2015/03/27 Jean Lake crash

[Steve Davy]

March 27, 2015 - Kelly Harrison

Kelly Harrison (56), a Master (H5) pilot, tandem and advanced instructor and USHPA member since 1990, suffered fatal injuries during a tandem platform truck circuit tow at Jean Dry Lakebed near Las Vegas Nevada. His 11 year old student also perished in the accident.

That can't be the report.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBzJGckMYO4

[Tad Eareckson]

OK, let's look at the entire document:

http://www.ushpa.aero/safety/Fatality%20Report%202015.pdf
Fatality Report 2015 (Jan-May)

2015 HANG GLIDING & PARAGLIDING FATALITIES
JANUARY-MAY

PARAGLIDING FATALITIES

January 16, 2015 - Clayton Butler

Clayton Butler (29), who was not a USHPA member, suffered fatal injuries during a flight at Oahu, HI. The pilot was ridge soaring a mini wing when he suffered a stall which resulted in a spin. The spin endured until ground contact was made, resulting in fatal injuries.

January 25, 2015 - William "Billy" Baker

William "Billy" Baker (35), an Advanced (P4) pilot, Advanced (M2) mini-wing pilot and USHPA member since 2010, suffered fatal injuries during a mini-wing flight at Jackson Hole, WY. The pilot, flying a 16M wing, attempted to clear a tension knot. The wing collapsed as a result and it re-inflated throwing the pilot into a cliff.

March 1, 2015 - Ronald Faoro

Ronald Faoro (60), an Advanced (P4) pilot / Tandem Instructor and USHPA member since 1998, suffered fatal injuries during a flight at Santa Barbara, CA. The pilot, while launching with a tandem passenger, neglected to fasten his leg loops. Shortly after takeoff he fell out of his harness, resulting in a fatal fall. The student glided safely to the ground.

May 1, 2015 - Siegfried (Ziggy) Muhlhauser

Siegfried "Ziggy" Muhlhauser (59), an Intermediate (P3) pilot and USHPA member since 2008, suffered fatal injuries during a flight at Utah Lake, UT. The circumstances surrounding the incident are currently still under investigation.

May 17, 2015 - Junichi Nakamura

Junichi Nakamura (51), a Novice (P2) pilot and USHPA member since 2014, suffered fatal injuries during a flight at Mussel Rock Park in Daly City, CA. The circumstances surrounding the incident are currently still under investigation.

HANG GLIDING FATALITIES

March 27, 2015 - Kelly Harrison

Kelly Harrison (56), a Master (H5) pilot, tandem and advanced instructor and USHPA member since 1990, suffered fatal injuries during a tandem platform truck circuit tow at Jean Dry Lakebed near Las Vegas Nevada. His 11 year old student also perished in the accident.

May 9, 2015 - Markus Schaedler

Markus Schaedler (59), an Advanced (H4) pilot and USHPA member since 2001, suffered fatal injuries during a flight from Kagel Mountain in Sylmar, CA. The circumstances surrounding the incident are currently still under investigation.

May 17, 2015 - Scott Trueblood

Scott Trueblood (44), a Novice (H2) pilot and USHPA member since 2014, suffered fatal injuries during a flight in Ellenville, NY. The circumstances surrounding the incident are currently still under investigation.

and crunch the numbers on these people who died doing what they loved to see what we can learn...

- At least eleven deaths of nine pilots recorded in this report of the fatalities of 2015 to date. None of the fatal injuries suffered were non fatal.

- One hundred percent of the 2015 fatalities - both para and hang - reported occurred in the year 2015. Only the next seven months will tell us if this disturbing trend is likely to continue.

- Seven para, four hang. Para is seventy-five percent more dangerous than hang - but we all knew that already.

- Causes of death...

-- Eight pilots - all Pilots In Command - all died during flights. Two student pilots failed to die during their flights. A paragliding student, who was also a passenger, suffered no fatal injuries. A hang gliding student, who was not a passenger, perished in an unspecified accident - presumably subsequent to the flight.

--- Clayton Butler also died when ground contact was made.

--- William "Billy" Baker was thrown into a cliff. The significance of this phase of the incident relative to his set(s) of fatal injuries is unclear.

--- Ronald Faoro also died in a fatal fall after separating from his paraglider.

-- Eight pilots died as a consequence of the suffering of fatal injuries. Clayton Butler suffered fatal injuries during the flight and again when ground contact was made.

