PETALING JAYA: Pilots handling aircraft during formation flights should have precision skills and flawless coordination that only come after years of training and experience, says an aviation expert.
Capt Ab Manan Mansor said aerobatic flying requires pilots to have extensive experience given the danger that comes with such formation flights.
Each pilot, he added, must also be tested thoroughly for their knowledge and skills on formation flying, down to the last detail.
The former Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) helicopter pilot suggested that all flight training involving formation flying be handled with utmost care as it is a “dangerous business”.
He said it is also important for aerobatic flyers to only use the same make of aircraft during a close formation flight routine to provide the crew with the same perspective as the formation leader when and if the team members swap positions.
He added different aircraft have different specifications, vision and perspectives, among others.
“It’s dangerous to use different types of aircraft during a close formation flight.
“Aerobatic flying involves very high-speed manoeuvring, which means vision is extremely important,” he said when contacted yesterday.
In the case of the Lumut helicopter crash, Ab Manan said the formation that was attempted, called “bomb burst”, requires highly skilled pilots and suitable aircraft.
“Based on my observation of the videoclips of the crash, the bomb burst formation that they were doing is one of the most dangerous, especially when done closely and at low levels.
“The bomb burst formation always gets people’s attention because you can see coloured smoke coming from the aircraft, if smoke machines are installed, and this gets spectators excited as it’s a dangerous formation.
“However, usually, the aircraft used in such formation flights are fighter jets and not helicopters because helicopters are bigger and their wings are mechanically driven, and as such, have the possibility of breaking a flight formation during a bomb burst manoeuvre,” he said.
He added that bigger aircraft are not suitable for high-speed close formation flying.
Capt Khalaiselvan Letchumanan, a private helicopter and ex-RMAF pilot, said formation flying is a complicated exercise not every pilot can perform unless the person is highly trained.
“It involves a team who are synchronised to pull off manoeuvres with precision.
“Each pilot involved will need to know exactly where they are going all within seconds,” he added.
Two former RMAF pilots with over 40 years’ experience flying rotary-wing aircraft said there appeared to be a failure in coordination between the pilots of the two helicopters in the Lumut crash, based on their observation of a videoclip of the incident that was circulated in social media.
The ex-servicemen who have flown various types of helicopters and have participated in dozens of formation flights, said merely having years of flying experience is not enough to participate in such exercises.
“Competency should not be based on seniority.
“Were the pilots trained enough to be carrying out formation flying safely?
“Were they briefed adequately on their roles prior to the flight?” said one of them.
The second pilot said that aircraft carrying out such exercises should not carry non-essential crew on board as it was a risky flight.
“Apart from the pilots, only an air quartermaster should be on board as part of the crew. No other passengers should be allowed,” he said.
