Executive Repor ts CEO Update - Accident & Incident Summaries Focus on pilot approach to a safe days flying
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uring this reporting period from the 1 October until 31 December 2021, (3 month Period), there were 12 reported incidents or accidents of which 3 Occurrences have been chosen below to provoke further thought on how you as a pilot consider your Risk v Reward as you approach the hill for a days flying. Weather and on site launch assessment continues to play a considerable part in a pilots decision to fly. Understanding the flying conditions before you launch is an important part of pilot safety and picking the day, not forcing the day can be the difference between an accident or a highly enjoyable flight. Time constraints and a 1 hour window of opportunity from homelife or after work, can see pilots take short cuts through a determination to fly, often cemented by others on social media groups of all capabilities raving about a great day to fly (when often it looks marginal), and thus FOMO kicks in - Fear of Missing Out . First top tip; Approach the day with an attitude of I hope to fly not I am going to fly. There has been a marked increase in weather stations across NZ flying sites, whilst these are useful as a snapshot for real time information, they are no substitute for weather forecasting, I highly recommend not relying on the group WhatsApp chat or a weather station reading from the comfort of your home 1 hour to 2 hours before you arrive on the hill to fly. Second top tip; As part of your flying routine, put time aside from the comfort of your home for weather forecasting. Once on site take 5 minutes out to stand on launch and confirm your forecast and expectations, chat to other pilots also waiting to launch, check again before launch and once settled in the air, is the weather what you expected? Continue to monitor in flight and if it changes unexpectedly from the forecast or out of your comfort zone, consider landing and return safely to fly another day. One golden rule for XC, is to not go into the mountains on a strong growing wind forecast day, a forecast is just that a prediction into the future, the winds may come in earlier and stronger than forecast creating turbulence over spines or difficulty landing, at best a very unpleasant flight. Third top tip: Assess the weather on the hill before launching and monitor regularly during flight to confirm conditions are as expected from your days weather research.
Story about real pilots;
Winds came in stronger than expected over 50kph. I spoke to Pilot A and B after an accident that resulted in one pilot being blown down the range unable to penetrate forward to the official landing site and receiving a badly bruised back on an out landing and another pilot head first upside down 2m off the ground in a tree. I asked Senior Pilot A after the accident; What weather forecasting did you do before your flight? Answer; “I checked the weather station before I left home (1 hr before flight).” Junior Pilot B; What weather forecasting did you check before your flight? Answer; “None, I followed Pilot A.” Note; The weather forecast for the day on Metservice, Metvuw and NZ Rasp Map had predicted growing strong winds in the afternoon. Weather sites; A list of some useful weather forecasting sites can be found at: www.nzhgpa. org.nz/Home/weather For interest the NZHGPA supports and contributes to the NZ Rasp Maps as a useful resource for our member pilots, helping you stay safe and fly further.
Selected Accident & Incident Summaries October/December 2021
All entries can be viewed on the NZHGPA Website at: www.nzhgpa.org.nz/safety
November 2021, Landing, Near Miss (incident), No Damage, Experience: 50 hours Took off from Lower Carpark (Coronet) with visible rain approaching in distance towards the West. Just before launch on TO I was checking the current wind reports around in the area and there were no obvious signs of any sudden wind increase. Also nor did I see any significant wind increase in forecast, although I did not check the OD forecast for this day. On TO I saw obvious OD clouds above Coro and out to the West approaching. There was a sunny gap over LZ and a bit further out so I took off at 16:47 thinking I have time before rain will approach the area. As I took off air was lifty and I went on ears and bar straight away and continued throughout the flight. When I approached LZ wind did pick up significantly, area was already surrounded by approaching dark clouds and rain was visible minutes away. It was turbulent landing but landed safe around 17:04 when the rain induced gust was coming right through. Few minutes after heavy rain started. And at around 17:15 wind was gusting over 40km/h, reaching 50km/h a bit later. I definitely underestimated how quickly rain can approach and conditions change. Also I did not consider rain induced gust effect before taking off as that was obvious sign in the distance I should not have ignored. This was a good lesson learned and reminder of how quickly conditions can change. It is not worth taking off knowing you’re on the edge to try an escape approaching deteriorating weather. Pilot Comments; Consider if you should really go flying if you can clearly see rain approaching. November 2021, Take off Incident, Damage to harness, Paraglider, Experience: 186 hours Turning left in strong thermal (4.5m/s indicated) when inside collapsed, provoking violent spiral controlled by brake input. LHS side reinflated provoking counterturn. Made counter brake input to prevent clockwise spiral. Wing surged in front due to SIV training (hands up). I dropped and wing recovered into parachutal stall - at which point I held brakes close to stall point and had orderly recovery. track log shows 37 m drop. 1 of the footplate cords (top right) broke during that sequence. Harness is , bought Jan 2020. Reporting damage to harness as an incident. Pilot Comments: Consider not flying Southern Alps when rasp shows possible overdevelopment.