-- One student pilot suffered no fatal injuries at any time but succumbed to perishing in an accident.

-- The circumstances surrounding the incidents involving the suffering of fatal injuries of Junichi Nakamura, Markus Schaedler, and Scott Trueblood are all currently still under investigation so at this point we are unsure of the roles the circumstances surrounding the incidents played in the suffering of fatal injuries during the flights.

-- The passenger/student( / sixteen year old daughter) - who became Pilot In Command when the designated Pilot In Command unexpectedly exited the aircraft after suffering fatal injuries during the flight and before his fatal fall - suffered no fatal injuries. The student pilot survived the flight in which the Pilot In Command suffered fatal injuries but also perished.

- It's quite likely that none of the pilots suffering fatal injuries or perishing were wearing helmets because helmets are designed to prevent the suffering of fatal injuries and perishing. And it's highly unlikely that Ronald Faoro was wearing a helmet as the u$hPa's 2014/11 Helmet Regulation only mandates helmet use when being clipped into a glider.

- Also highly unlikely that any of the pilots suffering fatal injuries or perishing were wearing FOCUSED PILOT wristbands as we have no reports to date of anyone wearing one ever being so much as scratched.

- Most dangerous states...

-- Three pilots - four deaths:
--- California
-- Two pilots - two deaths:
--- Nevada
-- One pilot - two deaths.
--- Hawaii
-- One pilot - one or two deaths:
--- Wyoming
--- Utah
--- New York

Do the math people - Rhode Island is still the state to beat.

There WILL BE a political price to pay for this bullshit - particularly with respect to Mark, Rich, Mitch, their supporters and enablers.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1802
Jean Lake

Neil Larson - 2015/05/26 16:45:17 UTC
NW Florida

Flying in tandem with instructor John "Kelly" Harrison, Arys was being pulled behind a modified pickup truck.
Excuse me but when was it thought to be proper HG training to truck tow novice UN-experienced first time Hang Glider students into the air behind a truck over solid hard rock ground?
Excuse me but am I missing the part that states , the HG Rated Instructor was completely INSANE ...and ...should have NEVER been allowed to risk the life of a child while being towed behind a truck,,,, ?
Has the USHPA executive Body completely lost their collective minds , to condone such obviously risky and potentially murderous behavior by their Hang Rated Instructors????

Fuckin' asshole.

(Hey Neil... You got Joanna DelBuono's phone number?)

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/28635734/child-pilot-killed-in-hang-gliding-accident-near-jean#ixzz3aJz9nom5
Child, pilot killed in hang gliding accident near Jean ID'd - FOX5 Vegas - KVVU

Capt. Peter Boffelli - 2015/03/27
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department

The glider was supposed to release the tether from the truck itself. Apparently that tether release did not occur. So what occurred was when that truck turned around thinking that the tether was released the glider itself plummeted straight to the ground.

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=32681
Tandem crash in LV (speculation thread)

Mark G. Forbes - 2015/03/30 23:29:59 UTC

Please, no speculation

Hi folks,

I understand the interest in learning the cause of this, but could we please not speculate on the forum? We have a very experienced tow administrator (Mitch Shipley) headed to Las Vegas to do an accident investigation, and when we learn what really happened we'll convey that information to our members. He'll be working with two of the local instructors there to get to the truth.

Meanwhile, please refrain from offering speculation or opinion on what might have happened, what might have been theoretically done to prevent it and so on. Emotions are raw, people are hurting, and uninformed speculation doesn't help anybody. News reports are of little use since they're written by people who have no idea how our sport works or what is typical.

Thanks for your understanding and patience.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=41619
Goodbye Bob K?

Rich Hass - 2015/04/04 01:28:50 UTC

The death of Kelley Harrison, a Master rated, Advanced Instructor and Tandem Instructor, and his 11 year old student during a tandem lesson near Las Vegas last week is a devastating loss. It is a loss to the families of Mr. Harrison and his student and I personally extend my heartfelt condolences to both families. It is a loss to the sport as well. Mr. Harrison was an active pilot and instructor with students and flying friends around the country. Tandem hang gliding fatalities are a rarity and we all want to understand what happened and prevent the same thing from happening again.

