You are NEVER hooked in.

[Steve Davy]

I have zero fear of launching while unhooked, and that's because I have a 100 percent bullet proof mindset that will insure that I won't.

That mindset is an absolute fear of driving my shin bones out the bottom of my feet or worse.

[Steve Davy]

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=35422
Red Bull Flugtag flying wing creation

Red Howard - 2017/06/21 21:34:52 UTC

Sure, we know about Flugtag. You win it not by flying, but with some crazy contraption that plummets from the deck and a "launch crew" of dancing clowns. It is entertainment, based on the sorry notion that humans can not fly.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7570/15661252749_7fcfe6445a_o.jpg

http://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3729/13148945555_cea849a8eb_o.png

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.shga.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=5730
Airspeed is What You Need - DON'T LET YOUR GUARD DOWN!

Frederick Wagner - 2017/07/28 05:15:53 UTC
Altadena

From Steve Murillo (who has flow from aircraft carriers):

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/US_Navy_051106-N-0119G-039_An_F-A-18F_Super_Hornet_launches_in_full_afterburner_from_the_flight_deck_of_the_nuclear-powered_aircraft_carrier_USS_Enterprise_(CVN_65).jpg

Arthur Simineau and I decided to go to Crestline this past Saturday. Winds on launch were light and variable, I'd guess 2-8 mph, blowing mostly straight in with the occasional minor cross from the NW.

I'm flying a Sport 2 155. As I approached launch with Art on my nose, hang check and hook in check were standard.

Damn! A hook-in check as standard is done as you approach the ramp? And here I've been all these years thinking that a hook-in check as standard is done just prior to launch. Guess I've gotta modify my procedure. Obviously much wider safety margin when you make sure you're hooked in long before there's any possibility of getting airborne. (Suck my dick, Steve.)

Standing on launch with wings balanced, wind at almost zero...

...safely connected to my glider...

...I could see what I thought was a nice breeze coming up the hill. I called for "clear" and Arthur obliged.

Good ol' Arthur.

I began my launch as I normally do...

...glider balanced on my shoulders, wing safely below the turbulent jet stream six inches above...

...which was not enough. About half way down the ramp I did not feel the glider picking up off my shoulders...

Toldyaso.

...as has been the case in almost every launch I've ever had.

Fuckin' dickhead.

By this time I was committed. I pulled in slightly on the nose and accelerated through the remainder of the ramp, using it all, barley clearing, but getting airborne.

And about that time executing my second hook-in check.

Art later reported that he observed the control bar falling, not rising, and thought to himself "this is going to hurt".

Fuck him too.

The fact that my adrenaline kicked in at the last second gave me enough umph to get into the air.

Just think how much adrenaline would've kicked in if you'd noticed that the wing was starting to lift itself off the slope but not you.

But here's the lesson learned:

Always a student!

When in doubt, especially at a strange launch, KEEP THE NOSE DOWN AND CHARGE THE HILL!

And always use an appropriate weak link with a finished length of 1.5 inches or less if you're tow launching. Ya don't wanna go totally nuts with this power, airspeed on launch thing.

Had I started the first half of my run as aggressively as the second half, I would not be writing this.

Also if you'd unhooked to adjust your wing camera, picked back up, and remembered the hang check and hook in check that were standard as you approached launch with Art on your nose.

We Kagel pilots...

Assholes.

...are so used to the fairly strong winds and steep launch at Kagel, we are used to getting airborne in just a few steps.

http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5566/14704620965_ce30a874b7_o.png

But Crestline launch is less steep, and the winds that day were very light. The perfect one-two combination to put an unwary pilot on the ropes!

Lesson learned, and I hope someone else will benefit from this.

Sincerely,
Steve R. Murillo

And this crap is posted in the Grebloville "Safety and Incidents in flight" subforum. And the first incident topic down from it is "Mid-Feb Hook-In Failure" - with ample discussion of what a goddam hook-in check is. Gawd how I despise this terminally stupid culture.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=11288
*???tandems???*

IcRus - 2009/03/29 18:54:17 UTC

Hey JR, you want personal attacks, here is one...
You are a MORON!!!

Well put.

We should all be ambassador's to our sport.

He is. The very essence.

So what is your record? How many Tandem incidents have you been involved in and what were the outcome?? (injury to yourself, student, deaths)???

For the purpose of the exercise - two dead.

I wouldn't let my worst enemy fly with you.

I would. It would take the place of an innocent victim.

