Dan wrote:
On Mar 19, 10:45 pm, Dudley Henriques wrote:
I'll tell you. A night takeoff out of Bader Field in Atlantic City NJ
out over the ocean on a moonless night can get "interesting: as well.
:-)

--
Dudley Henriques


Here's a sad NTSB that validates the danger of a moonless night
transition from land to ocean:

Accident occurred Friday, March 15, 2002 in Ocean City, MD
Aircraft: Cessna 172P, registration: N96811
Injuries: 4 Fatal.

The airplane was over water, making a night VFR approach to a coastal
airport. Witnesses observed it suddenly transition from horizontal
flight, to a vertical descent into the ocean. According to a witness
flying in the area at the time, the accident airplane went over a
"black hole," and he saw "strobe over strobe" before it disappeared.
The witness also noted that disorientation around the airport at night
was common because of the ocean. The accident occurred on a clear,
dark night, with no illumination from the moon. The pilot was not
instrument-rated, but had received instrument training under a hood in
VFR conditions.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable
cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The pilot's spatial disorientation, which resulted in his subsequent
loss of control of the airplane. A factor was the dark night, over
water visual conditions.

Last time I was at OXB, I took some friends for a night flight along
the coast. On takeoff from 14 by 200' AGL I was on solid instruments
until I could get turned back towards the shore. Even though I was
qualified and current, it required some disciple to maintain altitude
and heading.

Night VFR -- especially moonless nights in remote areas -- should be
considered IFR flying, if not legally, than practically.


Dan Mc


I agree. I never performed a night checkout that didn't include my
covering this exact scenario with a pilot. It's one of the "problem
scenarios" for the Private Pilot who flies a lot during the daytime VFR
going into night flying.

--
Dudley Henriques