In the immediate aftermath of this tragedy, USHPA assembled a team of experts in hang gliding, hang gliding instruction, hang gliding tandems and towing of hang gliders and offered their expertise to the local government officials who are investigating this accident. I am pleased to report that the local officials and USHPA experts are sifting through the evidence together, analysing the accident. A report will be released when the investigation is complete in a responsible manner.

Contrary to the absurd accusation that was apparently made for political gain on this forum, there is no "damage control" or "suppression of information" by USHPA. There is simply nothing to report yet because the investigation has just begun and is not yet complete.

http://www.ushpa.aero/safety/Fatality%20Report%202015.pdf
Fatality Report 2015 (Jan-May)

u$hPa - 2015/05/27

2015 HANG GLIDING & PARAGLIDING FATALITIES
JANUARY-MAY

HANG GLIDING FATALITIES

March 27, 2015 - Kelly Harrison

Kelly Harrison (56), a Master (H5) pilot, tandem and advanced instructor and USHPA member since 1990, suffered fatal injuries during a tandem platform truck circuit tow at Jean Dry Lakebed near Las Vegas Nevada. His 11 year old student also perished in the accident.

Amazing the kind of quality we can get from a very experienced tow administrator (Mitch Shipley) and an assembled team of experts in hang gliding, hang gliding instruction, hang gliding tandems and towing of hang gliders. They give their expertise to the local government officials who are investigating this accident, together they sift through the evidence, analysing the accident, complete the investigation, and release a report in a responsible manner.

Kelly Harrison (56), a Master (H5) pilot, tandem and advanced instructor and USHPA member since 1990, suffered fatal injuries during a tandem platform truck circuit tow at Jean Dry Lakebed near Las Vegas Nevada. His 11 year old student also perished in the accident.

So now we muppets know that we should avoid suffering fatal injuries during tandem platform truck circuit tows at Jean Dry Lakebed near Las Vegas Nevada as these would likely result in our 11 year old student also perishing in the accidents.

Fuck all these muppets who were speculating and making absurd accusations apparently for political gain on that forum that there was "damage control" or "suppression of information" by u$hPa. I so hope the Board expels them for acting in manners contrary to the interests of the corporation at its earliest convenience.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=41697
Two Dead on Hang Glider

Mitch Shipley - 2015/04/17 21:44:06 UTC

Mitch here, your Hang Gliding Accident Committee Chair. For the reasons Mark Forbes has articulated well (and a few more actually) the accident committee doesn't generally post to public forums. That said, its fair for the membership to wonder what happened in accidents and to hope that, especially for the serious ones, USHPA is actively engaged ASAP to find out what happened, derive lessons learned and put those out to the membership, quickly when warranted - that last part being the highest priority of the Accident Reporting Committee (ARC).

With regards to this accident, I'd like to offer some facts to assure our membership that their ARC and USHPA is in fact actively engaged. I learned of the accident the day it happened (Friday 27MAR15) and by midnight I had talked with an experienced local pilot who agreed to assist in the investigation and we had a good idea of who the tandem instructor was. A second local pilot was enlisted on Saturday and he contacted the Las Vegas police (the investigative lead for the accident) and offered our assistance in the investigation. By Sunday we had contacted the chairs of USHPA Accident Reporting, Safety, Towing and Tandem to assist in the investigation and conducted a conference call (that included the USHPA President, Executive Director and Attorney) to go over what we knew about the accident and form a continued plan of action for the investigation.

Since then we have independently analyzed what we have and continued to assist the local police with their investigation, which likely will take some time (weeks) to finalize, as is the case with most aviation accident investigations. Barring any findings that warrant telling USHPA pilots immediately for safety reasons (and we don't have any findings like that to date) there will be no reports about what happened until after the investigation is complete to preclude putting out speculative or incorrect information.

Excellent job, Mitch. Thanks to your expertise, dedication, professionalism, integrity I'm virtually certain that never again will we experience the tragedy of a Master (H5) pilot, tandem and advanced instructor and USHPA member since 1990 suffering fatal injuries during a tandem platform truck circuit tow at Jean Dry Lakebed near Las Vegas Nevada and having his 11 year old student also perish in the accident. (Were you born with this level of integrity or did you hafta have it all infused during your years at the US Naval Academy?)

And any chance we could get the names of the other u$hPa accident investigation team members so's we can thank and honor them for their contributions to the effort?

So when do you think the local government officials will issue their report and retract all the speculative crap we initially heard about the driver thinking the tether had been released and turning around and the glider slamming in still tethered to the truck?

