Pokhara Dragonfly

[Tad Eareckson]

Tad Eareckson - 2018/08/22 17:05:00 UTC

The following ten / first page of posts in this topic originally appeared in the "Weak links" topic.
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http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=50607
Towing fatality

George Sychrovsky - 2016/12/01 00:25:04 UTC

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ew_UR3TrHxs

Undoubtedly using a Tad-O-Link that didn't break when it was supposed to because nobody wanted to be inconvenienced.

http://english.onlinekhabar.com/2016/11/23/390133
Ultralight crashes in Pokhara, pilot dead, passenger injured - OnlineKhabar

OnlineKhabar - 2016/11/23 14:58

Ultralight crashes in Pokhara, pilot dead, passenger injured
Pokhara, November 23



Russian pilot Alexander Maximov died after an ultra-light met with an accident at Chapakot of Kaski district on Wednesday.

The accident occurred at Laurak, Kaskikot VDC, at around 10 am.

Police, with help from locals, had rushed Maximov to Gandaki Medical College Hospital from the crash site. The hospital declared him brought dead.

The ultra-light (9N-A-LL), belonging to Avia Club, had crashed while taking off from Bamdi of Chapakot VDC, according to Kaski district police office. Canadian national, Jilen Mary, has suffered minor injuries in her hands.

According to eyewitnesses, the ultra-light crashed 200 metres away from the runway. A preliminary investigation suggests that the crash occurred due to technical problems. Mohan Mani Adhikari, inspector at Baidam ward police office, said they are investigating the accident.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=25656
The young girl who died hang gliding solo

Jim Rooney - 2012/03/06 18:34:14 UTC

ND's onto it.

No one ever wants to wait for the accident investigation... they want to know "NOW DAMNIT!" and there's always a lot of self-serving arguments surrounding it.

And it's always the same.
The same damn arguments get drug up every time. And they're all just as pointless every time.

We have a system in place.
It works.
Let it work.

Our procedures are well established at this point in time and there are no gaping hidden holes that need to be addressed immediately.

RR asked what the status was.
ND's provided the answer (thank you).

Please take a deep breath. And wait.
Accident investigations involving fatalities take a long time. And by long, I mean they can take years.
(yes, years, I'm not kidding)

The sky is not falling.

http://www.myrepublica.com/news/9714
My Republica - Seti flashflood alert pilot dies in Ultralight crash

Santosh Pokharel - 2016/11/23 20:20

Seti flashflood alert pilot dies in Ultralight crash



Seti flashflood alert pilot dies in Ultralight crash

These file photos show the ultralight aircraft that crashed in Pokhara on Wednesday killing its Russian pilot Alexandr Maximov (inset). Photo Courtesy: Avia Club

POKHARA, Nov 23: Russian pilot Alexandr Maximov, who had helped minimize considerable damages by timely alerting the locals about massive incoming flash flood in Seti River nearly four years ago, died in an unfortunate ultra-light aircraft crash in Pokhara on Wednesday morning. He was 62.

The ultra-light aircraft he was piloting lost its balance shortly after it took off and crashed near the runway. Police and sources at the Avia Club in Pokhara, where he worked as senior pilot and trainer, informed that he breathed his last while undergoing treatment at a local hospital.

A Canadian woman, Jilleni Volker, who was traveling in the ill-fated aircraft with the call sign 9N-ALL, was injured in the accident that took place at the club's own Lauruk-based airfield in Kaski district. She sustained severe injuries in the crash and is currently undergoing treatment at a Pokhara-based hospital, according to the police.

"Preliminary investigation shows that the ultra-light aircraft lost its balance and crashed after a rope tied to a hang-glider snapped while being pulled by the aircraft,” informed Inspector Mohanmani Adhikari of Baidam Police Post, adding that massive amount of blood loss due to head injury ultimately led to the death of the pilot.

Having over 5,000 hours of flight experience in Pokhara, Maximov was considered an experienced pilot who had been flying the ultra-light aircraft in Nepal for the past 14 years.

He was also the first to fly "Danphe", an ultra-light aircraft engineered by a team of Nepali youths for the first time in the country.

Maximov has a huge contribution in producing quality Nepali pilots. "His untimely death is an irreparable loss to all of us," said Santa Lamichhane, a pilot working at the Avia Club.

"He was an excellent mentor and a very good person. We have lost our main instructor and an awesome colleague."

This is not the first incident of ultra-light aircraft crash in Pokhara. About three years ago, another aircraft of Avia Club had crashed, killing pilot Stephen Shrestha and a Chinese tourist.