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It’s dynamic and challenging without suspect cumulo-nimbus about. Flybubble guidance on Chili 4 recommends SIV + minimum 50 hours per year for high EN-B. Make sure you fly a wing class matching your ability and annual hours December 2021, Take Off, Accident, No Injury, Paraglider, Experience: 40 hours Flight started with a bit bumpy air but otherwise nice thermic conditions. After 15mins I followed a curved spine that usually works well in NW to NNW. However that day the wind was W and at some point I found myself in the lee with sudden heavy rotor. Glider surged fast from left to right, which I was able to recover. But lost some height through this and found myself stuck in a tree within the next second. Had a somewhat safe position in the tree and informed pilots on the radio. Some very skilled fellow pilots identified my position and helped me lower myself out of the tree after some time with the help of ropes. Even the glider was recovered and at first glance and ground handling the next day doesn’t seem to have any damage (lines will be checked). I’m happy to walk away from this unscratched. Pilot Comments: Clearly not thinking too much about what a slightly different wind direction does at a familiar site Always be sure of the true wind direction and accordingly visualise flow over landscape. That day I was happy to be in the air at a familiar site after many weeks of unflyable weather. Plenty of lift everywhere and so I was happy to go and explore, not thinking too much about the true wind direction and flew myself into a trap. I ground handle whenever I can. But one can always do more and I could have maybe recovered the glider a bit quicker. Also, leave yourself some good room (height) for error.
CEO Comments;
I am grateful to all those pilots who submitted to the NZHGPA Accident Incident Reporting System (AIRS), so that trends may be identified to help keep pilots safe. The new AIRS system is providing some fantastic pilot reflection, comments and feedback for us all to learn from, excellent reporting by those submitters - Thank you for your valuable contribution to the flying community. Lets fly (after checking the weather :) - Nick
How to report an accident or incident What to report? You must report as soon as practical anything that is defined as an “Accident” by CAA rules. That is anything that caused significant damage or serious injuries while the aircraft is being used. Club safety officers and other pilots can help out here by reporting even basic information about an accident for pilots that are unable to do it themselves. We also want reports for incidents or accidents that aren’t so serious. The biggest benefit comes from the reporting of the smaller incidents and near misses. How small? Well, if good luck is all that saved you from an accident then it’s probably worth reporting. Your personal details will be kept confidential.
How? To make a report go to the NZHGPA website and click on ”Safety”. www.nzhgpa.org. nz/safety Then the button to hit for starting your report looks like this;
Your description of what happened is the most important part and makes up the majority of the reports we publish but other details are used to help with statistics that show trends so please complete as much as you can. Please include the location so we can send the report to the local safety officer and the club president for any follow up they need to do. Don’t worry, our policy is that we do not use the reports to lay blame or for any disciplinary action. They are for safety and learning. Finally if you want to see other reports then click on this button;
Bluebridge Ferries continues to support NZHGPA members with fantastic discounted ferry prices and very generous booking terms from 1st November 2021 to 31 October 2022 • Flexible Booking - Fares are changeable and 100% refundable year-round, right up until 1 hour prior to sailing without any fees or penalties. • Payment methods - At the time of booking include Credit card, Bank transfer and Afterpay. How to Book Simply use promo code SAIL2GLIDE when you book at www.bluebridge.co.nz.Or quote the promo code when you call 0800 844 844. or Use the direct booking link; http://book. bluebridge.co.nz/BookingDetails?promo= SAIL2GLIDE then simply pop in the sailing day and click next. The system will pre-populate the discount and display your negotiated pricing. Please note: You must present proof of your NZHGPA membership when you check-in. If not presented, the standard fare will be charged. Check out other great NZHGPA membership benefits at: https://member.nzhgpa.org.nz/ membership-benefits Let’s fly, -Nick
