Glider Launch Emergency
- Thread starter cocolos
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Velocity173
Yeah you do a lot of premature release scenarios in gliders. Think in the KR-03, below 200 ft we went straight ahead. Anything over 200 ft we turned back for landing. It's amazing how far you can stretch a glide with a 30:1 ratio.
Matthew
Touchdown! Greaser!
Winch launches give you a very steep cimb angle. He had his left hand on the release. When the cable broke he decreased the AOA, verified the cable was released, and landed.
Looks like he did a full pattern, so he had plenty of altitude.
A simulated rope break is on the glider PTS.
Looks like he did a full pattern, so he had plenty of altitude.
A simulated rope break is on the glider PTS.
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Kiddo's Driver
Pattern Altitude
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Jim
I almost clapped at the end! Great job! Stayed calm and talked to himself about the important stuff...airspeed, airspeed, airspeed...
brcase
En-Route
He did a text book response to it, notice how quickly he put the nose down and then immediatly released any rope still attached to the glider. Loved him calling out the airspeeds around the pattern.
Mine occured at about 400 feet but I had some trees to deal with, still a 360 back to the runway worked just fine. We then were looking for the broken rope about 800 feet down the runway and couldn't find it, when we gave up and were walking back we found it at about 400 ft down the runway, so we had been climbing at about 45 degrees.
Brian
CFIIG/ASEL
Mine occured at about 400 feet but I had some trees to deal with, still a 360 back to the runway worked just fine. We then were looking for the broken rope about 800 feet down the runway and couldn't find it, when we gave up and were walking back we found it at about 400 ft down the runway, so we had been climbing at about 45 degrees.
Brian
CFIIG/ASEL
Matthew
Touchdown! Greaser!
I was towing and the glider pilot thought he had a control failure just off the end of the runway. He released, did a 180 and landed downwind. That was as low as any release I've ever seen. We never did find anything wrong with the glider, but his Spidey sense said otherwise. Our best guess is some kind of turbulence tossed him in such way he felt he couldn't control it anymore. He released so he wouldn't take me down with him. I didn't feel anything, I wouldn't have been able to drop him quickly enough.
Fun times.
Fun times.
BillTIZ
Final Approach
Normal brief for a winch launch, dependent on runway length. Anything below 400ft, land straight ahead. Above 400, just as the video depicted. You notice he did not go to the end of the runway, he turned base and final where he needed to for altitude, and land long.
We train plimarily with aero tow. Standard brief is 200ft, reverse course and land with a tail wind, 500ft fly the abbreviated pattern seen in the video. With aero tow, 200ft AGL happens 3000ft down the runway, so the 180 turn works you have runway behind you to land on.
With winch 200ft happens quickly and you do not have any runway behind you to land on, more ahead than behind. At 400ft AGL, the 360 to landing works.
We train plimarily with aero tow. Standard brief is 200ft, reverse course and land with a tail wind, 500ft fly the abbreviated pattern seen in the video. With aero tow, 200ft AGL happens 3000ft down the runway, so the 180 turn works you have runway behind you to land on.
With winch 200ft happens quickly and you do not have any runway behind you to land on, more ahead than behind. At 400ft AGL, the 360 to landing works.