Thousands of tourists visit Pokhara every year to enjoy flight in ultra-light aircraft while being mesmerized by the breathtaking views of the surrounding hills and mountains.

Currently, three companies offer ultra-light flights in the tourist-hub.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=15716
weak links

Davis Straub - 2009/04/26 22:05:31 UTC

Tad obviously completely lacks social intelligence and probably a few other forms of intelligence. Also, he obviously has other mental health issues.

Also his reasoning is circular and when cornered breaks out in outrageous jumps, pulling dead rabbits from flatten hats.

But on the reasonable level I think that we can all agree that weaklinks should be as strong as possible without compromising their function which is to keep the hang glider from being broken by tow forces (and therefore hurting the pilot).

Tad doesn't agree, but the rest of us no doubt do, that we are in a partnership with the tug pilot, and that he needs to be protected also, and therefore our weaklink has to be less than his.

I'll check my weaklinks once again, to see if they are about 1.5 G.

Shay Campbell - 2016/11/23 20:44
University of North Texas

There seems to be 1 ultra-flight that crashes and kills everyone on board every year flying out of Pokhara. I did it in September 2015 and like 2 weeks after I successfully flew (which was very cool), a South African tourist and her pilot crashed and weren't even found until like a year later. Those Ultra-Flights need more regulation. The British company was the one I used and they appear to be the best, for anyone wanting to safely do it for a few hundred dollars.

ดันแคน ขุน ดี - 2016/11/27 01:17
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst

"Appear to be the best" based on what criteria... if you don't know then you probably shouldn't be saying this.

http://kathmandupost.ekantipur.com/news/2016-11-24/pilot-dies-in-ultralight-crash.html
Pilot dies in ultralight crash - National - The Kathmandu Post

I AM very sorry about the death and destruction and that it happened to a Russian operator in Nepal rather than some really deserving US motherfucker like Brad Gryder or Bart Weghorst (Jim Keen-Intellect Rooney no longer being a viable option) but otherwise...

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

"The greatest dangers are a rope break or a premature release." - Richard Johnson

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24846
Is this a joke ?

Jim Rooney - 2011/08/26 17:34:33 UTC

Remember, a weak link improves safety.
Say it over and over and over in your head until it sinks in.

Thank you, God.

P.S. - Have so far been unable to download:

https://cloud.mail.ru/public/DrBy/PHDhnGydF
НЕПАЛУПАЛ(((.mpg / Облако Mail.Ru

We REALLY NEED that one.

[Steve Davy]

I have tried to get that video downloaded many times now and still no luck.

[TheFjordflier]

Just click on the heading, and it will download automatically. (Chrome browser)
But the only two programs I have that are able to play it are the VLC and KMPlayers.

[birukobu]

here you are
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B3Mnw5bS_W8OT1dGS2daV1BBc3M

[Tad Eareckson]

Got it - as an MP4. Thanks bigtime.
---
2018/08/22 17:15:00 UTC

Also posted as:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2llvtN_sPk
dead

[Tad Eareckson]

And the OTHER end of this Dragonfly's flying life:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srqdn3Rcp08
Dragonfly Aircraft in Himalayas
Avia Club Nepal - 2015/12/12
dead

http://www.myrepublica.com/news/9714
My Republica - Seti flashflood alert pilot dies in Ultralight crash

"Preliminary investigation shows that the ultra-light aircraft lost its balance and crashed after a rope tied to a hang-glider snapped while being pulled by the aircraft," informed Inspector Mohanmani Adhikari of Baidam Police Post, adding that massive amount of blood loss due to head injury ultimately led to the death of the pilot.

Note that to date, approaching a couple weeks subsequent to this tug and pilot full and passenger half totaling inconvenience crash not one single Dragonfly culture motherfucker has:

- taken the slightest issue with the report that the ultralight aircraft lost its balance and crashed after the rope tied to the hang glider snapped while it was being pulled by the aircraft

- elaborated to the slightest degree on the issue of the "rope" snapping

And we know that the severity of the rope snap couldn't have exceeded:

http://ozreport.com/5.126
Flytec Dragonfly

USAFlytec - 2001/07/14

Steve Kroop - Russell Brown - Bob Lane - Jim Prahl - Campbell Bowen

The tail section of the Dragonfly is designed so that it can accept in-line as well as lateral loads. Furthermore the mast extension, which is part of the tow system, is designed to break away in the event of excessive in-line or lateral loads. The force required to cause a breakaway is roughly equivalent to the force required to break the double weaklink used on the tail bridle. More simply put, the mast would break away long before any structural damage to the aircraft would occur.

