How to landout on a steep uphill final?

On Monday, June 10, 2013 2:37:20 PM UTC-6, wrote:
On Sunday, June 9, 2013 9:33:46 PM UTC-4, son_of_flubber wrote:

A runway that I frequent has no straight ahead option for a rope break at 100 feet AGL. There is a however a highly recommended hayfield with a 90 degree turn from the takeoff heading onto the landout final. The field is 100 feet lower in elevation than the departure runway, so it is reachable if you do all the right things. For example, you need to get over the tops of the trees on the near side of the field.







So let's say the landing area is steep, say it rises 20 feet for a 200 run. Depending on when the hay was last cut, the vegetation height ranges from stubble to 30" of consistent grasses. The ground is likely to be very bumpy. Boulders have been removed from this field to facilitate haying machinery. There may be some dips, but no ditches and no hidden branches or stumps. There are power lines running down the right side of the field and there is a two lane paved road on the other side of a ditch at the end of the run out. There is sufficient run out, but not much to spare. The field gets more and more level as you get closer to the road. On the far side of the road is a cornfield, so flying high over the road is not a good option.







So I want to touch down with minimum energy. My first thought is to flair to level flight much higher than normal, say 10 feet above the ground after the flair, pull the stick back gradually to bleed off speed until the ground comes to meet my level flight. Careful not to stall prematurely of course.







OR do I flair at a normal height and ride the ground effect uphill? I imagine that I might fly into the slope and touch down with more energy than I would like and possibly do a ground loop or otherwise damage the glider (and/or my body). The field may tilt a bit left to right.







The fact that the field is tilting up steeply in front of me is going to distort my perception and that is the other reason that I'm inclined to flair deliberately high. That gives me more time to see what is happening and adjust.







Opinions and suggestions? I'm thinking about a particular field, but I'd kinda like to know in general how to approach this type of field because level fields are rare in my area.







I will of course discuss this with knowledgable people at my club, but I'd like to think about it and get some ideas before I bring it up at the airport.



I had a very rough landing in France in a security field that was actually an altiport. An altiport is on a steep uphill field or runway. Mine was a rough field, but the only know field to safely land withing 20 kilometers. Such is the flying in the French Alps.



Luckily, all I did was twist the landing gear and blow the tire, and scrape the gel coat off the bottom of my glider (as well as demoralize my ego) from my hard impact. I came to an abrupt stop 100 yards short of where I thought I would first touch down and roll onward. I had landing flaps configuration, which was an error for upslope landing. When I pulled hard to flair uphill, I had only drag and no lift from the wings. You need some good L over D to flair uphill. To say the least, I had every difficulty getting the glider back into the trailer without functioning wheel gear and not getting the landing gear door closed.



If I had to do it again, I would go into the flair with at least 65 knots with only minimal positive flap setting and aim farther down the field than my gut instinct would tell me. (Psychologically, your senses will tell you otherwise.) Because of the illusion that you are driving into the ground with too much speed, actually you do not have enough airspeed, and you are actually flying straight into the slope of the hill, you will touch before you ever intended without enough airspeed to pull up abruptly. You will actually have to flair "much higher" than your perceptions advises you to.



If you fly in rolling hill territory or in tall mountain territory, you must make study of this type of landing because you will eventually have to do it. Even Klaus Ohlmann, the world's best mountain gliding expert, has destroyed an Nimbus 2DM (and other gliders) landing at an altiport uphill. Take note of how difficult this can be for experts with tens of thousands of mountain gliding experience.



Happy mountain soaring, it is extremely rewarding with the challenge and the joy of the views. Nothing better in this life experience.

Lleweni Parc (AKA Looney Park). Final at 75kts minimum over the river to round out and land uphill and stop at the launch point. Much steeper than the 10/1 described by the OP.

Frank Whiteley