SAFA Skysailor Magazine

SKY SAILOR 19 November | December 2019 Tree Landings Bright, in the alpine region of NE Victoria, is a glorious place to fly, with a fantastic, sculpted and maintained artificial turf launch surface. It’s also surrounded by plantation forests. A few months back, we saw a rash of AIRS reports lodged where pilots had made tree landings. The following are a sample of recent reports involving tree landings; there are more, and they are not restricted to Bright or to paragliders. In AIRS #1088, a new PG2 pilot under supervi- sion launched in strong winds. An increase in wind was not expected but did occur. The pilot could not find lift and decided to head to the LZ. Finding themselves downwind, the pilot applied speed bar but could not penetrate and ended up in a tree alongside the paddock the pilot was aiming to land in, 10m above the ground. A tree rescue was carried out and the pilot was safely helped from the tree. There are a few messages from this report. Firstly, supervising pilots need to be especially careful in declaring conditions are okay for a new pilot. The wings they usually fly do not penetrate as well and when heading into wind, will sink a lot faster than penetrating. Just because conditions aren’t meant to pick up doesn’t mean they won’t. Secondly, for supervised pilots: If you’re not happy, don’t launch. In windy conditions, aim upwind of your landing area – it is easier to drift back than it is to penetrate forward. Finally, as this pilot did, once in a tree, stay put; don’t unbuckle and try to get down, wait for rescue to come to you. In AIRS #1083, the PG2 pilot was thermalling when the pilot encountered a patch of sink that could not be exited while scratching over the ridge line and the pilot ended up in a tree. A similar event occurred in AIRS #1086, where a PG2 pilot fell out of a thermal, low over Marcus ridge and landed in pine trees. The take away here is to always allow yourself enough clearance to the terrain to enable a safe exit path. What to do if it looks like a tree landing is unavoidable? Pick a low tree or bush. If that choice isn’t available, pick the sturdiest tree specimen you can see. What next? Let’s look at paragliders first… You should aim to land in the crown of the canopy. This may not be possible if you’re heading for the side of the canopy. In both cases you need to flare and perform a spot landing. If landing in the crown, you’re trying to plop yourself into it; if into the side, your flare shouldn’t be so hard that your wing flies backwards – your aim is to snag the canopy in the tree. In all cases, grab a branch and hang on. For hang gliders, stay zipped into your harness to reducetheriskofcutsandabrasions.Nowtrytoflare flat and plop onto the top of the canopy and grab on. If you are heading for the side, flare VERY aggres- sively and, again, grab onto any available branches. Next, get yourself secure. Some paraglider harnesses (and I’m thinking particularly of the Sup’Air Delight 3 here), come with a securing strap and carabiner for just this purpose. A trip to a reputable outdoor shop allows you to purchase a climbing strop and carabiner suitable for the job. Get yourself securely tied in. At this stage you are secured and not at risk of falling. You may not be particularly comfortable, but you are safe. Getting out of your harness, unse- cured, can be a fatal choice. In 2016 a HG pilot made a tree landing at Rainbow Beach and died when the pilot unclipped from the harness (AIRS #689). The glider and harness were still in the tree when found. Again, at this point you are secured and if not comfortable, then at least safe. Now is the time to use your radio, mobile phone, SPOT or InReach satellite mes- saging device or PLB. A couple of apps available for mobile phones are well worth loading before you go flying and could be of assistance in this circumstance. The first is Emergency+. It displays your position from your mobile phone and provides easy to use buttons to call the various emergency services directly. You can get details and links to the app in various stores from the developer here [triplezero. gov.au/Pages/EmergencySmartphoneApp.aspx ]. Another app that may be of some use and that is starting to get some traction is What3words [what3words.com] . The basic premise underlying this app is that instead of using Latitude and Longi- tude coordinates to give a position, the position can be given using three words as coordinates. Using this method, a position can be given for any 3m square on the face of the planet in just three words. Go to the website and give it a go. Under the ‘About Us’ tab you’ll find more explanation and links to the app on various stores. This gets us to the point where, hopefully, you’ve got some folks standing under your tree ready to help you down. Reach into the pocket of your harness and lower down the dental floss or fishing line with the weight on the end, that you have stashed for just this occasion. This is where I will hand you over to the skilled personnel in your rescue party. Pay close attention to their directions and… Fly safe. References: Pagen, D. (2004) The Art of Paragliding 2nd edition. Spring Mills, PA. Sport Aviation Publications. Pagen, D. (1995) Hang Gliding Training Manual, 1st edition. Spring Mills, PA. Sport Aviation Publications. AIRS Report Wrap-up This year we’ve seen quite a few tree landings being reported in AIRS, so let’s take a closer look. by Iain Clarke, Safety Management Officer Do not unclip from your harness and try to climb down!