News reports are of little use since they're written by people who have no idea how our sport works or what is typical.

I so do hope I live long enough to see the people who write the news reports get a better grip on how our sport works and what's typical.

With regards to this accident, I'd like to offer some facts to assure our membership that their ARC and USHPA is in fact actively engaged.

Never had the slightest doubt, Mitch. The results speak for themselves. (Tell me how you pieces o' shit sleep at night and what you see - if anything - when you look in mirrors.)

(General Post 7777)

[Tad Eareckson]

Manned Kiting
The Basic Handbook of Tow Launched Hang Gliding
Daniel F. Poynter
1974

"A bad flyer won't hurt a pin man but a bad pin man can kill a flyer." - Bill Bennett
"Never take your hands off the bar." - Tom Peghiny
"The greatest dangers are a rope break or a premature release." - Richard Johnson

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=32681
Tandem crash in LV (speculation thread)

Mark G. Forbes - 2015/04/01 03:46:29 UTC

We each agree that we are personally and individually responsible for our own safety. If we have an accident and get hurt, we agree in advance that it is solely our own fault, no matter what the circumstances might be. We sign at the bottom saying that we fully understand these things, that we accept them, and that we know we are giving up the right to sue anybody if an accident happens.

Those are fundamental tenets of our sport. We are all individually responsible for ourselves and our safety. We need to see and avoid all other pilots, avoid crashing into people or property and use good judgment when flying. If someone doesn't agree with those principles, then they don't need to be involved in our sport.

So the guy who controls both the degree and alignment of our thrust has absolutely no bearing on any aspect of the safety of a tow.

The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, Inc. - 2015/03/03
12. Standard Operating Procedure
10. Towing Administration
04. Aerotow Pilot Appointment (ATP)
-B. USHPA Aerotow Equipment Guidelines

05. A release must be placed at the glider end of the tow line within easy reach of the pilot.

Meaning in no uncertain terms that releases such as:

25-32016
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5548/14306846174_185f09082e_o.png


http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5530/14120804830_2aabd74d25_o.png
12-22509
01-1225
http://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7436/13700570583_049b5b7ded_o.png

02-1302
http://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7117/13700891354_b31d51ed74_o.png

03-1304
http://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2938/13700558193_0e0946218e_o.png


are noncompliant. There is no argument that these releases are within easy reach. So rather than the admonition to NEVER take your hands off the bar we have a regulation that you MUST take your hand off the bar - at least once EVERY flight and preferably and always in an emergency situation.

Donnell Hewett - 1980/12

Now I've heard the argument that "Weak links always break at the worst possible time, when the glider is climbing hard in a near stall situation," and that "More people have been injured because of a weak link than saved by one."

Towing Aloft - 1998/01

A weak link is the focal point of a safe towing system.

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2467
weak links

Jim Rooney - 2007/08/01

Whatever's going on back there, I can fix it by giving you the rope.
It's more of this crappy argument that being on tow is somehow safer than being off tow.

Rope breaks and premature releases are invariably GOOD things. Anybody who disagrees is just a douchebag muppet making crappy arguments.

So there really are no dangers associated with hang glider towing. When a Master (H5) pilot, tandem and advanced instructor and USHPA member since 1990 suffers fatal injuries during a tandem platform truck circuit tow at Jean Dry Lakebed near Las Vegas Nevada and his 11 year old student also perishes in the accident there are no negative factors relevant to the incident to report because we've eliminated all possible negative factors by defining them as positive factors.

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1563
Platform Launching (PL) Draft suggestions needed

Bob Kuczewski - 2014/06/06 17:21:51 UTC

I also like that this discussion emphasizes that breaking a weak link is something that can be practiced - just like we practice stalls - so we understand how to handle them and to not be afraid of them. I had a terrifying stall experience with my instructor when I was learning to fly airplanes back in the 70s. For a long time I feared getting close to stall. As long as I feared stalls, I was not spending much time getting comfortable with them, and that didn't make me a better pilot. So there's a lot to be said for safely learning to handle the inevitable rather than trying to come up with some way to avoid the inevitable.
Nice job Bill !!!!