I don't know you...

I've know his since near his Day One. Took about three encounters to totally despise him.

...and I have never seen you fly...

He doesn't fly hang gliders the way they're intended to be flown. He figured out very early in the game that if one flies thermals one can get his butt kicked by a newish Two on any given day. And then one has a problem selling oneself as God's Gift to Avaition. So he went to tugs because all tug pilots are amazing and tandem thrill rides 'cause one always has an excuse for coming down and gets to land on wheels all the time without anyone saying anything.

...but judging by your behavior here and O(z)ther sites...

Let's not forget CHGA.

...you seem like a Egocentric Moron...

Seem?

...who just wants to always play Devil's Advocate.

Playing Devil's Advocate is a GOOD thing and Jim Keen-Intellect Rooney never does that. Just spews whatever rot he feels like 'cause hang gliding culture has devolved to kiss tug driver ass at every opportunity.

Hey Just my $0.02
I am sure I am not the only one who feels this way...

Check out Team Kite Strings sometime.

Jim Rooney - 2009/03/29 19:12:53 UTC

IcRus

If people want to have a discussion, I'm happy to do so.

Unless they start scoring points. Then they go on Your Ignore list and you make a stink about "civility" and get the discussions looked down and your adversaries silenced and banned.

When they come at me guns blazing away...

That happen to you a lot? Despite the political clout you've cornered? Why do you think?

...sorry, I'm not just going to sit there and take it.

See above.

z7 I believe thinks that I slighted his friend. Everything he's said since has been retribution for this. He has a go at me any chance he gets.

Me too. Don't hear you responding to anything though.

I say anything between me and his friend is between me and his friend.

I say if they're issues relevant to the sport they're not.

By his logic I should be crucifying him for having a go at my dead friend... even before he was in the ground.

Can you quote him identifying you as a friend - before he was in the ground?

So you're certainly free to join him in bashing me.
That's fine.
Just don't expect me to sit back and take any of it.

Nah, I expect you to deploy some declare-victory-and-leave strategy whenever you start getting your butt kicked.

IcRus - 2009/03/29 19:45:51 UTC

OK JIm, you have a point, but you asked for personal insults

No need to ease up.

OK here is a discussion for you...

What is your record? any tandem incidents? injuries to yourself or your student?

Rooney doesn't do students - just bucket listers.

deaths?

Just curious...

IcRus - 2009/03/29 20:16:13 UTC

OK JIM, here is more "discussion" for you...

You don't mind naming "Wallaby" in this statement, so why is it that you don't name the park that you are referring to??? is it Quest, Highland??

Still curious...

Jim Rooney - 2009/03/29 20:32:51 UTC

Wow, didn't think I'd be taken as trying to hide anything...

Yeah, you operate under the delusion that you've been able to hide EVERYTHING.

No worries.... my info is all public knowledge.

Show us the video, motherfucker.

Ok... that "other flight park".
Highland Aerosports, Ridgely MD.

Not anymore. Not ever again.

Absolutely no accidents.

Ignoring two dead tug pilots, one dead free flyer, one seriously and permanently mushed brain, one broken neck on a ridiculously crosswind pro toad launch, the usual assortment of stunt landing broken arms.

You can drop the Wallaby/Quest BS at the door.

You can go fuck yourself. Ditto for anyone who tolerates you.

Me... clip in failure 2006, Coronet Peak NZ. Extreme Air hang gliding.

Yeah. Extreme. Just what we need.

(btw, everyone seems to miss the fact that it was _during_ my hang check).

What a bunch of stupid muppets we are for not getting something that's never been reported and makes no sense whatsoever.

Yes, tandem. Passenger was fine...

Despite you having dived her into the powerlines by dangling from the basetube.

...visited me in the hospital.

Told you what an excellent pilot you were, not to worry, this shit can happen to anyone.

Me? multiple injuries. Two and a half months in hospital.

Entirely on New Zealand's dime - 'cause of the great job you do in bring in tourist revenue.

"asking for personal attacks"
I was talking to z7, not you.
I was being sarcastic, snarky, whatever you wish to call it. He was having a go at me (again), and I was having a go right back.

As for playing devil's advocate... you can see it that way if you wish.
From my perspective, I'll voice the unpopular opinion when it's what I believe.

Belief based aviation - since you're totally clueless on aeronautical theory. Hook in.

I invariably get told to hook in when I do so.

Go fuck yourself. See? You DON'T invariably get told to hook in. (What the fuck does that mean?)