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3600
Weak link question

Jim Rooney - 2008/11/24 18:54:27 UTC

I'm confused. I never said the tug's ass was endangered. That's why we use 3strand at the tug's end. Using 4 strand can rip things off (it's happened). When forces are achieved that do break a 3 strand, your tail gets yanked around very hard, which does have implications as to the flight characteristics and flightpath. AKA, I have no desire to allow you to have the ability to have that effect on me when I tow you... esp near the ground.

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3600
Weak link question

Jim Rooney - 2008/11/24 23:38:01 UTC

It's not "uncharted territory"... you're just not aware of what's been done. Just as you weren't aware of the reason for 3 strand links on the tug.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24846
Is this a joke ?

Davis Straub - 2011/08/26 14:04:52 UTC

We had six weaklink breaks in a row at Zapata this year. Russell Brown (tug pilot, tug owner, Quest Air owner) said go ahead and double up (four strands of Cortland Greenspot). He knows I used his Zapata weaklink in Big Spring (pilots were asked to tell the tug pilot if they were doing that).

Dr. Trisa Tilletti - 2012/06

Of course, the FAA would legally allow us to use a much stronger weak link, up to 675 lbs. as we described earlier for a Falcon 3 tandem, but it may not be practical to use such a strong weak link on a tug's V-bridle.

Historically, a 520 lb. double loop of 130 lb. green spot line has been the de facto standard for weak link used on the V-bridle for both the tandem and the tug. Technically, this can be legal if the V-bridle on the tug is longer and has a more acute angle than the V-bridle on the glider, which results in a vector angle that effectively makes the weak link on the tug act slightly stronger than the weak link on the glider. There has been a trend lately for some tandem operators to go with about a 400 lb. weak link on both the tandem glider and tug V-bridles, rather than 520 lbs., to help protect the equipment from large stresses. If tandem operators think that, practically, a 520 lb. double loop weak link is too much for a tandem, it is way too much for a solo pilot.

Solo hang glider pilots should not place a 520 lb. double loop weak link on their V-bridle, unless they get specific approval from the tow operator. It could be hard on the equipment and could be illegal if the tug is using a weaker weak link. It is also far beyond USHPA's nominal 1g recommendation.

Compare/Contrast what the Dragonfly's executing and handling no sweat in this video with what happens when the very same bird loses its balance as a consequence of the towline snapping.

[Tad Eareckson]

And now of course...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srqdn3Rcp08


Let's do what we always do after these disasters - erase the history to the maximum extent possible, pretend the victims, perps never existed. My only surprise is that it wasn't trashed before I got my hands on it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srqdn3Rcp08
Dragonfly Aircraft in Himalayas

Avia Club Nepal - 2015/12/12

"Dragonfly" - an ultralight aircraft in Himalayas, towing Avia Club Nepal hang gliders...
Special "Thank You" to Bob Bailey - the designer of this wonderful aircraft for visiting Avia Club Nepal in Pokhara and sharing his experience with us.
Want to fly a hang glider? Don't hesitate to contact us.
http://AviaClubNepal.com

But I DID get my hands on all 344.6 Megs of it, got it safely downloaded and backed up, and we all know what Yours Truly does with material Industry motherfuckers don't want anybody to see.

Hope everybody got to see it. It's a BEAUTIFUL SPECTACULAR video and the best looks at the Dragonfly that have ever gone up on the web. 1080 resolution, 17:44 length. (Only 15 fps but there's nothing critical going on anywhere so not a problem.)

This stills project is gonna be MASSIVE. It'll require many hundreds of shots and I'm not looking forward to the immersion in it but it's sumpin' that really needs to be done.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=50607
Towing fatality

Ben Reese - 2016/12/05 09:20:42 UTC

This is tragic and very sad.

Hard to see but looks like rear/tail was lifted?
Looks like pilot pushed stick forward by accident while reducing throttle?
Then pilot reset throttle to late after losing airspeed while towing a glider.

Why is anyone towing with a passenger on-board?

Same reason people fly gliders with pa$$enger$ on board.

Looks like the engine is Rotax 912.
Was it a turbo?

- Not if it was a 912.

- Why would anybody tow a hang glider...

Jerry Forburger - 1990/10

High line tensions reduce the pilot's ability to control the glider and we all know that the killer "lockout" is caused by high towline tension.

