Nearly Mid-Air Collision at Estrella

A lousy end to what was a beautiful day of soaring, thanks to the USMC
and my own lack of vigilance.

Yesterday a cold front was bearing down on Phoenix. While in other
parts of the country this makes for winter worries, here the front is
a small band of cumulus and a very slight chance of virga. The higher
elevations might see some precipitation. The weather was still great,
it was 3 pm and I was climbing in decent lift with another glider at
the southern end of the Sierra Estrellas-a 15 mile ridge line
southwest of KPHX.

I heard it first. The sound was of a jet close by. The visibility in
the front seat of the Burkhard Grob G103 is excellent, but I could see
nothing. Still the sound, but no airplane. Then, from behind a flight
of two Harriers flew directly between both gliders and slightly above
heading east. As I was at 5500 MSL, and the floor of the Class B wedge
just to the east of my position was 6000 MSL, I would guess that the
jets were close to but under 6000. The encounter lasted all of 10-15
seconds.

I have no idea if they were IFR, nor if they could, should or did
comply with the 200 KIAS speed limit under the shelf of the class B. I
also have no idea whether either I or the other glider was seen by the
lead. After the encounter, I lost my enthusiasm for the flight along
with the thermal and worked my way back to the sailport.

When I fly with students in this area, I hammer the idea that our
piece of the sky is busy due to the natural and man-created boundaries
which will force through traffic to overfly our thermal hunting area.
So I received yet another reminder that I cannot see everything even
part of the time. Were one of the Harriers and me to collide does
anyone think that the TV would have the blame anywhere other than me?

Let's be careful out there. I think I am, but again I got another
chance.

Terry Claussen