Keep up the great work, Bob Show dickheads.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=41712
Oh jeez, in Las Vegas

Brian Scharp - 2015/05/28 16:13:41 UTC

Mitch Shipley - 2015/04/17 21:44:06 UTC

Since then we have independently analyzed what we have and continued to assist the local police with their investigation, which likely will take some time (weeks) to finalize, as is the case with most aviation accident investigations. Barring any findings that warrant telling USHPA pilots immediately for safety reasons (and we don’t have any findings like that to date) there will be no reports about what happened until after the investigation is complete to preclude putting out speculative or incorrect information.

What's the status of the investigation?

Said there wouldn't be any reports about what happened until after the investigation is complete to preclude putting out speculative or incorrect information, he put up a report on the fatal circuit tow at:

http://www.ushpa.aero/safety/Fatality%20Report%202015.pdf

so, obviously, the investigation is complete.

Joe Faust - 2015/05/28 17:15:26 UTC

One entity's investigation status: Report given to select group; video studied. Some people have their conclusions.
But we await for the video and known facts to be made available to the entire hang gliding community, so others may study and reach their own conclusions.

This has been up on Davis's dump for over five and a third hours now and nobody's denied it. So who are these very special u$hPa insiders entitled to see this life saving information that's being withheld from us muppets? And show me the SOPs which justify and permit this bias.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=41712
Oh jeez, in Las Vegas

Brian Scharp - 2015/05/29 15:13:24 UTC

Joe Faust - 2015/05/28 17:15:26 UTC

One entity's investigation status: Report given to select group; video studied.

Are you referring to this?

http://www.ushpa.aero/safety/Fatality%20Report%202015.pdf
Fatality Report 2015 (Jan-May)

March 27, 2015 - Kelly Harrison
Kelly Harrison (56), a Master (H5) pilot, tandem and advanced instructor and USHPA member since 1990, suffered fatal injuries during a tandem platform truck circuit tow at Jean Dry Lakebed near Las Vegas Nevada. His 11 year old student also perished in the accident.

Wouldn't we have heard back from Mark if the investigation were complete?

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=41697
Two Dead on Hang Glider

Mark G. Forbes - 2015/04/17 01:19:44 UTC

As to this specific accident, I've heard nothing as yet about the current state of the investigation. I'm confident that when it's complete and there's something to report, I'll hear about it then. Unless there's a compelling reason not to report on it, I'll pass along what I know. If there is a compelling reason which prevents me from discussing it, I'll tell you that too. If I haven't said anything about it, then it's because I don't have anything to say yet.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=42626
Ben Reese

Mark G. Forbes - 2015/05/29 20:51:19 UTC

Joe, put a cork in it. Seriously, we don't need your barely-conscious rambling like this stuff. Just stop. And Ben, don't bother to respond...it just encourages him to continue arguing. He's getting as bad as bobk.

Interesting what you find time to comment on and what you don't, Mark.

Here's my ranking of the all time top five hang gliding fatals in terms of public reaction:

1. 2012/04/28 - (Jon Orders) / Lenami Godinez-Avila
2. 2015/03/27 - Kelly Harrison / Arys Moorhead
3. 2003/03/29 - (Steve Parson) / Eleni Zeri
4. 2009/03/10 - Geraldo Bean / Andrew Scotland
5. 2005/09/03 - Arlan Birkett / Mike Del Signore

We wait two months for u$hPa's crack investigative team to get to the TRUTH of what REALLY happened - and then get a Dixie Cup's worth of cold piss splashed in our faces for our patience. And then Mark G. Forbes suddenly has better things to do with his time and keyboard.

Wouldn't it be great if another cute little eleven-year-old got killed on one of these tow launched tandem thrill rides sometime within the next couple months - preferably along with his Hang Five skydiving instructor. And reporters start looking into the response of u$hPa - and damn near everyone else in this crappy sport - to this one.

This is totally OBSCENE.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=42626
Ben Reese

Swift - 2015/05/29 23:53:51 UTC

Mark Corker Forbes

Hey Mark,
It's two months since an 11 year old and his USHPA Instructor were killed at Jean Lake.
You have yet to write anything of substance about the cause or give us a possible remedy, as you promised.
How about putting some effort into that and just ignore threads that don't involve or suit you.