...with a turbocharged engine?

- Bet he was wishing it had been in his final moments before impact.

What's the altitude of takeoff?

- 'Bout the same as the altitude on landing.
- 2650 feet. (28°14'31.51" N 083°52'58.62" E - coordinates of the red roofed (hangar?) building you can match in the pulled video.)

I think it's pretty low density altitude.

So you think the air would have been pretty THICK - like your skull.

David Williamson - 2016/12/13 11:18:43 UTC
Sussex

Mis-rigged? Was the pilot trying to apply right aileron with both hands to counter an un-commanded left turn?

Maybe.

Mark G. Forbes - 2016/12/13 20:05:30 UTC

Looks to me like it started to pitch up and roll left, he hit the tow release (left hand on lever)...

No - idiot.

...to dump the HG, and then unrecoverable dive in.

He wasn't DIVING. HE was FALLING - stalled.

I'm wondering if he stalled it and was too low to recover.

Duh.

Gerry Grossnegger - 2016/12/13 22:26:31 UTC

Looks like he was pulling back on the stick, hard, with both hands. Wouldn't that raise the nose even higher?

Apparently not.

Doesn't look like the person in the back seat is interfering with the control stick pitch-wise, can't tell roll-wise.

She's not doing anything more than attracting extra gravity.

I think that's the throttle lever, with a both-brakes lever on the front of it (he holds it in during rollout, so it can't be a tow release).

He dumps the throttle for a second after he knows it's gone bad, maybe hoping that it would give him control back, then throttles up again right away, just before impact.

The whole flight was pretty much just before impact.

I don't see any sign that he's got a glider on tow.

He squeezes the release lever with his right/joystick hand. (They really should put those things within easy reach so's we postmortemers could tell what's going on a lot easier.)

Mark G. Forbes - 2016/12/14 03:13:14 UTC

You're right...I should have watched that more closely.

And also should've had a fuckin' clue how tugs are put together.

Seems like the stick is fairly far back, and the sudden loss of roll control suggests a stall/spin.

Ya think?

Jim Rooney - 2016/12/16 07:08:04 UTC
Queenstown

Around 800MSL (2,600ish feet)
Towing a glider, about 1/2 tank of fuel.
Experienced pilot, not necessarily experienced tow pilot.

- Bullshit. We see him flying that Dragonfly on the pulled video dated 2015/12/12 - nearly a year prior to the crash. He had experience coming outta his ass.

- Tell me how towing EXPERIENCE - other than having the ability to squeeze a bicycle brake lever on the joystick, same way an eight year old kid on a bicycle does - had shit to do with anything on this one.

- Show us muppets some videos comparing/contrasting inexperienced and experienced tug drivers so's we can learn to tell the difference.

Towing with a pax in the backseat?

Yes. Also wearing a red jacket and white helmet.

Among other mistakes...

912S
Around 800MSL (2,600ish feet)
Towing a glider, about 1/2 tank of fuel.
Experienced pilot, not necessarily experienced tow pilot.
Towing with a pax in the backseat?

Those are now all defined as MISTAKES - people of varying ages. (And half a mile high but late fall / pretty cool morning - non issue.)

He horses it off the ground. You can hear the prop cavitating.

Yeah, Jim Keen-Intellect Rooney. We can all hear the prop CAVITATING. You have to really horse a 912 Dragonfly off the ground to get the prop to cavitate. Normally you can only get a prop to cavitate when you're flying underwater.

Presumably, but not seen, the glider's high on him... very likely due to the heavy tug (higher stall speed).

Stupid fuckin' muppet on the glider. Getting high on the tug and make him horse it off the ground and nose up so much that the prop cavitates.

He's uncoordinated (lack of rudder).

Probably should put the rudder back on to tow next time.

He hits the tow release...

And gives up pitch and roll control of the tug? No, wait. On the tug they have the release actuator on the joystick. It's just on the glider that you have to surrender pitch and roll control...

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=48425
Oregon flying on the edge

Davis Straub - 2016/07/12 19:25:33 UTC

I am thinking that perhaps the conditions had little to nothing to do with this accident. I'm thinking that the pilot made a mistake, letting go of the bar with one hand. and the pitch became far too great far too fast.

This comes from what Russell told me, what April told me and what the first responders told Belinda.

...(which is all we have) in order to hit the release.

...and instead of pitching over (to counter the nose up from the full aft stick), he cuts the throttle. Then realizing (presumably) his mistake...

