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low-level flight

Airlink Formation Flypast Prompts Safety Review After Jets Pass 41 Feet Above Stadium SEO DES: Airlink said the flypast was planned and approved by SACAA, while the regulator is reviewing whether it complied with approved safety parameters SOCIAL: Two Airlink Embraer jets flew over Cape Town’s DHL Stadium on August 29, 2026, just before the Springboks-All Blacks Test. Flightradar24 estimated the lead aircraft passed only 41–46 feet above the stadium roof, raising safety concerns. Airlink said the flypast was carefully planned, rehearsed and approved by SACAA, with no passengers aboard and no reported injuries or aircraft damage. SACAA obtained the aircraft’s flight-data recordings and began reviewing whether the operation complied with approved safety parameters. SACAA has yet to issue its final findings. Meanwhile, Airlink withdrew its planned September 5 flypast at Johannesburg’s FNB Stadium, citing unfavourable weather, amid continuing scrutiny of the Cape Town operation. Cape Town, South Africa: Two Airlink Embraer jets flew as close as an estimated 41-46 feet (12.5-14 metres) above the roof of Cape Town’s DHL Stadium during a pre-match formation flypast on August 29, 2026, prompting a South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) compliance review after footage of the manoeuvre went viral. The flypast took place shortly before the second Test between the Springboks and New Zealand’s All Blacks in the four-match Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series. About 56,000 spectators were in the stadium as the two aircraft passed overhead before South Africa went on to defeat New Zealand 33-26. The aircraft involved were an Embraer E195, registration ZS-YDE, flying in a black All Blacks-themed livery, and an Embraer E190, registration ZS-YAE, carrying a green Springboks-themed livery. The E195 was the lead aircraft and was the one that came closest to the stadium roof based on flight-tracking calculations. Neither aircraft carried passengers. Airlink said each jet was operated by three senior captains serving as commander, co-pilot and safety/technical officer, with the crews having more than 75,000 combined flight hours. The aircraft flew at about 150 knots during the low-level formation pass. Airlink said the manoeuvre had been extensively planned and rehearsed and was conducted with guidance, approval and support from SACAA and Air Traffic Navigation Services. Flight-tracking service Flightradar24 later analysed ADS-B data from the operation. It recorded a lowest raw altitude of 50 feet at standard pressure. After correction for Cape Town’s local pressure setting of 1019 hPa, the aircraft were estimated to have been at about 205-210 feet above mean sea level. With DHL Stadium standing approximately 164 feet high, the estimated clearance above the roof was therefore about 41-46 feet. The low clearance became particularly striking in videos recorded from inside and around the stadium. The trailing aircraft was also seen passing through a cloud of pink dust or smoke generated by the pre-match pyrotechnic display. There has been no confirmed report of either aircraft striking the stadium, pyrotechnics or any other object, and no injuries or aircraft damage have been reported. Airlink defended the operation after the footage triggered criticism online. In its August 30, 2026 statement, the airline said the flight required “careful planning and rehearsal” because it involved low-altitude navigation at around 150 knots. It said SACAA and Air Traffic Navigation Services had provided guidance, approval and support to ensure a safe flyby. The airline also said flight data recorded by both aircraft confirmed that the operation was conducted within the altitude and speed limits approved and rehearsed with SACAA. The regulator subsequently began a compliance review. SACAA said Airlink had submitted three applications for flypasts linked to the rugby matches, with the first operation taking place at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on August 22, 2026 and the second at DHL Stadium on August 29, 2026. According to SACAA, the Cape Town operation had been formally approved under the regulatory provisions governing non-passenger or cargo-carrying flights under Part 91.06.32. The operator had also submitted supporting documentation, completed a simulator practice flight and conducted a safety briefing before the operation. The authority said the flypast was approved in accordance with the requirements for Special Air Events. However, after media and public discussion over the unusually low flight path, SACAA initiated compliance verification, engaged Airlink and obtained the aircraft’s Flight Data Recording downloads. SACAA said it is now analysing the data and has requested additional information from Airlink before reaching an informed position. The authority said a full report containing recommendations will be issued once the assessment is completed. “It is therefore critical that we interrogate this past weekend’s events to determine if there were any safety concerns which warrant a review,” SACAA said. The regulator also emphasised South Africa’s commercial aviation safety record, saying the country had maintained a zero fatal-accident record in commercial airline operations for more than four decades. SACAA said that record was one it intended to preserve as it continued to strengthen aviation safety standards. Airlink CEO de Villiers Engelbrecht later said the airline recognised the public interest generated by the flypast and the questions that followed, adding: “We never intended to become the news or upstage Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry.” Chris Martinus, president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association South Africa, said the lead aircraft appeared to be manoeuvring over the stadium with very little room for error. He said that if something adverse occurred at such an altitude, the pilots would have few options. Australian aviation consultant and former military and commercial pilot Keith Tonkin also warned that turbulence or a bird strike could leave a jet with insufficient room to manoeuvre safely at that height. He said the broader concern was the precedent created by an operation that other operators might seek to replicate. The flypast was part of a long-standing South African rugby tradition. The practice gained particular prominence during the 1995 Rugby World Cup final, when a South African Airways Boeing 747 flew over Ellis Park before the Springboks faced the All Blacks. Airlink had planned to continue the tradition at the next Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Test at Johannesburg’s FNB Stadium on September 5, 2026. However, the airline notified SACAA on September 1, 2026 that it was withdrawing its application for the third flypast. Airlink said unfavourable weather conditions meant the planned formation flight could not be safely conducted. SACAA confirmed the withdrawal but has not yet released a final finding on the Cape Town operation. The authority’s review will determine whether the two aircraft complied fully with the approved flight parameters and whether any additional safety measures or recommendations are required.

