Please note that this summary will be amended if further information becomes available. This is a preliminary summary and may not be totally accurate. Please take a moment to read about wing over and spiral phenomenon and preferred emergency procedures.
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An experienced pilot who may have been practicing wing overs ended up in a very aggressive, high G spiral by accident. Most accounts point to the idea that he passed out in the spiral. His injuries were substantial but he is expected to make a full recovery.
Pilots are reminded that wing overs can be insidious. They can be the very same for years and then, one day, pilots change the maneuvers by a small margin and the outcome can be totally different.
For example: been doing wing overs for years, never had a deflation. Then, one day, the equipment, air or intensity is 1% different and the pilot takes a deflation to collapse ( and/ or the tip sticks in < cravat > and/ or the glider spirals uncontrollably ).
Next, the inadvertent spiral is a formidable phenomenon. The mantra is:
"one spiral turn that I didn't plan, don't understand and can't exit and I will throw my reserve."
This is to prevent the aforementioned scenario where the high G's preclude the pilot from throwing the reserve.
Finally, here are the top three or four things to know about spirals:
1) if you get into one and let off smoothly on the brakes - the glider will accelerate ( this is not a case for "hands up, the glider will take care of me" )
2) if you pull outside brake, that's great but if you got so stiff and scared during the spiral that your inside brake is still being pulled, ---> the combination of the two will manifest in an accelerated spiral
be very clear, the move to stop a high intensity spiral is to connect with the outside brake, let off the inside one - imagine you have a kayak paddle in your hands and you are trying to slap the water on the outside brake side
3) it's very clear that in low intensity spirals, the outside brake is the high side BUT years of maneuvers training have proven that roughly half of the people practicing spirals will get confused ( about half the time ) about which is the outside brake as the glider points straight down and beyond.
That's right. Inside brake - outside brake confusion is real. What makes it more confusing is that as the pilot pulls the wrong brake, the glider does respond. It's not the correct response but it is a response and it leads the pilot to believe that they do have some level of control ( i.e. they think that they will figure it out and that they don't need to throw ).
Please remember that certification is nice but when test pilots manifest a max intensity spiral, their job is to let off, relax and let the glider demonstrate it's recovery. That is nothing short of super hero. The average pilot will do nothing of the sort. They will stiffen up, maybe pull the wrong brake. The one thing that they won't do is what the test pilots do during the certification.
Certification is of little use and so is spiral practice where you make hard round spirals and then finesse the glider out. Finessing the glider out is not full proof ( it can work many times in a row and then not work ).
Asymmetric spiral practice where the spiral is actively moderated by the outside hand on each rotation. That is the skill to have - it is spiral insurance.
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
Friday, October 30, 2015
South Side Mini Wing Spin Event Injury
Oct. 12 a very experienced pilot on a hybrid mini wing ( a large-ish one ) suffered some sort of stall/ spin event. The result was a stable lower back injury. Pilots are reminded that even if you fly regularly and are familiar with your gear, there is a certain random factor that can manifest a surprise event when you least expect it. Pay attention, even in simple and familiar conditions. Use best practices like weight shifting and judicious addition and subtraction of brake to avoid both deflation and on the other hand - spin/ stall events.
North Side Spin/ Stall Event Non-Injury
End of June - A pilot flying old equipment was observed to be flying too deep in the brakes over a several day period. When faced with a traffic situation, he caused an inadvertent spin/ stall and landed in the bushes un-harmed. Avoid stall and spin events by flying current equip and using weight shift to turn. If faced with an inadvertent spin, practice good posture with feet together and elbows in and expect the glider to fly away in short order. Resist the temptation to spread eagle and try to regain equilibrium. If the glider is behind, let off and if it's out front, brake it.
Utah Area XC accident PG
August 9th. An experienced pilot on a competition level glider was landing in suburbia with strong conditions. He suffered a low altitude surprise deflation and a spinal injury along with a leg injury. He is making a full recovery.
South Side PG Accident
June 6th. An experienced local pilot was turning back and forth in strong conditions. On exiting a set of turns, he suffered a full frontal deflation and landed on top of the hill. He suffered a spinal injury and some other injuries that necessitated a long hospital stay. The pilot is making a full albeit difficult and long recovery. Pilots are reminded that the combination of strong conditions and aggressive flying carry added risk and require greater diligence.
Thursday, April 23, 2015
South Side Speed Wing
A visiting pilot was observed to be flying a speed wing in an erratic fashion. While skimming/ running along the hill, he lost control and mistakenly exercised a very big brake input which resulted in him being airborne, turning at the hill with riser twist. He complained of chest pain consistent with potentially broken ribs. This post will be updated as more information becomes available.
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