"Roy Smith" wrote in message
...
"Casey Wilson" wrote:
Well, Ron(s), on at least two occasions while acting as safety pilot
I
have assumed control of the aircraft. First, when the hooded pilot blew
an
approach and started wandering diagonally across the airport and second
when
I had to take evasive action to avoid another aircraft.

My standard safety pilot briefing lays out my groundrules. The safety
pilot never touches the controls. First step in traffic avoidance is to
give me a heading to fly. If that's not working, he's to tell me to
take the hood off and point the traffic out to me.

I'm relying on his judgement as a pilot to decide what constitutes safe
separation and to come up with reasonable vectors, but that's it. My
job is to fly the plane. His job is to be my eyes.

In the two situations you cite above, would it have worked to have told
the pilot to take the hood off and go visual?

I have, according to my logbook, only nine entries as safety pilot. To
my recollection, in every case we talked about under what conditions I would
assume controls...not that I would NEVER touch them.
In the first case perhaps he would have eventually gotten it together --
I didn't think so. My first action was to tell the pilot he was drifting way
to the right of centerline after he executed a missed. When he did nothing
to correct, I got the feeling he was very disoriented and assumed control.
When he took the hood off moments later he looked flustered.
In the second case, it was my judgement that immediate action had to be
taken when ATC called "Traffic Alert." The only other earlier call from ATC
(flight following) was that the other aircraft was "...five miles and
climbing, no radio contact." Should I have seen the other plane. I dunno, it
was white against an overcast and virtually motionless. Maybe, maybe not.