I don't think so.
When you fly formation there (should be) a strict protocol for avoiding collision if you lose sight of someone - you go directly away from their last position. Meaning if the last time you saw them they were on your left you go right. Opposing aerobatics you should be calling visual once heading toward each other, and if you can't see the other person you should each have a safe escape direction to ensure you don't hit. The more airplanes in your formation, particularly if you're doing aerobatics, the more disciplined and potentially complex each safe escape plan must be. Rejoins don't count as collision avoidance.
What that means is that both you and the person you're formating with know exactly what you will do in each instance. If you don't have such a protocol may I respectfully suggest you develop one. Plenty of people conducting formation flight have died because they didn't know how to deconflict or never followed the protocol they did have.
Now, how does that translate into avoiding another airplane you didn't know was there seconds ago, are not talking to and have no knowledge of what he/she will do?
Last edited by engfireleft; 22nd Sep 2014 at 22:19.