Skyhawk 172/Cutlass 172
Flight Crew Flight Instructor; Flight Crew Commercial
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 50; Flight Crew Total 400; Flight Crew Type 100
Workload; Confusion; Communication Breakdown; Situational Awareness
Conflict Airborne Conflict
Flight Crew Took Evasive Action
Airspace Structure; Procedure; Environment - Non Weather Related
I was doing a dual cross country flight with a student to French Valley Airport [F90]; which is located in the vicinity of the Perris Valley-Hemet-Lake Elsinore area. This area is known for having its fair amount of skydiving and glider activity. We obtained a standard VFR brief and departed for F90. On the ground; we asked for flight following and were handed off by the Tower to SCT. The weather was VMC; but there was some light haze. As we were about approximately 15 miles out from F90; SCT handed us off to RIV and we stayed east of the area designated for sky diving activities. There was some turbulence over the area. At approximately 5;500 FT I noticed a plane at my 11 o'clock; descending. I banked our plane to the right. It may or may not have been a sky diving aircraft; but I would venture to say that it probably was. I did not get any advisories from MIV regarding this particular plane. I received one advisory a couple of minutes prior stating that an aircraft was climbing and that the traffic was not a factor. Could the plane that was descending been the same one; I am not sure. However; if it was a sky diving aircraft; they sometimes tend to report to SCT on 134.0. However; if they did check in with SCT we were already handed over by SCT to MIV. So there might be a slight gap in information between MIV and SCT. However; what I will do is when I am handed over to MIV from SCT on the next flight to F90 is that I will listen to the previous SCT frequency and/or monitor the advisory frequency that the sky diver operators use. And if ever in-doubt query the controllers regarding traffic advisories. And I may avoid F90 on the weekends because of the intensity of the different skydiving; parachuting; glider activities that occur in the vicinity during that time period.
A C172 Instructor with a student on a weekend training event took taking evasive action from an aircraft after an apparent skydiving drop 15 miles from F90.