How exactly does fog and low visibility lead helicopter accidents so often without mid-air collision and if they are not planning a landing?

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I can understand how low visibility will cause a crash during landing or take off. I can also understand how it could lead to collisions with tall structures like masts and trees. However, in many of these cases it doesn’t seem like they collided with anything. They seem to drop out of the sky “due to low visibility”.

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Anonymous 0 Comments

The modern collision avoidance systems (primarily EGWPS and TCAS) are very expensive and still “relatively” new (coming out in 1996). Older aircraft don’t have it and therefore can’t use the benefits it provides.

Also, if you don’t know how to fly in instrument flight rules (aka you can’t see), you die very quickly.
Stats show that if you fly into clouds without proper training, you will probably hit the ground after 178 seconds.

You go from looking outside 90% of the time to not being able to see anything. You can’t see, you end up pointed down, and you end up suffering a tragic collision with the ground. Often at high speed.

Source: the aircraft owners and pilots association

https://www.aopa.org/news-and-media/all-news/2022/june/pilot/asi-tips-178-seconds

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