Oshkosh, WI, USA
N977RV
Driver RV-7
N747JG
GRAY RV-8
The pilots reported that they were landing at an airshow fly-in in a staggered four-airplane formation. The RV-8 was in the No. 2 position and the RV-7 was right behind it in the No. 3 position. The RV-7 bounced during the landing and the pilot lost sight of the RV-8 in front of him. The air traffic controller instructed the flight to turn left onto the grass and the RV-8 pilot later reported that he started the turn “without regarding the airplane behind” him. According to the RV-7 pilot, when the RV-8 came back into view, it was turning left directly in front of his airplane. The RV-7 pilot immediately applied the brakes and swerved hard to the right, but his left wing impacted the RV-8’s rudder, followed by the right wing and aileron. Both airplanes sustained substantial damage. Both pilots reported that the airshow environment created pressure to land, stop, and get off the runway into the grass as quickly as possible.
On July 23, 2021, about 1345 central daylight time, an experimental amateur-built RV-7 airplane, N977RV, and a RV-8 airplane, N747JG, sustained substantial damage when they were involved in an accident at Wittman Regional Airport (OSH), Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The pilots of both airplanes were not injured. The airplanes were operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilots reported that they were landing at OSH for the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) AirVenture airshow in a staggered four-airplane formation. They were cleared to fly to the orange dot and land on the green dot on runway 27. The RV-8 was in the No.2 position and the RV-7 was right behind it in the No. 3 position. The pilot of the RV-8 reported that he touched down and shortly thereafter air traffic control instructed the flight to turn left onto the grass. He stated that he started the turn “without regarding the airplane behind” him; the RV-7 struck his airplane’s rudder then right wing. Both the rudder and aileron sustained substantial damage. The pilot of the RV-7 reported that his airplane touched down and bounced. It settled back onto the runway and started to slow. As the tailwheel touched down, he lost sight of the RV-8. When the RV-8 came back into view, it was turning left directly in front of his airplane. The pilot immediately applied the brakes and swerved hard to the right, but his left wing impacted the RV-8’s rudder, followed by the right wing and aileron. The RV-7’s horizontal stabilizer sustained substantial damage. Both pilots reported that the airshow environment created pressure to land, stop, and get off the runway into the grass as quickly as possible. The pilot of the RV-8 further mentioned that their group of four pilots had been flying together for a very long time and they regularly conduct staggered landings. However, they normally had a very long rollout before turning onto the taxiway. The Formation Flying Inc Formation Guidelines and Standard Procedures states under Landing Options, Option 2: Staggered, “The lead aircraft must NEVER turn to cross the path of the wingman as he (she) exits the runway, without being assured that the wingman has his (her) speed under control.”
The RV-8 pilot’s failure to account for the position of the RV-7 behind him during the landing roll in a staggered landing formation, which resulted in a ground collision of the two airplanes. Contributing to the accident was the self-induced pressure created by the airshow environment to land, stop, and get off the runway into the grass as quickly as possible.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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