Mistake? Singular? I thought he'd made nine mistakes by this point.

...he puts it full throttle again, but he's already nose down and stick back (stalled) so it just accelerates him into the ground.

Probably going for a quick kill / painless death.

The uncoordinated flying would have made his left wing heavy. Trying to lift it with roll would exacerbate the stalling due to adverse yaw and increased AOA (lower flaperon = higher effective AOA).

Hard to watch.

Why don't you do something like that sometime? Make it lotsa fun for people to watch.

Yes, there's no sign of the glider on tow.

Then what's your thinking on why he hit the tow release?

There's more information known about this incident than the video shows.

Kinda like?:

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


How's that CAA investigation coming along, Jim?

Brian Scharp - 2016/12/16 16:08:04 UTC

http://www.myrepublica.com/news/9714
My Republica - Seti flashflood alert pilot dies in Ultralight crash

Santosh Pokharel - 2016/11/23 20:20

"Preliminary investigation shows that the ultra-light aircraft lost its balance and crashed after a rope tied to a hang-glider snapped while being pulled by the aircraft," informed Inspector Mohanmani Adhikari of Baidam Police Post, adding that massive amount of blood loss due to head injury ultimately led to the death of the pilot.

So has there been any confirmation that the tow line was released on the tug's end?

Of course. Why else would the tug have crashed and burned?

Jim Rooney - 2016/12/18 03:17:20 UTC

Watch the video again.
I'll explain more when I get home.

From the...

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24846
Is this a joke ?

Jim Rooney - 2011/08/31 09:25:57 UTC

Only later, when we're visiting them in the hospital can they begin to hear what we've told them all along.

...hospital?

Short answer, yes he does. No, it doesn't matter.

If it doesn't matter then...

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3600
Weak link question

Jim Rooney - 2008/11/24 18:54:27 UTC

I'm confused. I never said the tug's ass was endangered. That's why we use 3strand at the tug's end. Using 4 strand can rip things off (it's happened). When forces are achieved that do break a 3 strand, your tail gets yanked around very hard, which does have implications as to the flight characteristics and flightpath. AKA, I have no desire to allow you to have the ability to have that effect on me when I tow you... esp near the ground.

Jim Rooney - 2016/12/18 03:58:53 UTC

He hits it at 1:32.
Watch his right hand... you'll see his fingers grip around the release just after he brings his left hand over to the stick.
He pulls back and releases at the same time. You can see his right hand is again holding the stick fully again as he reaches over with the left and cuts power.

Wills Wing / Blue Sky / Steve Wendt / Ryan Voight Productions - 2007/03

NEVER CUT THE POWER...



Reduce Gradually
Increase Gradually

Did the release fail?

Fuck yeah...

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=16384
Tow Release Malfunction

Jim Rooney - 2010/03/26 20:54:43 UTC

Dude, quit bogarting that stuff
How's it go? Never say never.

Bent pin releases are indeed very very reliable. But 100%? Nope. It's exceptionally rare, but they jam. All mechanical things do.

It's a mechanical thing. It HAS TO fail. I'm just really astonished that it's taken so long to get a record of a Dragonfly release to fail. Maybe the pin needs to be bent more.

No clue.

About this specific incident or just in general?

I can tell you though that if you hit that release and it fails you don't tend to hit it and let it go... you instinctively smash that handle into the stick as if it didn't get pulled back far enough.

How do you know that, Jim?

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

Jim Rooney - 2007/08/01 13:47:23 UTC

Whatever's going on back there, I can fix it by giving you the rope.

You're saving all us muppets by giving us the rope all the time... So how many of us have been crashed behind you due to the delay you regularly experience when attempting to blow the Dragonfly release?

We know the glider was released at some point due to the witness's report "after the rope broke" (witnesses will nearly always call a release a rope break).

Yeah, we have tons of data on that. And the police would've just talked to the tourists. No way in hell would they have talked to the Avia Club Nepal staffers or examined the "rope" to determine why it "broke" - seriously injuring a Canadian tourist, totaling the plane, killing the pilot.

Did the release fail and then the rope broke? No idea.

Yeah, the release probably failed and then the rope probably broke. No fuckin' way a weak link or the Dragonfly tow mast breakaway would've failed.

Were they flying with weaklinks? No idea.

Right. Bobby Fucking-Genius Bailey set them up a year prior and they weren't using weak links. And the tow mast breakaway doesn't count as a weak link.

Assuming there's an investigation (no idea what the procedures in Nepal are)...