It ruffles some feathers, but that's all fine by me.

Yeah, what isn't?

I voice a lot of popular opinions as well, but that stuff doesn't cause a big stink, so people don't remember that.

So if you voice the popular opinion that the keel is the tube that runs down he middle of the glider that won't cause a big stink and people won't remember. Got it.

It's all good.
People can take away whatever they like.

Suck my dick.

whitemaw - 2009/03/29 22:25:48 UTC
Decatur, Georgia

This is not meant to be funny....I ask because I'm curious from a learning perspective. How do you have a clip-in failure during a hang check, and sustain severe injuries?

Easy. You do your hang check after you've run off the ramp. Same deal with hook-in checks and sidewire load tests.

Thanks.

Don't thank him now. He won't respond for another five days. Probably read his post and realized how off the scale stupid - even for him - it was.

Jason Boehm - 2009/04/01 18:37:18 UTC

id still like to hear an answer to this one

Marco Weber - 2009/04/03 14:45:47 UTC
Henson Gap

Jim Rooney - 2009/04/03 23:24:31 UTC

selbaer... I've detailed it all in a PM to Jason...

Oh. So if someone asks you a question on a public forum you answer it in a private message to somebody else. That also makes perfect sense.

I'm sure he'd be happy to pass it along to ya if you'd really like.

So why aren’t YOU happy to pass it along to HIM - but not the public forum - if he'd really like?

Jim Rooney - 2009/03/29 20:32:51 UTC

Wow, didn't think I'd be taken as trying to hide anything...

No worries.... my info is all public knowledge.

So very obviously "YOUR" info ISN'T all public knowledge and you ARE trying to hide stuff.

The ultra-short version goes something like this...

Oh. We get the ULTRA-SHORT version which goes SOMETHING like this. So what is it you're leaving out and distorting/misrepresenting?

...(dawning firesuit for the ensuing b*tchfest that always follows)....

Don't worry, you're just giving us the ultra-short version which goes something like this. Perish the thought that we should get a detailed honest report and the video.

The trouble with clipin procedures (or any procedure for that matter) is...

That "clipin" isn't an actual word.

...when interrupted...

By what?

...you must remember which step you are on.

Thank you so very much Mister Jim Keen-Intellect Rooney. None of ever understood anything about our decades of unhooked launches before.

Checklists are good things, but this is their inherent weakness.

Oh, that is so profound sounding. Lemme paraphrase... Checklists are a mile south of totally useless on the hook-in issue.

I went straight from clipping my passenger in (insert interruption here)...

No. YOU insert it, MOTHERFUCKER. What happened? Did she have really nice tits?

...to thinking I'd just finished my hang check.

Wow. And nobody's ever reported having done that before or watching someone die after having done that.

Note... I didn't say skipping it,

So far you haven't said much of anything.

I said thinking I'd just finished it.

Oh, so you didn't DELIBERATELY fail to perform a hang check. And a bit earlier you didn't DELIBERATELY fail to hook in. What a most unfortunate coincidence.

Not only were hangchecks legally mandatory...

Despite the fact that their well known by people with functional brains to INCREASE the likelihood of unhooked launches - as you so beautifully demonstrated with this incident.

I had two other people helping me with them.

1. Group intelligence at its finest. Take the IQ of the stupidest individual in the group and divide by the number of the members in the group.

2. How 'bout your student/victim? Did you brief her on this issue that would have you three dildos flying her into the powerlines? Sure ya did. But this is the ultra-short version goes something like this.

None of us caught it. How's it happen?... get in a rush.

Guess you can't tell us the reason for the rush that almost killed your victim and put you into the hospital for two and a half months 'cause this is the ultra short version.

So yeah... while people find it quite easy to brush it all off saying "always do a hang check and you'll never launch unhooked"... I equate this to saying "always hook up your caribiner and you'll never launch unhooked"... while both are equally as true... both are equally as useless as advice.

So...

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4247
Hook in failure in New Zealand

Jim Rooney - 2006/09/25 11:37:18 UTC

i've been preaching this stuff for a long time... that's the irony... i was one of those 'hang checks will save you' guys.
christ... my email was jim @hangcheck.com!
i was the religious finatic about checking.
i did do hookin checks (after hang checks)
i did all the stuff you guys are saying will save you

guess what?

all that stuff is good stuff to do... it helps with other problems. but it helps with other problems

if you think that you're immune to omissions because you this, or you do that, then god help you.

