On Feb 28, 8:19*pm, Bob Whelan wrote:

As to your first point above Andy, FWIW if you ever feel invulnerable or
'absolutely safe' aloft in a glider, my fundamental reasoning is your
assumptions could do with additional self-scrutiny. :-)

What did I ever say to you that would suggest that I feel invulnerable
while flying anything? If I ever did feel invulnerable I lost that
illusion after I found myself pinned to the headrest by barbed wire
after it penetrated my canopy. I spent a long time going over the
events that lead to that accident over 20 years ago and have no doubt
dehydration was a significant contributing factor.

What did I learn - have an effective relief system and keep
hydrated.

That is a lesson others should learn without tangling with barbed wire
but in those days people didn't talk much about relief systems or the
need to keep hydrated. It was a hard learned lesson and I pass it on
whenever I can.

I also try to learn from the accidents of other others, but I have no
way to predict the accident that may one day kill me, any more than
many better pilots than me predicted their own demise.

I know that if I fly I may have a fatal flying accident. That in
itself does nothing to increase my safety. At least it does not
increase it above the margin that was established a long time ago.


Andy