This is an excerpt from a report made to the Aviation Safety Reporting System. The narrative is written by the pilot, rather than FAA or NTSB officials. To maintain anonymity, many details, such as aircraft model or airport, are often scrubbed from the reports.
In order to avoid a head-on collision with another aircraft landing from the opposite direction, I had to take immediate evasive action and divert.
At the time the wind was calm, so one could land from either direction: Runway XX or XY.
I called as I maneuvered for a low pass to observe the windsock midway along the side of the runway, as well as for any potential obstructions (coyotes, kids on bikes, etc., as this remote runway is in the desert next to a campgrounds), then lined up for approach and landing on Runway XY.
Although I never heard any other aircraft on the frequency, the pilot of the other aircraft claimed that he had radioed his intentions, and not heard me.
Not anticipating any other aircraft in the vicinity, I was surprised to see the small, gray-colored kit plane suddenly appear, approaching from the opposite direction, on a similarly gray-colored runway.
Primary Problem: Human Factors
ACN: 1966133
See and be seen is first rule. Not all aircraft have Com radios nor ADS-B especially LSA and Exp. The pilot took the correct action by seeing and avoiding the other aircraft as it should be.
Had the same thing happen. Highly used airport, wind calm, most planes landing to the East but one guy wanted to, for his convenience of direction of flight, take off to the West.
Same problem with RP and LP on the same strip of asphalt on a calm wind day.
Add to that the VFR day and practice GPS approach’s and what could possibly go wrong.
Stay safer by flying during the week, evening
On “the frequency”? What frequency? Was there a published frequency for that strip? If not, were both using 122.9, as is common at back country airstrips? Did either pilot confirm that their radio volume was turned up enough to hear? Without some more details, we can’t learn how to avoid a similar scenario.
Perhaps someone was using the wrong frequency?
Two pilots both apparently doing the right thing and they still find themselves on a head-on collision course. Good thing the regs have guidance for that eventuality.