Mooney Caravan Yuma Formation Clinic Photos/Video

[StinkBug]

All of you who didn't make it to this event really missed out. It was a really awesome weekend and it sounds like everyone had a great time and there was a ton of flying goin on. I was a total newbie to formation flying coming into this weekend and decided to get there a day early and got a right seat for a couple of the advanced 4-ship flights which was a total blast. First time seeing this stuff from anywhere but the ground and it was really cool. I highly recommend standing at the runup area with your thumb out if you ever see a group getting ready to go out. 

 

Saturday and Sunday they even let me fly! Definitely some intense mental workout and a whole new way of flying an airplane. Big thanks to all the guys that let me ride along and who helped teach me the way. I'll definitely be doing more of this, especially since kmyfm20s was there as well and lives nearby. We ended up getting to fly formation home together!

 

Here are some pics from the weekend, and I'm working on getting some video up as well.

[StinkBug]

Got the first video clip up on the youtubes

 

https://youtu.be/5wJfnvq7-rE

[carusoam]

Wow!!!

That is interesting.

Thanks for sharing,

-a-

[MyNameIsNobody]

Great photos thanks for sharing. I get the importance of precision flying for military and airshows.

What is the risk-reward for a private pilot flying their aircraft in tight formation with multiple aircraft?

[CCowboy]

The reward is that you become a better pilot,from airmanship skills, dicipline, focus, and precision. You get a circle of like minded aviators that share this passion. You will master airspeed/attitude control and general aircraft control-without the aid of flight instruments. You instrument flying skills will be vastly improved. An entirely new world of flying will open up for you.

There are risks. These are managed through proper training, currency, and use of proven procedures that are standardized for the group you fly with.

[StinkBug]

I'm sure there are lots of people better qualified to answer this than I am, but this clinic was setup to train people for the mass arrival into Oshkosh for air venture. The primary gain there is getting a large number of aircraft on the ground safely as efficiently as possible. The numbers I heard discussed were around 45 aircraft landing in roughly 4 minutes. 

 

In a general sense, flying like this really teaches you how to use all the controls of your aircraft in a precise manner. It's definitely a lot of fun, and very rewarding when everything works how you want it to. Of course there are risks, but throughout the weekend I felt like everyone took those risks very seriously and everyone was very conscious and deliberate about the planning of every flight. Every maneuver was planned and discussed beforehand (on the ground) and contingencies were planned for if/when things don't go as planned. The formation is close, but not so close that you don't have an exit.

[kmyfm20s]

The risk is that its contagious, the reward is meeting a lot of cool Mooney pilots, getting some vary cool photos of you flying your plane, and some new precision flying skills.

It was a very fun experience and would recommend it to all of you!

[gsxrpilot]

I would humbly say that much in the same way it's much better for an engine to fly every week rather than to sit for months, the safety/skills obtained during formation flying very much outweigh the risk of the activity.  Without formation flying, we (hobby pilots) generally fly laps in the pattern or cross country flights. Neither of which do very much to improve pilot skills.  Since joining the caravan, I now can fairly regularly go up and fly formation with our local Texas Wing. The precision and skills learned and honed, will I'm sure, come in handy on some dark and stormy night if the Mooney goes quiet and I've got one chance to get it right.

 

Just my $0.02

[Ned Gravel]

+1 on the benefits of formation training.  Old joke:  If you are not sweating, you are out of formation.  And it is true.  It becomes easier with practice as you get used to how you and your aircraft react to things as they change.  And they are always changing - up a little, back a little, in a little, out a little.......

 

The Mooney Caravan mass arrival is a much safer way of getting to the ground in Oshkosh the Fisk arrival.  I have practiced, become sufficiently proficient according to my peers to participate in the Caravan and I am far less scared ----tless than doing the Fisk arrival cluster ----k.

 

It is a very worthwhile piloting skill set.