...what revelation did you have that convinced you to stop doing hook-in checks (after hang checks)? Way too time consuming? 'Specially when you're in a rush?

You rather conspicuously haven't mentioned hook-in checks in this ultra short version. With what other problems do they help?

A hook-in check isn't something one does AFTER HANG CHECKS, dickhead. It's something one does JUST PRIOR TO LAUNCH - like it says in your fucking rating REQUIREMENTS.

And can you cite anyone who makes an effort to run hook-in checks having ever launched unhooked?

Flame on kids.
No one ever listens anyway.

Maybe they'd listen better if you weren't just another arrogant, condescending, incompetent asshole who nearly kills himself and his passenger by omitting the most critical steps in the setup, preflight, and launch procedures.

flyhg1 - 2009/04/04 12:42:45 UTC

Like most other "procedures", every clip in procedure I have ever heard of will achieve its intended end result if performed as designed every time. Unfortunately, we're all human and because of this we are incapable of complying with the most essential part of that statement, regardless of the procedure, and no matter how "good" we think we are.

It's funny how the brain works sometimes. In my case, I knew I would never launch unhooked because I used the aussie method right from the time I made my first mountain flight. You would never see me walking around with my harness on, ever. After flying the mountain for a couple of years one day a few of us were back at the training hill having some fun. I had just made a flight, unhooked at the bottom, and carried the glider back up. I sat down under the glider for a minute to rest while I waited for the next guy to come over for his flight. Then, someone suggested that I make another flight to try something he wanted to experiment with. I agreed, and said I'd be ready in a minute after a little more rest.

So there I am, sitting under the glider with a harness on. In my head, situationally I know absolutely (subconciously) that this means I am hooked in because of the discipline I believe I have ingrained into myself after two years of using the aussie method at the mountain. Without actually conciously thinking about it my brain already knows I am hooked in (just like Jim was absolutely certain that he had checked when he hadn't; confusing a past memory with a current situation). So, I pick up the glider and launch unhooked. I cannot even begin to tell you how shocked I was that this happened, and it was a real eye opener for me as far as realizing where the real weaknesses lie in how we do things (in my opinion anyway).

A few years ago I watched a friend launch in his sailplane with the canopy unlatched. He had previously closed it and checked that it was latched, then opened it again due to a delay with the launch. When he reclosed it he didn't actually latch it, but in his mind he confused the memory of latching and checking it the first time with the second time. Just as the glider lifted off the runway the canopy flew open, and there was nearly an accident.

Some of you may think that you are immune to something like this because of the way you do things. My advice in that case - look out. I was lucky, I got to learn this lesson without suffering serious injury, or worse.

I so do love it when these Aussie Methodist dickheads launch unhooked - exactly as and for the reason any common sense discussion predict and previous reports verify they will.

Jim Rooney - 2009/04/04 17:20:08 UTC

It's funny how the brain works sometimes
So true.

Do tell us all about how our human brains work - using yours as the yardstick of course. And now that you have all this extra time on your hands after having given us the ultra short version that goes something like this.

I catch people out on our scooter tow system this way from time to time. Being at a flight park, you can't really launch unhooked (none of the regulars footlaunch at our place). But then along comes the scooter... and exactly the same scenario as your training hill one.
Fortunately with the scooter, the only damage is to the ego.

Didn't you just tell us that you catch them? So obviously you don't - you're LYING. So tell us how you and your fellow scooter tow drivers aren't as incompetent and negligent as you and your crew were at Coronet Peak, what's causing all these rushes for all these unhooked scooter tow launches, why you're obviously not teaching, requiring, doing ANY hook-in checks.

Really opens some eyes.

Good thing. Get their eyes open there and they won't launch unhooked from McConnellsburg and Whitwell.

Steve Wendt even warns his students that he will catch them out. Then he intentionally rushes them or distracts them at the right moment.. and wamo... he's gotten every single person he's done this to (so far).

And then they go to Whitwell and Coronet Peak and launch unhooked anyway. So what's his purpose in rushing and distracting them at the right moment? Does it prevent them from being rushed or distracted where they're playing for keeps?

Excellent stories man.

Yeah man. Excellent storries. Man. (Keep calling everybody "man". It makes you sound so manly.)

08-19
http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5277/30076449505_1f6ed2f804_o.png

Matt Pericles - 2009/04/05 00:26:32 UTC
Roswell, Georgia

When I was using the school's training harnesses and knee hangers, I kept the carabiner in my right hand until I hooked in.