We'll just add that to the list of things about which you have no idea.

...they'll know these things.

- But in the meantime you're perfectly OK having a major international news report out there reporting that the most important and catastrophic Dragonfly crash in the history of the plane went down because it lost its balance because of a tow rope break. Ditto for Bill Moyes, Bobby Fucking-Genius Bailey, the Industry in general...

Sergey Kataev - 2016/12/19 17:53:56 UTC
Scotland

As far as I understand, the tandem has been released and landed fine.

So you have inside info that it was a tandem - as I suspected.

CG was way back (PAX in the back, 912, and no ballast in the front) and not quite enough power for tandem tow + PAX weight.

And no parachute either, right? Not that that would've been an issue on this one.

I could see a gradually developing stall progress to incipient spin, release and power off for spin recovery, dive, power on, but he was too low to recover from dive.
Before the incipient spin, pilot's knees don't show enough right rudder IMO, anyway M&B seems like the primary factor.

Best assessment/analysis I've heard so far. 'Cept:
- I don't:
-- understand why one would chop power
-- know what "M&B" is
- You don't say anything about the propeller cavitation issue.

A wee bit over 24 hours now and nobody's taken any issue with his post - particularly none of the Dragonfly Industry douchebags.
---
Tad Eareckson - 2018/08/25 20:15:00 UTC

Mass & Balance

[Tad Eareckson]

Jump to next post:
http://www.kitestrings.org/post9860.html#p9860

https://cloud.mail.ru/public/DrBy/PHDhnGydF
НЕПАЛУПАЛ(((.mpg / Облако Mail.Ru
1080 - 02:31:23

2016/12/23 - 28°14'31.51" N, 83°52'58.62" E - 2650' MSL
- 912 Rotax Dragonfly - 9N-ALL - (prop spins counterclockwise (when viewed from aft)) - Alexandr Maximov / Jilleni Volker
- Wills Wing Tandem Falcon

01-00000
- 01 - chronological order
- -0 - minutes
- 00 - seconds
- 00 - frame (24 fps)

To best see what's going on download images and flip through them sequentially. (URLs, as usual, get you full resolution.)

Too bad they fuzzed his head. Don't know what that was supposed to accomplish.
---
Control surfaces check. Watch action of flaperons mixer linkage aft of passenger (rocking and fore/aft).
Note passenger at no time interfering with movement of her joystick.

01-00000
http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/465/31378686010_82972cf8eb_o.png

02-00617
http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/415/31635067221_57f2f3d672_o.png

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05-00721
http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/520/31635063881_8de2858290_o.png


Starboard flaperon and elevator visible.

06-00809
http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5593/31635062951_95d7f6d348_o.png

07-00820
http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/432/30941550573_4b84436a89_o.png

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[url\]http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/336/31751322375_f5d2404703_o.png[/url]

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12-02220
http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/570/31751320705_b3ccdf73a5_o.png


Brake lever released.

13-02620
http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/274/31635055791_bba4edcefa_o.png


Stopped.

14-03212
http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/456/31604431072_51d52120b4_o.png

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Takeoff.

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Starboard flaperon deflecting up.

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Check backseat joystick and elevator to see what's going on when view of pilot's joystick is blocked from view.

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Release lever grab.

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Rolling left.

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Power chop.

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Resuming power.

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Passenger gripping seat frame.

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Starboard flaperon deflects down and mixer linkage moves forward and rocks to port as pilot releases joystick.

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Full throttle.

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Contact.

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Jump to top:
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[Tad Eareckson]

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=50607
Towing fatality

Jim Rooney - 2016/12/16 07:08:04 UTC
Queenstown

Around 800MSL (2,600ish feet)

Cowboy Up - Wyoming (Idaho actually - by about 550 yards) is over twice that - 5630 feet.

43°10'45.91" N 111°03'00.83" W

And they tow summer only...

912S

...on a 582 - tandem. So big fuckin' deal.

Towing a glider...

Yes, thank you. We too read that in the first reports.

...about 1/2 tank of fuel.

Yes. We too can see the fuel level. Relevant how - other than a modest weight reduction?

Experienced pilot, not necessarily experienced tow pilot.

http://www.myrepublica.com/news/9714
My Republica - Seti flashflood alert pilot dies in Ultralight crash

Santosh Pokharel - 2016/11/23 20:20

Having over 5,000 hours of flight experience in Pokhara, Maximov was considered an experienced pilot who had been flying the ultra-light aircraft in Nepal for the past 14 years.

