Houston JS1c crash ONLY (not in any way about a Puchaczs, or anything else!)

On Sunday, July 20, 2014 8:53:12 PM UTC-7, Sean Fidler wrote:

Does anyone know what failures are possible (or that have happened or are known) with other manufactures wing water systems?


My very first contest flight in an LS-3 - at Ionia.

I was climbing in a thermal - as I recall it was right after going through the start gate. I heard they "glug, glug, glug" sound. Looking over my right shoulder I saw a waterfall cascading off the right wing spar. I had failed to burn the wing bag adequately and the pressure had pushed the bag off the fitting. It dumped 10 or more gallons into the cockpit. Realizing that the left wing was still full I pulled the dump. I flew the task in a bathtub that eventually drained through the 1/2" fuselage drain hole. There was never a handing problem, but my parachute was soaked.