On 9/9/11 8:12 AM, Albert Thomas wrote:
On Sep 8, 7:41 pm, Carl wrote:
Modern gliders give very little indications of a stall (another reason
why training in old clunkers like the 2-33 is counterproductive). Add
a little distraction or a higher priority task (Bee in the cockpit!)

Is a bee in the cockpit enough of a distraction or a higher priority
task than flying
the aircraft. If you think so you should reread "Fate is the Hunter".

Carl B

I have a severe reaction to bee stings. I'm pretty careful about it
and haven't been stung in over 30 years. I carried an "EpiPen" with me
to contests or anywhere where I was traveling away from prompt medical
attention. But I didn't carry it in the cockpit back then. A sting to
the neck or upper torso would probably give me an hour or less to live
without medical attention. I had a mad bee enter the cockpit while I
was at 9K feet on task at a regional contest near Colorado Springs
about 10 years ago back. It might has well been a live hand grenade in
the cockpit as far as I was concerned. I was in contact with the C/S
tower (10 miles east) and was close to calliing an inflight emergency
with request for emergency landing with standby medical attention just
before I managed to kill the bee. During that time I also considered
bailing out of the aircraft to get away from the bee. Yes, I was
flying the sailplane the whole time (not very coordinated though) but
that bee had my full attention. After that happened one of my EpiPen
is always in my car when I drive and in my aircraft when I fly.

A mad bee in the cockpit is a different kind of event for those of us
for whom a sting could be a fatal event.

Al T


I also thought about a bee allergy when this was mentioned. Many people
with severe bee allergies would succumb in less than an hour to a well
placed sting. I'm severely allergic to several things but luckily not
bee stings. I have ended up in the ER several times, and needed the full
on treatment with epinepherin/IV saline+Bendryl+Zantac/oxygen. That
epinepherin rush is something I'll never forget.

The poster above probably already does all this, but just to state it
here. For folks with severe allergies to stuff, I would carry more than
one epipen and they are available packaged in pairs -- the effects of
the initial injection can wear off and you'll end up back in
anaphylaxis. Epinepherin also does not like being exposed to heat, so
keep the pens cool and replace as needed, especially if the liquid get
dark/cloudy. Also you should carry a antihistamine/H1 blocker ideally
benadryl/diphenhydramine because its fairly quickly acting and a H2
blocking antihistamine like Zantac or Tagamet (yes the indigestion/ulcer
etc. medications). Please talk to your allergist about all this, the
different meds and possible side effects and what doses to take of these
etc. in an emergency.

BTW a good paper on emergency treatment that pretty much discusses the
current treatment "gold standard" is at
http://www.aafp.org/afp/2003/1001/p1325.html. Good reading for those
with severe allergies and those who may have to deal with this.

Not all ambulance/fire/rescue organizations carry or are trained to use
epinephrin and some also won't administer a H2 blocker. So its always a
good idea to carry your own and tell your crew etc. about your
conditions, where medications are stored, have them practice with a
training epipen etc.

Darryl