Towpilot fatality in Oregon

On Sep 11, 7:38*am, GARY BOGGS wrote:
*The combination has killed more than one tug
pilot and will probably take a few more.

Andy

This thought has been haunting me for quite a while now. *It seems to
me that we need to change the way we train our glider pilots AND our
tow pilots. *I think tow pilots need to start regularly practicing
pulling the release when the glider gets too high. *If he has never
practiced this maneuver, which 99.9% of tow pilots haven't, they will
never do it in an actual tow going bad! *From the accounts here, both
pilots have very little time to react, and if either pilot hesitates,
it might be another fatality. *Glider pilots regularly practice rope
breaks so that our reactions are correct and rapid. *I’m going to
start retraining all my tug drivers to give the glider pilot the rope
if he gets too high and our glider pilots to just pull the release
when he gets too high instead of attempting recovery.

I have emailed Oregon Glider Pilot and asked him who he is but he’s
not telling. *How about it OGP, who are you?

Additional training would be good. I also suggest some tests of the
tug release on the ground with strong upward rope tension. I can
imagine a setup with the tug secured to the ground with a pulley block
rigged to a hangar roof beam allowing controlled tension and angle.

I think you'll find even the inverted Schweizer release may not
operate easily.