SAFA Skysailor Magazine

29 March | April 2021 SKY SAILOR get into a legs-down orientation in the harness when a landing is imminent. AIRS #1119 takes us west of Beechmont to the Wicked Wings Club site of Ma Ma Creek, east of Toowoomba. The wind was blowing straight onto the face of the ridge and the day was thermic, but the conditions were inconsistent. After launching in a cycle, PIC turned right, soared along the ridge then turned left away from the hill and headed back towards the launch point, pushing forward. At a point in front of launch, the pilot then turned back into the hill, impacting terrain on his back with his feet up in the stirrup. PIC then removed himself from the harness and moved about. Emergency services were called, and the pilot was removed by ambulance with suspected spinal injuries. The suspected injuries turned out to be a stable vertebra fracture with no need for stabilisation and without neurolog- ical damage. Pilots are reminded to never turn towards the hill if there is insufficient vertical and horizontal clearance, particularly if the wind is pushing onto the hill. Most importantly, if a back or neck injury is suspected – DO NOT MOVE and immediately seek emergency services assistance. Staying at Ma Ma Creek is AIRS #1282. PIC was flying their paraglider and was about 10 minutes into their second flight. PIC had turned away from the ridge (normal left turn) when the wing experienced an asymmetric collapse on the left and rotated left. PIC controlled the collapse and turn, but the wing then took a symmetric front collapse. At this point, the pilot had lost considerable altitude, determined they were too low to deploy their reserve and adopted the PLF position. PIC impacted a rock and suffered a fractured tibia below the knee. The pilot had previously undertaken SIV training which assisted in controlling the collapses. They had purchased the wing (U-Turn Crossrock, mid to high EN-B) on the basis of the recommendation of a foreign distributor. This wing is the light version of the Blacklight 2 and test results are not available. A test of an older version of the Blacklight mentions behaviour consistent with those experienced by the pilot in this incident. Although PIC considers this wing to be a fine XC machine, they also feel that it is too dynamic for them and the pilot has since purchased a wing with more benign flight characteristics. Next, New South Wales We now head south into NSW and AIRS #955. PIC was launching their paraglider from Strzelecki Lookout (New- castle). The wind was SE, but as the wing came overhead a wind shifted further east was detected. PIC turned left off launch, heading north. It immediately became apparent that there was no lift and by heading into wind for even this short time, the pilot would not be able to make it back to the beach LZ. PIC concentrated on landing on a rock shelf at the water’s edge before a section of open sea. A hard landing without a flare was made, the wing overflew the pilot and one tip landed in the sea. While exiting the harness, the sea pulled the wing and harness over the edge of the rock shelf and into the water. PIC was able to walk back to the beach LZ to be greeted by Emergency Services personnel. Both wing and harness were retrieved, but were retired from service. The pilot suffered bruising to feet and ankles. Pilots are advised to abort a launch if safe to do so if there is a change of wind conditions prior to launch commit. If this is not possible, turn towards the nearest safe landing area and assess the conditions in flight. When faced with the pros- pect of a part of the wing landing in the sea, it is imperative that pilots get out of their harness immediately on landing. Carry a hook knife if flying coastal sites to aid extraction from lines if a water landing was unavoidable. Now down to Stanwell Park. In AIRS #1150 our very expe- rienced PIC had undertaken a 30km cross-country flight south from launch. It was their first flight on a two-line PG wing. However, the pilot was not in peak condition after a later than usual night. During the flight, the wind shifted from its initial southerly flow through to the east and tended north-easterly in the latter stages of the flight. PIC was heading back to launch on full speed-bar when on the south side of Broker’s Nose near Corrimal they hit rotor and decided to head for an alternate landing site. The pilot then experienced a collapse of the wing and deployed the reserve, making a tree landing. Emergency services were called, and the pilot was extracted without injury or damage to equipment. Before launch, all pilots must make an honest assessment of their physical and mental condition. If not completely on your game, you need to reconsider your need to fly. If you decide to fly, you need to give yourself an extra margin of safety in order to deal with the unexpected. This is especially At Single Hill near Hobart, Tasmania: Pilots from l-r: Brad Harris, Iain Clarke, Edgar Rincon Photo: Airie Merlin