Home Forums Safety PG Lineover, spin, plummet, last second reinflate

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  • #18403
    Dan DeWeese
    General Member
    CSS Instructor

    June 20 around 330pm outa towner IPPI advanced rated PG launched regionals, noted by others to be rushing to get in the air. Noted in the air by B Richey “Something wrong with this guys glider”, erratically flying, ~a minute later enters parachutal spin, LZ spectators shouting chuck it! Of course the pilot cant hear and heed. No chute as pilot plummets straight down from abt 1500 agl. I’m thinking he’s gonna splat when at 100 or less agl the thing reinflates and disappears behind the eucalyptus treeline behind the house at the mouth of Sweetwater Cyn.

    Come to find out, pilot was in such a hurry to launch, forgot a leg loop which somehow put the chute handle out of reach, not to mention not noticing a line over at initial inflation.

    This could have easily put this guy out of flying for months to forever, or as far as “in the grave” for want of getting in the air quickly.  I admit, the rush to get going has happened to me and likely everyone, for that matter with varying outcomes as you can imagine.  What’s the take home message here?  At launch, Stop. Calm yourself for a moment, tame that prelaunch anxiety. Checklist. Preflight? Conditions right? Harness right? Glider right? Pilot right?  After a unanimous “yes”, get to work by getting away from the hill and surrounded by air. Then begin what Steve Corbin always called “the best flight of my life!”  and make it home for dinner.

    #18404

    Dan wrote :

    … At launch, Stop. Calm yourself for a moment, tame that prelaunch anxiety. Checklist. Preflight? Conditions right? Harness right? Glider right? Pilot right?  …

    Monday , June 19

    I wanted another flight on my Atos VRX ; wanted it SOOooo bad that I almost went for it by myself, and knew the wind was a bit more than I could safely handle. I could not find a driver , willing to watch me setUp and launch me . This flight would have bin Awesome, with little fear of the landing approach for a 15-m wing , (cause I’d already don it)  and I knew the beast was flying to near perfection in the air.

    Dan’s check-list , (… Conditions right… ) ; that would be a NO , and so I packed up my $h!t , and went back home to Vegas , (to FLY , another day) . :(

    Yea — I could’a Probably self launched, and had a Blast  ; but I would be Dead , if I had bin wrong.

     

    Bille

    #18405

    Thanks for the report Dan.

    Ya. Bad combo of inability to access the reserve, and launching with a line over. But luck intervened.

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