NTSB Accident Report "Bump in the Night"

[jigsaw]

Originally posted by Fishu
Well I've figured you need also in US an additional license to fly (S)VFR at night, since it's alot different than flying at day.

Sort of...

To take off or land SVFR at night at a controled field you have to be IFR rated, IFR current, and your plane has to be IFR certified.

http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/cfr_2003/14cfr91.157.htm

But like Mav said, if you're out flying in an uncotrolled area, you don't.

Can be a bit confusing.

On collisions, the things that "really" scare me about flying (other than a psycho student) are mid air collisions, bird strikes, and those damnable helium balloons that some people think are so fun to let fly away.

[Maverick]

Fishu,
 You do not need any SVFR to take off at night including at a controlled airport as long as VFR conditions exist at that location. That means visibility has to meet VFR conditions. Darkness alone does not create IMC (instrument conditions) by itself. It just means glare isn't much of a problem and sunscreen won't be required. A special license is not required to fly at night. Neither is an "endorsement" needed. You do need to be "night current" (have the proper amount of take offs and landings at night in the required time frame prior to your next flight) to carry passengers at night. The only license needed is a private pilot license.

As long as you have a transponder, 2 way comunications you can fly VFR in controlled airspace into and out of airports.

IFR certification and an IFR equiped aircraft are also not needed to fly at night in controlled airspace around an airport, as long as it is not IFR weather.

Any airport with training FBO's have planes flying at night all the time. Right now I'm at an RV park at Hanscomb AFB (dual use airfield) near Boston and there are small airraft flying the pattern at night getting night curreency. There are a couple FBO's here training private pilots in what looks like C152's and Piper Tomahawks. As long as there isn't fog / rain they have been flying pretty steady here.

There are also a fair number of small jets and turbo props here for other airlines flying in and out of the field. A very active and nice field here.

[LePaul]

So are we missing any Predator drones?  Or anything more advanced?  Sounds like it hit something a whole lot firmer than a balloon.

[Leslie]

Originally posted by Reschke
I remember when this happened and it was huge news around here. Spanish Fort is on the opposite side of the bay from Mobile (7-8 miles I think maybe less) and the closest military bases to there are NAS Pensacola, Fort Rucker and Eglin AFB. Eglin and Ft. Rucker being the farthest east. Other than that there is another Air Force base in Biloxi but that is to the west.

There are all manner of things that happen around that area that come out of Eglin AFB that no one talks about so its not hard to believe that a drone could have been the culprit in what brought this plane down.

There's also a NAS Meridian, MS about 100 miles north of Mobile.  Mobile is pretty much centrally located between Pensacola, Biloxi and the Meridian triangle it seems.

One possible explanation, other than the weather balloon theory (high possibility,) ...and is admittedly far fetched but not impossible...it could have been a coillision with a cruise missle drone.  

Does anyone remember when Animal posted the pics of the red/orange colored Navy cruise missle drone on the beach in Puerto Rico?  He was asking if anyone knew what it was and if it was live ordnance.

One time during conversation with a friend who's work involved traveling rural areas, he matter of factly stated he had seen a cruise missle following train tracks at low alt.  I found that very strange, but what more could be said.  It's not the kind of thing you see every day, but could have been that's what it was.  They have a 400 mile range and follow landmarks plotted into the onboard computer, according to what I've read in magazines.  And the drone picture Animal posted was of a reddish colored drone.



Les