Inspo Power Lines 5/19/12

A pilot attending a thermal clinic at "Inspo" failed to land at an appropriate LZ and ended up running into power lines in a neighborhood.  The pilot passed by several good options for landing in an attempt to make it to the church LZ.  Pilot was not under supervision during the landing phase.  The pilot walked away uninjured and power was lost for part of the neighborhood for several hours.

A few items to be taken away from this incident are:

1.  Walking away from an incident with power lines is a very lucky scenario and often times incidents with power lines can be fatal.
2.  When flying a mountain site, or any site in general, pilots should be very conservative and be willing to land at the first available place when getting low.
3.  If flying cross country, it is always very important to be choosing possible bailout LZ's along the way and providing adequate clearance to reach potential landing zones.
4.  Having a specific flight plan in mind before flying can prevent incidents such as this.
5.  Instructors conducting clinics should have full radio contact with participants at all phases during flight and keep a watchful eye until they land to ensure their safety.

N. Side Student Ankle Fracture PG

A student suffered an ankle fracture at the bottom of the North side in a very light wind landing. Could have happened to anyone. We should all use about as much caution in zero wind as we do in strong wind. Both are technically demanding.

West Mountain PG

A pilot flying low in thermal conditions suffered a series of events that resulted in a hurt back and leg. He was evacuated via helicopter. Avoid flying low over rough terrain in strong thermal conditions.

North Side Stall Spin Mid - Air 6/20/12 PG

An experienced pilot spun and stalled his glider trying to avoid a tandem glider. In the process, he hit the tandem though the tandem was unaffected. He stalled and spun into the steep, sandy, side hill of the lower part of the north side and had a slight concussion but was otherwise un-injured.

N. Side Launch Bush Landing HG

Avid local PG and HG pilot launched the North Side, turned right and encountered sink while trying to turn away from the first spine he was to overfly. The hang glider did not respond to his efforts and he landed in a bush. No injury and no harm to the glider.

North Side Reserve Non - Injury

A new P2 on launched in advanced conditons, benched up and then allowed a lazy turn over the top of the hill. Recognizing the problem, he pointed into the wind, pushed speed bar and then took a large frontal deflation. He was pointed into the wind and pushed speed bar again, then took a large assymetric with subsequent strong turn. He threw his reserve and landed safely in the rotor without disabling the glider. 1)honor the P2 operating limitations as much as possible 2)consult your instructor before launching in unfamiliar or strong conditions 3)don't bench up when it is easy 4)be diligent not to drift over the top of any hill 5)don't use speed bar (especially in large amounts) when low 6)always release the speed bar (and feel sufficient brake) when a deflation is anticipated or when one manifests 7)disable the paraglider after deploying a reserve 8)always throw your reserve in strong rotor especially when low or when large diflations are manifesting in quick succession

Southern UT

An experienced and well trained P2 who was not current launched a gentle sloped launch with a long takeoff that ended with a drop off and a shelf below. The launch proceed in a text book fashion until the abrupt drop off when the glider deflated. The recovery from the deflation took place but not before the pilot encountered the lower shelf. Presumably, he hit the lower shelf and then flew back out into the air and subsequently came to rest some distance below the shelf. We all need to 1) actively work the brakes during the launch process to prevent deflations 2) be ready for the 1 in a 1000 deflation during the launch process and 3)need to choose foregiving sites when we are not current.