Mandatory Radios

On Feb 5, 9:16*am, JJ Sinclair wrote:
The majority of clubs and FBO's in Region 11 have gone to a mandatory
radio policy after the recent midair where the tow plane and glider
collided turning final. The tow plane was not radio equipped and
therefore didn't know (hear) that the glider was turning final from
the other direction. That makes 4 fatalities in this region caused by
lack of communication between the tow pilot and glider!

Several clubs are using hand-held radios for ships that don't have
radios. I flew last Sunday with a hand-held radio and it took some
getting use to. First off, where do you put it so you can hear the
speaker? Also, I found transmitting combersome................pick it
up with left hand, turn the mike toward you and squeeze key while
flying with right hand. Then I clipped it to the right side of my
collar using the big spring clip on the radio. That worked well as it
was clase enough to hear and simply rotate and press the mike button
to transmit. I believe students would need some guidance like this to
be able to make the required radio calls using a hand-held radio. It
looks like most tow pilots are using helmets with head-sets so they
can hear their radios. Also, a com-check before takeoff is essential
to make sure both radios are on and working, volume up, squelch set
and on the correct frequency. I used the $200 ICOM from Wings & Wheels
and found it quite satisfactory.

We can survive a lot of things in this sport, but running into each
other isn't one of them!
JJ

When I flew with a handheld I had it set up so I could plug a little
Plantronics earpiece/mic into it. It just clipped onto my glasses. I
also set up a little PTT switch for my stick. Of course this was more
of a permanent install than having a club member carry a handheld in
the club glider with them. I found it much less cumbersome. A loose
radio in the cockpit is not just an annoyance but could be a major
safety issue itself. All that said I'm much happier with my panel
mounted Microair 760, but thats a little more money than the handheld
cost me.