Airlink Formation Flypast Prompts Safety Review After Jets Pass 41 Feet Above Stadium

Aviation Today News Desk / September 3, 2026

Cape Town, South Africa: Two Airlink Embraer jets flew as close as an estimated 41-46 feet (12.5-14 metres) above the […]

Arizona, United States: A helicopter crash in remote terrain east of Phoenix claimed the lives of a seasoned Oregon pilot and his three young nieces on Jan. 2, 2026, just hours before he was scheduled to be married, authorities and family members said. The MD 369FF helicopter, piloted by 59-year-old David McCarty, crashed into rugged terrain in Telegraph Canyon, near Superior in Pinal County at around 11 a.m. local time, killing all four occupants. Family members said McCarty, originally from Oregon and a long-time resident of Queen Creek, Arizona, had taken his nieces Rachel McCarty (22), Faith McCarty (21) and Katelyn Heideman (21) on a sightseeing flight before his planned wedding later that afternoon. The bride-to-be, McCarty’s fiancée Joelleen Linstrom, was not aboard. According to the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office, an eyewitness called 911 after seeing the helicopter strike what preliminary reports describe as a recreational slackline stretched across the canyon before it fell to the canyon floor. Deputies and rescue teams hiked into the remote area and reached the wreckage around 5 p.m. several hours after the crash. All four were pronounced dead at the scene. Local family members posted tributes on social media, describing the losses as devastating. “Many have heard about the unimaginable losses in my family. They went out for a helicopter ride in Arizona. The helicopter crashed and they never got the chance to come home,” wrote Elizabeth Gallup, a relative of the victims. McCarty was the founder and owner of Columbia Basin Helicopters, a firm based in La Grande, Oregon, with work in aerial support for power-line construction, logging, firefighting and recovery operations. Family and colleagues described him as an experienced pilot familiar with the area’s terrain, having flown similar routes multiple times. The helicopter departed from Pegasus Airpark in Queen Creek before entering the mountainous landscape south of Superior, according to local reports. Preliminary investigation indicates the helicopter may have collided with a recreational slackline, more than half a mile long, strung across the canyon. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), along with the sheriff’s office, are jointly investigating the incident to determine how the slackline came to be placed in that airspace and whether proper aviation safety protocols were followed. The International Slackline Association confirmed the slackline had aviation markers and that a Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) had been issued to warn aviators of the obstruction before the crash. No slackliners were on the line at the time of the accident. Officials said investigators will gather flight records, radar data, maintenance logs, weather information, witness statements and other evidence as part of the formal NTSB investigation. A spokesperson for the NTSB has stated that the agency will lead the effort to determine the probable cause. The FAA and other agencies have urged pilots flying in rugged and remote environments to review all Notices to Air Missions and to exercise heightened caution when navigating below canyon rims and near known obstructions.

Helicopter Crash

Oregon Pilot And Three Nieces Killed In Arizona Helicopter Crash Hours Before Wedding

Aviation Today News Desk / January 5, 2026

Arizona, United States: A helicopter crash in remote terrain east of Phoenix claimed the lives of a seasoned Oregon pilot

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