Inappropriate Pattern or Preparation for Landing

An EN B pilot misjudged the landing approach at the V in a NE wind early in October and landed the glider in a tree in a private yard.

This accident category is inappropriate pattern or preparation for landing.  Flying downwind during a landing pattern or while approaching an LZ can easily get a pilot in a position impossible to reach the LZ due to even a small amount of upwind flying required to get to the LZ.  Approaching an LZ with wind pilots should always get to a position upwind of the LZ while they still have enough altitude to reach the LZ.   

Thermic Scratching

Early in the Spring of 2018 an experienced intermediate pilot flying an EN B glider in mid-day conditions suffered a cascading collapse ending with ground impact and serious injuries.  

The category of this serious accident was Thermic Scratching.  Close to the ground, shifts in wind direction, caused by a lot of reasons, even to include channeling by the terrain, can create turbulence and rotor in unexpected places.   Encountering this turbulence without adequate altitude to recover the glider or deploy the reserve can easily result in high energy impact with the ground and serious injury or death.  

The difference in this type of impact between various injury severities and death is simply the geometry of the arc the glider swings the pilot on and the angle of the ground at the moment of impact.  All factors a pilot has absolutely no control over in this situation.

Flight Outside of Conservative Equipment Parameters

An experienced intermediate pilot flying an EN D two-liner glider in mid-day conditions early in August east of Monroe Mountain, experienced loss of control in violent lee-side turbulence and saved the situation by throwing the reserve.

Potentially two categories apply here; 1 Flight outside of conservative equipment parameters and 2 Flight in known/knowable turbulence.

Moving up to a higher performance glider is a difficult decision to make.  The conservative advice recommends an annual hours of flight requirement, SIV on an advanced glider and completely dominating a glider of the class below in the most difficult conditions you will ever fly in.  

Some pilot never fly in the lee others do it under certain weather conditions and with complete confidence in their ability to handle their glider in turbulence and their ability to deploy their reserve. 

This pilot is to be commended for throwing the reserve when control was lost below 500 feet.  A potentially life-saving decision.

Flight Outside of Conservative Weather Parameters

Early in the Spring a P4 pilot flying an EN B glider attempted to kite on a mountain site in gusty and cross  conditions.  The pilot was plucked and drug causing a minor injury to an arm.  The category of this accident is flight outside of conservative weather parameters.  

Kiting on or above a steep mountain face adds the possibility of thermic lift in the wind making it very difficult to avoid being plucked into the air.  A great deal of practice kiting on flat terrain in strong wind can help develop the skills required to launch a windy mountain site.  Often repacking the glider and walking down is the better decision.  

Flight Outside of Conservative Progression Parameters

Two novice pilots P2 were ridge soaring the ridge line north of the V launch in early October and soared back too deep in the canyon and unable to reach an appropriate LZ due to the headwind component of the return direction.  One pilot landed in a tree and needed assistance to get out of the tree one landed in a bush and got out alone.  

The accident category here was flight outside of conservative experience progression parameters.  Novice pilots just learning a site should basically follow other pilots and not explore on their own.  Experience teaches that the crosswind component of wind can easily make it possible to fly a line deep into terrain and impossible to return.  If in doubt reverse course occasionally and check penetration flying back out of the terrain.  

Inappropriate Pattern or Preparation for Landing

An EN B pilot misjudged the landing approach at the V in a NE wind early in October and landed the glider in a tree in a private yard.

This accident category is inappropriate pattern or preparation for landing.  Flying downwind during a landing pattern or while approaching an LZ can easily get a pilot in a position impossible to reach the LZ due to even a small amount of upwind flying required to get to the LZ.  Approaching an LZ with wind pilots should always get to a position upwind of the LZ while they still have enough altitude to reach the LZ.