Hard to see anything going wrong with that plan.

I figured it would be hard to forget that way.

Pure genius. We should all do this. Hard to imagine needing to do anything prior to launch that would require the use of BOTH hands.

Of course, we always did a hang check...

Of course you did. ALWAYS.

...plus we were under our instructor's supervision.

Guess he made sure you always kept your carabiner in your right hand until you hooked in.

Now that I have a pod harness, I use the Aussie method and a hang check.

Great! The two methods we've just seen fail in the past couple posts.

SlingBlade - 2009/04/05 04:18:09 UTC

I was recently doing hill training (I got my H2 with aerotow) and I launched unhooked when doing my preparation flights at the bottom of the hill. Sure, there was zero chance of injury, and to carry the glider back you pretty much need to unhook, but it was still a huge eye opener. I didn't realize I wasn't hooked in until I had ran a LONG way. If I had been on a mountain I would of been dead or seriously injured. I decided then and there that I will follow the "aussie" method when at the mountains, and I hope to god that is good enough, because I can't ignore the fact that 1 simple mistake is enough to kill you in this sport.

See above, dickhead.

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=31781
Another hang check lesson

Alan Deikman - 2014/09/23 19:47:06 UTC

Amazing how when this topic comes up every time you see people argue the same arguments over and over again. It has been a classic (although niche) endless Internet flame topic.

I suspect that some of the parties that have posted in threads like these before are refraining now since they have learned that it is nearly (completely?) impossible to change people's minds on the topic.

For my part I will just refer you to the classic Tad Eareckson essay which I call "the gun is always loaded" which is a bit overworked but probably all you will ever need to read regarding FTHI. A lot of people will find it gores their particular sacred Ox, but I have never seen anyone point out a flaw in his logic.

[Tad Eareckson]

Bill Bryden - 2000/09

2000/04/26 - Richard Morris Zadorozny

This is an old topic with another tragic ending. Richard Morris Zadorozny died April 26 when he launched without being hooked into his glider. We discussed the topic of hook-in failures a year and a half ago and Luen Miller and Doug Hildreth discussed it almost annually for the decade before I started authoring this column.

Richard was an advanced pilot with at least 14 years of hang gliding experience. He was a very active pilot, flying once and often twice a week year round. On the fateful day, he was planning to go X-C from a site about 50 miles east of San Diego with a couple of other pilots. Richard prepared to launch and had two spectators assist holding his side wires. Another pilot behind Richard observed his hang strap and saw that it was looping up from the back of his harness up under one wing, suggesting he was hooked in, but it probably was simply secured to his shoulder area.

He did not lift the glider to do a hook-in check before launching and was reportedly distracted, talking to the wire-men just before launch about the relative safety of hang gliders versus the motorcycles that they drove. Richard did not loiter on launch and presumably was rather impatient to join a buddy in the air.

Upon launching, the glider dove quite steeply and sustained this dive significantly longer than typical diving launches in light winds. His glider was oscillating constantly and it was obvious to other pilots observing that something was not right. After clearing a rough part of the canyon in front of the launch his glider made an abrupt right turn, winged over and quickly accelerated nose down toward the ground. Observers noted that the wings were still intact and the glider had not folded up or failed catastrophically. He dove out of sight behind the ridge of the ravine at high speed from about 100 feet up and was heard to impact a tree. Attempts to radio him were unsuccessful and 911 assistance was promptly summoned.

We don't normally publish accident reports or portions of them verbatim but perhaps hearing the message from a witness will cause the lesson to sink in a bit deeper than what I can communicate. Here are portions of the report:

What would have saved his life: 1) If he would have hooked into his glider before walking to launch, he would have lived. 2) If he would have done a hook-in check at launch by lifting the glider or walking forward until the hang strap went tight, he would have noticed that the strap was not going tight, corrected his mistake and lived. 3) If the wingmen had been experienced pilots instead of whoever was handy, they would have known what to look for, stopped him from launching and he would have lived. 4) If I would have checked him before he went to launch, he would have lived.

What might have saved his life: 1) If he would have let go of the control bar with one hand (admittedly not an easy thing to do) and deployed his parachute instead of trying to fly the glider for such a long distance (he was not going to make it to any safe landing area), he might have been able to save himself.

