I'm told by SSA officials and others that talk to FAA people frequently
about airspace issues that the FAA knows glider pilots turn off their
their transponders sometimes, and the FAA doesn't care about that.
Mainly, they are just really happy the pilot is willing and able to
carry one.

If the FAA didn't care if glider pilots turn off their transponders
then there would be no logical reason for needing an exemption.
Transponders not only provide ATC with potentially critical flight
safety information, but they also provide collision avoidance data
for thousands of airliner and corporate aircraft that are equipped
with TCAS for collision avoidance.

This exemption is not in the interest of safety and there will be
no big surge in glider pilots installing transponders. Most of the
glider pilots that have installed transponders have done so
predominately for their own convenience. Having a transponder
installed allows them access to airspace that they would otherwise
be required to avoid. Those pilots willing to spend the dollars
for installing and maintaining transponders, can surely spend an
extra $50 for a battery they could deadicate to the transponder.

The real goal of this petition is to prevent pilots from continuing
to be exposed to certificate actions for turning off their
transponders, while at the same time hopefully shifting all
liability to the FAA for having given pilots the authority to trun
them off nthe first place. For those who doubt this, maybe you
should ask yourself why the SSA has included a hold harmless portion
to the exemption you will sign. This is designed to protect the SSA
and everyone associated with the SSA in the event of a catastrophe.

Rather than granting the petition, we have the potential to see the FAA
not only realize that transponders can easily be installed in gliders.
But this could also lead them to decide that maybe it was time to
review the justification for continuing the exemptions soaring has
enjoyed to date.