What issues did you see in the video relevant to issues of towing?

Towing with a pax in the backseat?

Didn't do any worse than Mark Knight - flying solo in smooth evening air with nothing behind him.

Among other mistakes...
He horses it off the ground. You can hear the prop cavitating. Presumably, but not seen, the glider's high on him... very likely due to the heavy tug (higher stall speed).

- And flying really fast the whole time.

- Bullshit. His stall speed may be higher but he's flying about at it the entire time until he stops flying and goes into brick mode.

- If he HAD really been high on him...

Dr. Trisa Tilletti - 2011/11

HigherEDUCATION
THE ART AND ZEN OF LAUNCH CARTS

However, there is no upper tow point when pro-towing, so there is nothing but your body weight to hold down the nose of your glider while launching and towing. In that case, you should hold your weight farther forward than at best glide speed when lying prone in the cart just prior to launch, because your body needs to be farther forward while towing. In fact, vertical lockouts are all too common with pro-towing, because sometimes pilots cannot move far enough forward to keep the nose down. A vertical lockout is very dangerous for both the tug pilot and the hang glider pilot.

Pilots should also realize that the cone of safety is much smaller when pro-towing than when using a normal 3-point aerotow bridle with an upper tow point, and that lockouts occur much quicker when pro-towing. For these reasons, we discourage pro-towing here at Cloud 9. It is a safety risk that some top comp pilots may wish to take for a miniscule amount of better high speed glide performance, but otherwise is a risk that just isn't worth taking for the vast majority of other pilots who aerotow.

...wouldn't he have been doing him a big favor by nosing him down?

He's uncoordinated (lack of rudder).

He hits the tow release and instead of pitching over (to counter the nose up from the full aft stick), he cuts the throttle.

Not a very good job considering what a highly qualified and experienced tug pilot. Have we considered...

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31052
Poll on weaklinks

Jim Rooney - 2013/03/05 01:32:20 UTC

Carful who you put stock in mate.
Calling blindrodie a fool? Seriously? Easily discounted?
You may not have an understanding of who you're brushing off... In lieu of some people that have been listening to the rantings of, I kid you not, a convicted pedophile. I'm willing to look past the messenger... To a point. But gimme a break... You're blowing off a tug pilot instead?

...giving convicted pedophiles shots? Or at least unconvicted pedophiles.

Then realizing (presumably)...

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=30971
Zach Marzec

Jim Rooney - 2013/02/12 18:00:27 UTC

But back to the root of my anger... speculation.

Jim Rooney - 2013/02/28 01:17:55 UTC

Well said Billo
I'm a bit sick of all the armchair experts telling me how my friend died.

Ah but hg'ers get so uppity when you tell them not to speculate.

...his mistake, he puts it full throttle again, but he's already nose down and stick back (stalled) so it just accelerates him into the ground.

Why do you think...

http://ozreport.com/3.066
Weaklinks

Davis Straub - 1999/06/06

During the US Nationals I wrote a bit about weaklinks and the gag weaklinks that someone tied at Quest Air. A few days after I wrote about them, Bobby Bailey, designer and builder of the Bailey-Moyes Dragon Fly tug, approached me visibly upset about what I and James Freeman had written about weaklinks. He was especially upset that I had written that I had doubled my weaklink after three weaklinks in a row had broken on me.

I told him that I would be happy to publish anything that he wrote about weaklinks, but I never received anything from him or anyone else at Quest.

The problem with strong links (neither Bobby Bailey nor I was aware at the time of the US Nationals that pilots were doing this) is that they endanger the tug pilot. If the hang glider pilot goes into a lock out, and doesn't break the weaklink (because there isn't one), they can stall the tug.

...his weak link didn't break when it was supposed to? The glider was using a Tad-O-Link which overrode the one on the tug's bridle?

The uncoordinated flying would have made his left wing heavy. Trying to lift it with roll would exacerbate the stalling due to adverse yaw and increased AOA (lower flaperon = higher effective AOA).

Bull fucking shit. Lower flaperon = a wing capable of flying at a slower airspeed. Has shit to do with angle of attack.

Hard to watch.

Until you consider that if it had instead been a colleague of Alexandr's he'd have been participating in the cover-up and disinformation campaign the same way they are.

Yes, there's no sign of the glider on tow.

The kind of observation one gets only from a keen intellect such as yours.

There's more information known about this incident than the video shows.