A pilot who had flown with him more than I said that he had seen Richard on other occasions not hook in until after he had carried to launch. I have myself been told more than once by far more experienced pilots that I shouldn't walk to launch hooked in to my glider because if a gust comes I could be blown over with the glider. I know from reading the incidents reports in Hang Gliding magazine that few if any people have ever been seriously hurt this way, yet many pilots have been killed from not hooking in. I now firmly believe that the benefits of hooking in before going to launch far outweigh the problems. I think that all the pilots in our area should rethink this idea. In this case it would have saved Richard's life.

The author of the accident report is quite correct. In the last decade there have been five hook-in related fatalities and dozens of serious injuries. And, of course, there were more before that. During the same time there have been zero pilots killed from gliders being gusted moving up to launch or even while on launch. In the three years I've been receiving the reports and examining all the details, there have been zero reports of a glider being gusted while moving to launch or on launch. The risk of a gust is a hypothetical risk with no data in recent years (and I doubt very little in previous years) to substantiate that it is a significant concern. On the other hand, four to five hook-in related accidents or incidents are reported each year. In 1991 there were 10 reported failures with two fatalities.

2000/04/26 - Richard Morris Zadorozny

Richard Morris Zadorozny - 1945/03/16-2000/04/26

This is an old topic with another tragic ending. Richard Morris Zadorozny died April 26 when he launched without being hooked into his glider.

Nah, Richard Morris Zadorozny died April 26 when he launched without CHECKING TO VERIFY THAT HE WAS hooked into his glider - as he had done his entire career before.

We discussed the topic of hook-in failures a year and a half ago and Luen Miller and Doug Hildreth discussed it almost annually for the decade before I started authoring this column.

And what was Doug Hildreth's recommendation, how well did it comply with USHGA's relevant SOP, how many USHGA instructors taught and certified students in accordance, how many USHGA hang gliding participants were ever slapped on the wrist for total career long violations of the SOP?

Richard was an advanced pilot with at least 14 years of hang gliding experience. He was a very active pilot, flying once and often twice a week year round. On the fateful day, he was planning to go X-C from a site about 50 miles east of San Diego...

And certainly don't burden us with the actual identification of the launch - a site about 50 miles east of San Diego is more than good enough for us muppets. Garnet Peak, Laguna Mountains, San Diego County - off of Sunrise Highway (way the fuck out in the middle of nowhere).

...with a couple of other pilots.

And also please don't burden us with their names.

Richard prepared to launch and had two spectators assist holding his side wires. Another pilot behind Richard observed his hang strap and saw that it was looping up from the back of his harness up under one wing, suggesting he was hooked in, but it probably was simply secured to his shoulder area.

Well, it's a real safe assumption that in a situation like that the pilot's gonna be hooked in. The percentage of the times he won't be is totally microscopic.

He did not lift the glider to do a hook-in check before launching...

Of course not. If he had and had been hooked in he'd have gotten a totally lethal false sense of security.

...and was reportedly distracted, talking to the wire-men just before launch about the relative safety of hang gliders versus the motorcycles that they drove.

Undoubtedly why he didn't do his usual lift and tug hook-in check. Got distracted talking about hang glider safety issues - stalls, whacks, ground loops, unhooked launches...

Richard did not loiter on launch and presumably was rather impatient to join a buddy in the air.

And would never get to.

Upon launching, the glider dove quite steeply...

Who gives a flying fuck what happened after he'd committed?

We don't normally publish accident reports or portions of them verbatim but perhaps hearing the message from a witness will cause the lesson...

What lesson?

...to sink in a bit deeper than what I can communicate.

What bullshit do you WANT to communicate?

What would have saved his life: 1) If he would have hooked into his glider before walking to launch, he would have lived.

Definitely. Never once in the history of the sport has anybody who's hooked into his glider before walking to launch launched unhooked. Physical impossibility.

2) If he would have done a hook-in check at launch by lifting the glider or walking forward until the hang strap went tight, he would have noticed that the strap was not going tight, corrected his mistake and lived.

And what would be the downside?

3) If the wingmen had been experienced pilots instead of whoever was handy, they would have known what to look for, stopped him from launching and he would have lived.

Yeah, right. Watch what happens at Whitwell a bit over five years after this one.

4) If I would have checked him before he went to launch, he would have lived.

Obviously. And after you'd checked him before he went to launch it would've been a foolish waste of time to check him just prior to launch.

What might have saved his life: 1) If he would have let go of the control bar with one hand (admittedly not an easy thing to do) and deployed his parachute instead of trying to fly the glider for such a long distance (he was not going to make it to any safe landing area), he might have been able to save himself.

