Helo’s don't necessarily fly same path and even have different pad area of the field to land.
This was over open water and I am just trying to imagine how with all the gear both craft have they would be in each others path and why since they different missions they would even be so close to each other.
I wonder if the C-130 was actually a KC-130 variant doing air refueling with the helo? I don’t know if that helo has air refueling capability. I didn’t see a probe on the picture above.
Vendome,
I’ve been sitting here pondering many of the same questions you raised and trying to imagine pilot error of such magnitude and I cannot, so I am trying to get my head around equipment failure, but that still doesn’t address how the two aircraft entered one another’s airspace.
So very sad.
Neither have any air to air radar and must depend on the Mark I eyeballs to avoid collisions. They also rely on Air Traffic Control to tell them about other "traffic" in their vicinity.
Neither have any air to air radar and must depend on the Mark I eyeballs to avoid collisions. They also rely on Air Traffic Control to tell them about other "traffic" in their vicinity. Both probably have FLIR and/or TV type systems. The Cobra's would be for finding and tracking ground targets, but could be used to some extent for air to air work. Coast Gaurd C-130 would have a radar, but likely one intended mostly for surface search.