TCAD Installations in Gliders?

"Jim Kellett" wrote in message et...
Just curious - anyone ever heard of a US glider with a TCAD (such as Ryan's
8800 Gold) installed? Love to get a "user's report" if so . . .

Jim Kellett, Resident Curmudgeon
Chief Flight Instructor, Skyline Soaring Club
Captain and CFI(G), Civil Air Patrol
Chairman, Classic Division, Vintage Sailplane Association
Webmaster, Open Cirrus Website
"If Flying Were the Language of Man, Soaring Would be its Poetry"

Having used a Ryan TCAD for a few years, then upgrading to TCAS, I
would say that TCAD is not very reliable. Rather than looking at the
display, wondering where the target really is, better to be looking
out the window. If you're anywhere near busy airspace, the display
will get very cluttered & hard to interpret, and your head is down &
locked while you look. Never tried thermalling with one, but im sure
it would be useless while circling.
I still remember the guy in the 102 at Truckee who got knocked from
the sky by an Aerostar (I think) who just departed & was head down &
locked programming his GPS. The glider pilot lived in spite of not
wearing a chute.
WIthout transponders, nobody else can see gliders, & lots of em
(Al)are flying around looking at
their...PDA/L-nav/S-nav/varios/GPS/MP3/etc. ad-nauseum.
Turn it all off & look out the window!
My o2 cents worth.
-Dan

At Proxalert our TCAD definition is : See what you can't see.

Once properly set you simply forget it until the unit will alert you
someone is around close to your altitude. Our device extract the
threat altitude from the threat reply. Our unit also provide a
tendancy information (threat climbing, descending from below or above
your own altitude).

I agree previous generation affordable device were unable to filter
out traffic flying 20,000 ft above. This is no more the case.

Obviously no TCAD, TCAS or even sharp eyes will ever be 100% sure. So
sometime this little percentage these devices add will help save your
and other lifes.

Furthermore as most gliders don't 'wear' any transponder nobody see
you and the collision risk is even higher.

Expensive : Assuming a 1000 hours life span it will add a dollar (Our
beer back earth ) or so to get this additional extra help.

Regards

Terry

See us at www.proxalert.com

(Buck Wild) wrote in message . com...
"Jim Kellett" wrote in message et...
Just curious - anyone ever heard of a US glider with a TCAD (such as Ryan's
8800 Gold) installed? Love to get a "user's report" if so . . .

Jim Kellett, Resident Curmudgeon
Chief Flight Instructor, Skyline Soaring Club
Captain and CFI(G), Civil Air Patrol
Chairman, Classic Division, Vintage Sailplane Association
Webmaster, Open Cirrus Website
"If Flying Were the Language of Man, Soaring Would be its Poetry"

Having used a Ryan TCAD for a few years, then upgrading to TCAS, I
would say that TCAD is not very reliable. Rather than looking at the
display, wondering where the target really is, better to be looking
out the window. If you're anywhere near busy airspace, the display
will get very cluttered & hard to interpret, and your head is down &
locked while you look. Never tried thermalling with one, but im sure
it would be useless while circling.
I still remember the guy in the 102 at Truckee who got knocked from
the sky by an Aerostar (I think) who just departed & was head down &
locked programming his GPS. The glider pilot lived in spite of not
wearing a chute.
WIthout transponders, nobody else can see gliders, & lots of em
(Al)are flying around looking at
their...PDA/L-nav/S-nav/varios/GPS/MP3/etc. ad-nauseum.
Turn it all off & look out the window!
My o2 cents worth.
-Dan