Hard to argue with that one. Been done. A proven system that works.

A pilot who had flown with him more than I said that he had seen Richard on other occasions not hook in until after he had carried to launch. I have myself been told more than once by far more experienced pilots that I shouldn't walk to launch hooked in to my glider because if a gust comes I could be blown over with the glider.

Total bullshit. It's ALWAYS perfectly safe to move gliders to launch hooked in. Just ask any Australian. Or Craig Pirazzi.

I know from reading the incidents reports in Hang Gliding magazine that few if any people have ever been seriously hurt this way, yet many pilots have been killed from not hooking in.

And of course you also know from reading the incidents reports in Hang Gliding magazine that all of the people who moved their gliders to launch unhooked would have all come out smelling like roses if they'd instead been hooked in. It's virtually impossible to get so much as a banged shin moving a glider to any launch in any conditions hooked in. Plus there's always unlimited crew around for that extra superfluous mile of safety margin.

I now firmly believe that the benefits of hooking in before going to launch far outweigh the problems.

Couldn't have said it better. And now that I think about it... The farther back from launch we hook into our gliders the less likely we are to unhook. So we should probably look into widening hike-in trails so we can set up our gliders, preflight, hook in, hang check in the parking lots.

I think that all the pilots in our area should rethink this idea.

And fuck the pilots not in your area. They're on their own.

In this case it would have saved Richard's life.

So would've looking at him and not assuming that he was hooked in - ASSHOLE.

The author of the accident report is...

...as much of a total fucking douchebag as you are, Bill.

...quite correct. In the last decade there have been five hook-in related fatalities and dozens of serious injuries. And, of course, there were more before that. During the same time there have been zero pilots killed from gliders being gusted moving up to launch or even while on launch. In the three years I've been receiving the reports and examining all the details, there have been zero reports of a glider being gusted while moving to launch or on launch.

Which, of course, would have ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with people having enough common sense to not move their gliders while connected in dangerous circumstances and conditions.

The risk of a gust is a hypothetical risk with no data in recent years (and I doubt very little in previous years) to substantiate that it is a significant concern. On the other hand, four to five hook-in related accidents or incidents are reported each year. In 1991 there were 10 reported failures with two fatalities.

Suck my dick.

Richard M. Zadorozny
1945/03/16 - 2000/04/26
HOOK IN
Fly high go far
Into the Eternities
Soar with the Angels

So much more poetic and inspirational than:
ALWAYS assume you are NOT hooked in.

http://www.snwburd.com/bob/trip_reports/sheephead_n2_1.html
Bob Burd's Trip Reports

The next two peaks were similarly short, Garnet Peak and Garnet Mtn. I was atop the first around noon and took in the finest views of the day. This was a fine summit for a long lunch and nature appreciation moment (not that I did so myself, but I would recommend it to others!). In contrast, Garnet Mtn is a mere bump along the highway, and without the HPS directions it would not garner any attention at all. The most interesting feature was a memorial plaque near the TH to a Richard Zadorozny who had died almost six years earlier. The epitaph on the memorial and signs indication the area had been used in the past for hang gliding, led me to conclude the 55yr-old gentleman had met his demise in a hanggliding accident. I found nothing by googling him later.

Well, hopefully you'll be able to now. And thanks bigtime for supplying this major piece of the very sad but very important story.

Anonymous comments on 09/07/10:
I stumbled across this article while also googling the gentleman who had supposedly died in a hang gliding accident. I was at that peak yesterday and saw the plaque so was curious as well. Like yourself, I've come up with nothing in my online search of the gentleman, other than what you've written here. Spectacular view from that point, though, isn't it?

Yep. And the ones with the really spectacular views are often the least survivable after you've run off assuming you're connected to your glider.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.crestlinesoaring.org/node/2605
visiting pilot Sunday Nov 4 2018

Dan DeWeese - 2018/11/14 04:43

Visiting pilot on borrowed glider seen crashed on the ridge west of Crestline launch.

Initial reports were of glider upside down with broken wing and no sign of pilot.

911 dialed and Crest Forest Station 25 responded in force:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgVi5Njcb8c


At about 0:45 to 1:10 in the video, you can see the broken glider, and the bridle and cut parachute lines draped across the brush. The pilot is on the other side of the brush.

The pilot, along with his Tenax Cosmic harness and Gopro camera were airlifted to Loma Linda after sheriff's helicopters used sirens and loudspeakers to clear the airspace.