When has that ever NOT been the case following an Industry crash? (This one's not a bad counterpart for Kelly Harrison / Arys Moorhead - 2015/03/27.)

Brian Scharp - 2016/12/16 16:08:04 UTC

So has there been any confirmation that the tow line was released on the tug's end?

Jim Rooney - 2016/12/18 03:17:20 UTC

I'll explain more when I get home.

Short answer, yes he does. No, it doesn't matter.

How is that incoherent babbling in any manner an answer to Brian's yes / no / I don't know question?

Jim Rooney - 2016/12/18 03:58:53 UTC

He hits it at 1:32.
Watch his right hand... you'll see his fingers grip around the release just after he brings his left hand over to the stick.
He pulls back and releases at the same time. You can see his right hand is again holding the stick fully again...

Wasn't his right hand ALWAYS holding the stick fully? Or have we seen some partially held stick issues prior to this point?

...as he reaches over with the left and cuts power.

Well hell, if the Dragonfly responds anything like a hang glider cutting the power...

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

Jim Rooney - 2007/08/01 13:47:23 UTC

Whatever's going on back there, I can fix it by giving you the rope.

...should have fixed whatever problems he was having with an outcome no worse than...

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31052
Poll on weaklinks

Davis Straub - 2013/03/06 18:29:05 UTC

I'm happy to have a relatively weak weaklink, and have never had a serious problem with the Greenspot 130, just an inconvenience now and then.

...a bit of inconvenience.

Did the release fail?

- Yeah. We see him squeezing the lever, the investigators are reporting that the ultra-light aircraft lost its balance and crashed after a rope tied to a hang-glider snapped while being pulled by the aircraft, nobody from Avia Club Nepal is contradicting that account, never once in the history of Dragonfly aerotowing has there been a single report or account of the Dragonfly release having the slightest issue, there's been no advisory of a problem with the Dragonfly release stemming from this incident, but the release may have failed.

- No. But the weak link obviously failed to fail/work. No comment on that? After all the volumes written on how deadly the Tad-O-Link is regarding the safety of the tug pilot...

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3380
Lauren and Paul in Zapata

Lauren Tjaden - 2008/07/21 14:27:04 UTC

Yesterday I chased Paul again. The tow rope weak link broke when Paul locked out and the weak link he got from Tad did not break. Russell said it was about the worst he has ever had his tail pulled around. Anyhow, I would advise against those weak links, though Tad's barrel releases do seem better able to release under stress. After Russell got a new rope and Paul recovered, he was late leaving and got trapped under some cirrus.

...I'm a bit surprised that we haven't heard a single syllable on that issue.

No clue.

Yeah, you should have that tattooed on your forehead - douchebag.

I can tell you though that if you hit that release and it fails you don't tend to hit it and let it go... you instinctively smash that handle into the stick as if it didn't get pulled back far enough.

'Cause you're so deeply concerned about the safety of the muppet on the other end, right?

We know the glider was released at some point due to the witness's report "after the rope broke" (witnesses will nearly always call a release a rope break).

And the investigators will always take the word of the wuffo witnesses over that of the commercial tandem pilot who experienced the "rope break".

Did the release fail and then the rope broke? No idea.

Two things that have never before happened in the history of Dragonfly aerotowing suddenly lining up with a commercial driver trying to force has overloaded and underpowered plane into the air. Pretty likely.

Were they flying with weaklinks? No idea.

- Then why don't you ask your dear friend, Bobby Fucking-Genius Bailey, and get an idea? Or did you tire of sucking him off all the time?
- There was a tow mast breakaway and tow mast breakaway protector. We can confirm that from the pulled video.

Assuming there's an investigation (no idea what the procedures in Nepal are), they'll know these things.

When was the last time we got a follow-up report...

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=25656
The young girl who died hang gliding solo

Jim Rooney - 2012/03/06 18:34:14 UTC

Accident investigations involving fatalities take a long time. And by long, I mean they can take years.
(yes, years, I'm not kidding)

The sky is not falling.

...several years after listening to the crap that came out the same evening?

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=9230
Departing the launch cart

Jim Rooney - 2007/09/01 02:39:53 UTC

Which brings us to the reason to have a 914 in the first place... you need one.
Something made you get a 914 instead of a 582. 914s are horribly expensive to own and maintain. If you own one, you need it... it's a safety thing. Short runways, tall trees, whatever. You've got a 914 to increase your safety margin. So when it comes down to my safety or having a conversation, we're going to have a conversation. Wether you chose to adjust is then up to you.