tow rope brake practice crash, what can we learn...

On Jul 21, 2:34*pm, Walt Connelly Walt.Connelly.
wrote:
Looking at all 2011 accidents reported thus far, a good portion
involved pilots with little apparent time in model or particular
glider. *I'm just sayin'.

Frank Whiteley

Frank Whiteley

The rest of the storyhttp://www.thebaynet.com/news/index.cfm/fa/viewstory/story_ID/23254

Well, after having read the "rest of the story" it is obvious that this
was a major misinterpretation of the tow pilots rudder waggle by BOTH
pilots. *The "copilot" shouts "release, release, release," and the "pilot"
fails to properly interpret the rudder wag and releases. *

We all make mistakes, unfortunately some of our mistakes can be fatal. *We
must all continually update our knowledge of emergency signals and
procedures to help reduce these kinds of accidents. *JMHO.

Walt

--
Walt Connelly[/i][/color]

How many more pilots need to die until the rudder waggle will be
replaced with something more sensible, like a radio call?? No radio,
no tow! and if it is absolutely necessary to waggle the rudder, it
should be delayed until the glider is high enough to land safely!
Obviously the NTSB is not going to do anything about it, it is up to
us, SSA, SSF or whoever the force may be to do something about it!

Sigh!

Ramy

Originally Posted by Ramy

On Jul 21, 2:34*pm, Walt Connelly Walt.Connelly.
wrote:
Looking at all 2011 accidents reported thus far, a good portion
involved pilots with little apparent time in model or particular
glider. *I'm just sayin'.

Frank Whiteley

Frank Whiteley

The rest of the storyhttp://www.thebaynet.com/news/index.cfm/fa/viewstory/story_ID/23254

Well, after having read the "rest of the story" it is obvious that this
was a major misinterpretation of the tow pilots rudder waggle by BOTH
pilots. *The "copilot" shouts "release, release, release," and the "pilot"
fails to properly interpret the rudder wag and releases. *

We all make mistakes, unfortunately some of our mistakes can be fatal. *We
must all continually update our knowledge of emergency signals and
procedures to help reduce these kinds of accidents. *JMHO.

Walt

--
Walt Connelly[/i][/color]

How many more pilots need to die until the rudder waggle will be
replaced with something more sensible, like a radio call?? No radio,
no tow! and if it is absolutely necessary to waggle the rudder, it
should be delayed until the glider is high enough to land safely!
Obviously the NTSB is not going to do anything about it, it is up to
us, SSA, SSF or whoever the force may be to do something about it!

Sigh!

Ramy

Nothing is perfect, the radio is a good idea, I carry a hand held in a rental ship without a radio. Always do a radio check with the tow plane prior to tow. That being said, it's up to the pilot to carry a radio or not. The signals from the tow plane need to be constantly studied and understood. Human nature being what it is, complacency becomes our enemy and ultimately our undoing. Much of our safety is in our own hands, checklists, understanding signals, use of a radio, remaining proficient. JMHO.

Walt

In this case the pair were still climbing, though slowly, but what if they
couldn't climb out of ground effect?

There's no substitute for knowledge, skill, and preparation. Please don't
try to legislate safety with more rules.


"Ramy" wrote in message
...
On Jul 21, 2:34 pm, Walt Connelly Walt.Connelly.
wrote:
Looking at all 2011 accidents reported thus far, a good portion
involved pilots with little apparent time in model or particular
glider. *I'm just sayin'.

Frank Whiteley

Frank Whiteley

The rest of the
storyhttp://www.thebaynet.com/news/index.cfm/fa/viewstory/story_ID/23254

Well, after having read the "rest of the story" it is obvious that this
was a major misinterpretation of the tow pilots rudder waggle by BOTH
pilots. The "copilot" shouts "release, release, release," and the "pilot"
fails to properly interpret the rudder wag and releases.

We all make mistakes, unfortunately some of our mistakes can be fatal. We
must all continually update our knowledge of emergency signals and
procedures to help reduce these kinds of accidents. JMHO.

Walt

--
Walt Connelly[/i][/color]

How many more pilots need to die until the rudder waggle will be
replaced with something more sensible, like a radio call?? No radio,
no tow! and if it is absolutely necessary to waggle the rudder, it
should be delayed until the glider is high enough to land safely!
Obviously the NTSB is not going to do anything about it, it is up to
us, SSA, SSF or whoever the force may be to do something about it!

Sigh!

Ramy