"Wrong handle" accidents

Both posts are very good advice. Wrong lever syndrome
will catch out even the most experienced.
I briefed a very experiencenced instructor who had
flown his own Schemp Hirth gliders. I was at pains
to explain the gotcha in having the two levers for
the undercarriage and airbrakes in close proximity
if the glider was correctly configured for landing,
in other words the u/c was down. I briefed him very
thoroughly to look to check he was going to pull the
right lever for airbrake on approach before he did
it.
Up the launch he went, normal release at the top and
then out popped the airbrakes, followed very rapidly
by them going in again and the wheel disappearing.
My comment on the ground was, GOTCHA, no harm done
but does demonstrate how a change from what an individual
percieves as normal can overcome even the most careful
briefing, although I did not specifically mention checking
the levers by looking after release.
Having the u/c lever on the left has it's advantages
but like all aspects of flying you need to adopt and
stick to the correct procedure. Even though I am very
familuar with my own glider I still LOOK even though
I know that the u/c lever will require effort to pull
while the brakes most definitely do not. I might fly
a glider where that is not the case.

Don Johnstone wrote:

Having the u/c lever on the left has it's advantages
but like all aspects of flying you need to adopt and
stick to the correct procedure. Even though I am very
familuar with my own glider I still LOOK even though
I know that the u/c lever will require effort to pull
while the brakes most definitely do not. I might fly
a glider where that is not the case.

I couldn't agree more.

I've flown an number of hours in both Pegase and ASW-20. I've grabbed
the wrong lever only once in these gliders, but looked because it didn't
feel right before I completed moving it. I've found that the "gear up"
position in these gliders carries its own confirmation because I rest my
wrist on the lever when re-trimming if the wheel is up.

OTOH my first (and I hope, only) gear up landing was in a Discus with
brake and gear levers on opposite sides of the cockpit....



--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
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