On Oct 3, 8:55 pm, Frank wrote:
Just curious as to the current situation regarding team flying in U.S.
competions, especially in view of the decided disadvantage U.S. pilots
appear to suffer in world competitions due to lack of team flying
experience.

My understanding is that premeditated team flying is still completely
verbotten in the U.S. - have I missed anything? I can only find one
reference to team flying in the rules. From the 2007 SSA National
Rules:

"10.7.2.7 Relaying of information between aircraft for any reason
other than safety is prohibited. This specifically forbids team
flying."

TIA,

Frank (TA).

I searched "team" in the rules, and this is the only reference to team
flying. This is in a section entitled "radio usage" So one
interpretation is that this rule applies only to radio communication.
Anything else goes -- coordinate on the ground, meet up at the start,
fly wingtip to wingtip or nose to tail around the course if you like,
so long as you don't talk on the radio.

However, another interpretation is that "this specifically forbids
team flying" makes team flying more generally against the rules, so
that the above behavior, verified by traces of pilots flying together
day after day, would be against the rules.

A discussion of this issue at a contest this year yielded the former
interpretation. (Most people involved thought there was a more general
ban, and found out there is none.) Still, it seems a grey area worthy
of some clarification.

The other question is whether it makes sense to have a rule with no
enforcement. But that's another question.

John Cochrane