had anything nearly as close again, nor do I want to. Scud running is a killer!”