Keep the heat on these lying sonsabitches.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=32681
Tandem crash in LV (speculation thread)

Brian Scharp - 2015/05/30 18:12:43 UTC

Mark G. Forbes - 2015/03/30 23:29:59 UTC

We have a very experienced tow administrator (Mitch Shipley) headed to Las Vegas to do an accident investigation, and when we learn what really happened we'll convey that information to our members.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=41697
Two Dead on Hang Glider

Mark G. Forbes - 2015/04/17 01:19:44 UTC

As to this specific accident, I've heard nothing as yet about the current state of the investigation. I'm confident that when it's complete and there's something to report, I'll hear about it then. Unless there's a compelling reason not to report on it, I'll pass along what I know. If there is a compelling reason which prevents me from discussing it, I'll tell you that too. If I haven't said anything about it, then it's because I don't have anything to say yet.

Eric Beckman - 2015/05/30 20:33:38 UTC

The report is available through the members only section of USHPA website.

Summary points to a combination of errors beginning with improper onsite repair to tow release and ending with no spotter to cut the glider loose once the lockout reached unrecoverable stage.

Also, don't mount wheels outside of control frame where they can entangle a slack line or one that gets too far to the side, which leads to unrecoverable lockout.

The report is available through the members only section of USHPA website.

- Is it? Can somebody besides you find it?

- Then I guess if Arys's family members want to see it they'll hafta purchase new thirty day memberships 'cause all theirs expired on 2015/04/25. Doesn't seem quite fair - seeing as how only one of them got to fly.

- Why? u$hPa slaughtered a general public tandem thrill rider. How come the general public thrill rider pool doesn't get access to this report?

- Is there a clause in there like:

THIS MESSAGE CONCERNS MATTERS OF INTEREST TO USHPA MEMBERS. IT IS BEING SENT ONLY TO USHPA MEMBERS. THE INFORMATION IN THIS MESSASE IS PROVIDED SOLELY AND EXCLUSIVELY FOR THE USE OF USHPA MEMBERS AND FOR USHPA PURPOSES ONLY. USHPA MEMBERS MAY USE THIS INFORMATION FOR THE SOLE PURPOSE OF BEING INFORMED AND DISCUSSING THE SAME EXCLUSIVELY WITH OTHER INTERESTED USHPA MEMBERS. THIS MESSAGE AND ITS INFORMATION MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, DISTRIBUTED, POSTED OR LINKED TO.

If so what are the penalties - beyond, of course, lifetime expulsion - for publishing, distributing, posting, or linking to it?

- So I guess either Mark G. Forbes is totally unaware of this report or he lied when he told us he'd pass along what he knew - with the definite implication that it would be to us muppets.

Summary points to a combination of errors...

- What does the REPORT "point to"? Or is a "SUMMARY" all we get?
- The summary could "point to" an electromagnetic pulse as a factor. That wouldn't necessarily mean there WAS one.
- Oh. And here I was thinking this was gonna be the first fatal in hang gliding history in which just one thing went wrong.

...beginning with improper onsite repair to tow release...

- Got that kids? Don't make any improper onsite repairs to tow releases.

- Do we get to hear what cheap piece o' crap was being used as a tow release? Just kidding.

- I guess there was also an improper onsite repair to THIS:

022-04610
http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2809/13746340634_a74b33d285_o.png


tow release tow release. That WOULD explain why Bob stayed on tow until impact.

- Funny:

-- None of Arys's family members said anything about the release or witnessing Kelly making an unsuccessful effort to blow it.

-- The driver made no mention of this to the police yet made a statement indicating he was primarily responsible for the double fatal.

-- We haven't seen the video of Kelly attempting to jerk this improperly onsite repaired release open the way we did with...

041-12611
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8645/16488820029_2d992bea34_o.png

066-13315
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8630/16055011863_d4a22b723e_o.png

109-15221
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8615/16487544910_41f57852ac_o.png

164-20729
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8649/16488797369_9b8f9f9d89_o.png


...Lin Lyons' incident.

- So did the summary actually state that this improper onsite repair to the tow release was an actual factor in the crash? Just kidding.

...and ending with no spotter to cut the glider loose once the lockout reached unrecoverable stage.

- It ENDED with a 55 year old skydiving instructor slamming into the dry lakebed with his eleven year old "student" - motherfucker.

- So part of the problem was that Kelly was operating in clear violation of the u$hPa SOP mandating a spotter with a hook knife on the back of the rig to cut the glider loose once a lockout has reached unrecoverable stages when flying with people of varying ages.

- Show me some videos of lockouts at recoverable stages.