Glider retrieved the following day showed it was assembled correctly and all critical assembly connections still intact. Frame tubing indicated failure at right half of crossbar and right outer LE at the sleeve. Sail had tears chordwise near root and at tubing failure zones.

An extended bridle and parachute lines would ordinarily lead to the conclusion that there was a failed reserve toss. But if so, the pilot should have been no more than a harness main away from the hang point. Instead, he was at the parachute end of the bridle/parachute system.

This indicates a failure of the harness setup.

The carabiner and chute bridle, still encased in the neoprene streamlining sleeve, and most of the harness pitch line, were still attached to the glider's hang loops. The pilot was still in his harness when airlifted and the family had possession of it which left questions unanswered until it could be examined. The following Friday I got to view the harness and it showed all critical components intact, including the single suspension main.

The harness main was not connected to the carabiner and consequently, the glider. The harness main was run through the neoprene sleeve along with the parachute bridle but somehow not connected to the carabiner.

The pilot did a full hanging hang check on launch with a local pilot's assistance. He made a good launch.

It was a huge bit of bad luck that he got through the hang check without dropping to the dirt. There was enough friction within the neoprene sleeve and support from the pitch line to allow the hanging check, and at a glance, it would appear okay, as there was a carabiner connected to the glider and a strap and pitch line connected to the carabiner.

The pitch line would have accepted a fair bit of the pilot's weight but after launching as the pilot flew longer, the hang strap must have slipped through the neoprene sleeve and eventually, the pilot would have been supported only by his grip and the pitch string. The pilot flew long enough to be observed flying normally, making a few passes below Billboard, then a few moments later he was seen on the hillside.

I went back to the crash scene Thursday Nov.8 looking for the parachute canopy and deployment bag thinking they might have been severed from the bridle just before impact but they weren't there. Thought they must be still in the chute container on the harness. Nope. Turns out it got carried out by the responders as can be seen in the video at 8:57.

The pilot's onboard video is still with his family and has not been reviewed.

Did the pilot do a recent repack? Just get this harness from someone else? We may never know the preceding events that led to the main not getting connected to the carabiner, but we know the outcome.

When servicing your gear, be diligent in ensuring all components are connected properly. Check again.

At this writing, the pilot is still in the intensive care unit at Loma Linda Med Center. He is far from ok.

Will post updates when received.

http://www.rmhpa.org/messageboard/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=4258
HG accident in Vancouver

Tom Galvin - 2012/10/31 22:17:21 UTC

I don't teach lift and tug, as it gives a false sense of security.

And neither lift and tug nor the idiot Aussie Method would've made the least difference on this one.

HOWEVER...

If a fraction of the time and effort involved in the idiot hang check had been re-allocated to a preflight inspection...

Never mind. Thoughts and Prayers.

P.S. And gee, Dan. Can't imagine why this:

http://ozreport.com/13.071
Hook In

Davis Straub - 2003/04/08 12:56:08 UTC

Look down (Crestline launch, CA, USA)

didn't make a flying fuck's worth of difference either.

[Steve Davy]

http://www.crestlinesoaring.org/node/2605
visiting pilot Sunday Nov 4 2018

Sounds like an incident to me. I wonder why the Crestline folk don't make that a

http://forum.hanggliding.org/viewforum.php?f=24
Incident Reports

You do not have the required permissions to read topics within this forum.

required permissions deal just like Jack Asshole does.

[<BS>]

Or they could just wipe the content (an incidental glitch?) like...

http://www.shga.com/forum/phpBB3/viewforum.php?f=3
Safety and Incidents in flight

or stick with accident and present 0 content.

http://ushawks.org/forum/index.php
Accident Reports

P.S. Dan deserves some credit for spelling bridle and carabiner correctly more than once after...

tie some hackle on the keel . she'll float higher?

[NMERider]

Recent tandem FTHI posted on YouTube. And I thought Jon Orders quit giving joy rides?
Detailed report on XC Mag:
http://xcmag.com/news/video-jaw-dropping-swiss-mishap-tandem-flight/
Video: Jaw-dropping tandem hang gliding 'mishap' | Cross Country Magazine - In the Core since 1988

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLBJA8SlH2w

[Steve Davy]

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=36272
What can i say?

0 Replies 100 Views

That is a copy and paste harvested from Jack Assholes (no apostrophe) non-idiot asylum. The most spectacular video in the history of hang gliding and not a single reply. Go figure.