On 26 Jun, 22:49, Chris Reed wrote

I think the point being made is that no-one has yet proved it to be a
hazard in practice by pulling the wings off, or more likely causing the
tailplane to fail.

What about the Oly which clapped its wings as a result of an overspeed
winch launch at - iirc - Sutton Bank?


Experienced winch-launching pilots who I know are content to accept
overspeeding in the first part (say 1/3) of the launch and wait for the
speed to settle to the correct figure.

I sort of agree. I will never rotate into the full climb if the speed
is excessive, and I will give the driver a few seconds to sort things
out. If I have the slightest doubt, though, I will pull off and
perform some ...

... forcible re-education of the winch driver.

Since an overspeed at the early part of thelaunch is a) entirely
preventable and b) entirely the winch driver's fault. When I'm
driving, by the way, I expect to be treated the same way. I make a
point of regularly asking experienced pilots (normally instructors)
how the launch was, particularly at the start of my stint, as it helps
to picture wind gradients and so on.

Ian