- Bull fucking shit...

http://www.mynews3.com/mostpopular/story/Boy-killed-in-hang-glider-crash-volunteered-to-go/KUx_KfzD5U2qyDmi8MG9tw.cspx
Boy killed in hang glider crash volunteered to go first - News3LV

2015/03/30 00:37 UTC - Published
2015/03/30 17:38 UTC - Updated

Nathan O'Neal

The brief moments of trying to catch flight turned horribly bad in just seconds. "The truck took a turn ... the turn caused a little bit of slack in the line ... and when the slack came out of the line it yanked the glider and caused the glider to stall and nose dive into the ground," Corbin Moorhead said.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7b1L1okMsb8

Corbin Moorhead - 2015/03/29

The truck took a turn ... the turn caused a little bit of slack in the line ... and when the slack came out of the line it yanked the glider and caused the glider to stall and nose dive into the ground.

Once the glider hit the ground it was almost as if it was a dream, you know, it didn't seem real.

We weren't one hundred percent sure that something was going wrong until the glider nosedived. As soon as that happened it was almost as if a dream came over us and... It almost didn't seem real.

This thing began and ended in a goddam blink.

- WHAT fucking "LOCKOUT"? We have ZILCH in the way of statements or evidence that the glider ever turned or rolled a degree. All statements and photos we've been able to get our hands on are consistent in the glider having come STRAIGHT DOWN.

- If it WAS a lockout then how come the weak link didn't break?

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=41712
Oh jeez, in Las Vegas

Scot Trueblood - 2015/03/30 13:30:24 UTC

However, in the early stages of the tow, a lockout (which I have never even come close to in a tandem glider) combined with a stuck release could be catastrophic. But why world the weak link not fail? Maybe too strong of a weak link.

All your best u$hPa tandem thrill ride drivers know...

http://www.adventurousjoecoffee.com/the-buzz/

http://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2856/33773258031_4440b8e393_o.jpg
Provided by management: "Fly like a Superhero" 2012/11

"Free Bird..." Barbara K. "The hang gliding group" 2012/12


...an appropriate weak link with a finished length of 1.5 inches or less...

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=18868
Almost lockout

Ryan Voight - 2010/09/07 02:50:00 UTC

Weak link in truck towing WILL (read: should) still break in a lockout situation... but as everyone has already pointed out, it takes a lot longer because the glider can continue to pull line off the winch.

There is a limit to how fast line can come off the winch though... so the forces still build up, and the weaklink still fails.

... is supposed to fail/work in a lockout. If he was using an inappropriate Tad-O-Link then how come the focal point of the safe towing system isn't mentioned in the summary? Wasn't enough space for it?

Also, don't mount wheels outside of control frame where they can entangle a slack line or one that gets too far to the side, which leads to unrecoverable lockout.

- Well duh. And UNRECOVERABLE lockouts are the WORST KIND.

- Also. Meaning...

1-1916
http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5788/23461251751_e98b9c7500_o.png


...this "issue" had shit to do with this incident.

- So has Wills Wing issued an appropriate advisory on this outboard wheels configuration?

Brian Scharp - 2015/05/30 23:02:02 UTC

Thanks but I'm unable to find what you're referring to.

What's it matter? u$hPa Standard total crap whether or not it actually exists.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=32681
Tandem crash in LV (speculation thread)

Eric Beckman - 2015/05/31 05:12:41 UTC

While there may be some who disagree with particular aspects of the investigation and the conclusions, it appears to be well considered and thorough. My hat's off to those who contributed to the unpleasant task, and my hope is that we can apply the learning to help prevent another tragedy like this from occurring in the future.

https://ushpa.aero/member_file.asp?id=587
USHPA - Members Only File Download

Requires member login.

- Oh, you can bet your bottom dollar that this was WELL CONSIDERED. None of that bullshit immediately blurting out the truth within a few hours of impact the way Mark Frutiger did after his passenger slammed in at Quest a couple years back.

- My hat's off to those who contributed to the unpleasant task and u$hPa in general for restricting access to members only and burying it so well that nobody was able to find it for near three weeks.

- Yeah, let's apply the learning from this totally unprecedented towing fatal to help prevent another tragedy like this from occurring in the future. Who'da thunk. (Try to ease up a bit on the traffic, Jack Show assholes. We don't want any wires melting down.

I'll be starting a dedicated topic for this one.

http://www.kitestrings.org/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=84