Don Johnstone wrote:
OK the answer to this one is very simple, VNE stands
for 'Velocity never exceed' the never is not optional.
Pulling the airbrakes or pulling back hard on the stick
may cause structural damage to the glider, however
this structural damage is not likely to be catastrophic.

"May"? At Vne, "pulling back hard on the stick" will guarantee
catastrophic structural failure, not just "damage". Even "pulling back
modestly" (like one-third of the stick travel) can get you very close to
the limits.

Exceeding VNE may induce aerodynamic flutter, this
can and almost certainly will cause catastrophic failure
of the airframe.

References? The majority of people I know that have suffered flutter did
so without catastrophic failure. The glider often had damage to a
control surface or linkage, but not structural damage.

Put simply try and avoid both but
if the choice is exceed the placarded G loading or
VNE the G loading is the only choice. The potential
for catastophic failure is much much greater if VNE
is exceeded, exceeding VNE is therefore not an option.

References?

I have no doubt there will now be lots of postings
from people who say they have exceeded VNE and got
away with it. Even idiots can be lucky sometimes.

Inadvertently exceeding Vne doesn't automatically make the pilot an
idiot. Most of these "idiots" will be good pilots that got caught in a
bad situation; some might be pilots that took exceptional risks. Anyway,
we are talking about what to do when caught between a rock and hard
place, not what led to it. Let's not prejudge anyone.


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Eric Greenwell
Washington State
USA