SAFA Skysailor Magazine

31 November | December 2020 SKY SAILOR both sides of the cooler to account for this. The pilot was not aware of this and so the modified lower mounting nuts were not ordered and deployed. This resulted in the failure of the oil cooler. Airborne have issued a Service Bulletin describing this issue and you can find it here . When a fatality event occurs involving our members, we in the Operations Team have a checklist that we work through. The final step in this process is to let our members know what has occurred. This can be a considerable period of time after the event. We (SAFA) assist the investigating Police officers in the local jurisdiction as they prepare their reports for the Coroner. Why the Police? Well, the ATSB aren’t particularly interested in our events; they don’t investigate them, so it’s left to the Police. We aren’t protected by law as the ATSB and its officers are, so we don’t investigate or make findings, but we do review the circumstances and we do let you know what has occurred. Quite often we only find out by chance that the Coroner has returned a finding. Recently, we learned that the findings in two fatal events last year have been released. In February 2019, Bevan Taylor died in a hang gliding accident while competing in the WA State Hang Gliding Championships (AIRS #1002). This, from the Coroner’s and AIRS report: Bevan was flying a new Moyes Gecko, under which he had had four flights previously and which was more sophisticat- ed than his previous novice wing. Weather conditions on the day were said to be perfect and three pilots had launched by aerotow before Bevan. After all safety checks were complet- ed he was placed in the dolly and prepared for take-off. Shortly before take-off a dust storm (devil) came through and Bevan had to be held down in the glider until it passed, which it was felt may have caused him some stress. However, after it passed, the hang glider was checked and everything appeared correct and Bevan indicated he was ready for take-off. The pilot of the microlight (tug) towing the hang glider accelerated and they were airborne quickly. Shortly after take-off, Bevan’s glider began to oscillate left and right a number of times. He attempted to correct the oscillations but over-corrected and Bevan’s hang glider turned on a 45-degree angle and tilted forward in a lock out. As a result, the hang glider went into a downward, vertical descent that could not be corrected. The glider descended quickly and the right wingtip impacted the ground, causing the glider to cartwheel and crash heavily into the ground. The glider was estimated to be travelling at 60 to 70km/h at the time it impacted the ground. Witnesses, including an Emergency Specialist Physician participating in the event, immediately went to the crash site to render medical assistance. Sadly, it quickly became apparent that PIC had suffered non-survivable traumatic injuries and had died at the scene. Bevan’s hang glider was examined by representatives from the HGFA and there was nothing found to indicate the glider was not airworthy prior to launch. Pilots of all disciplines are advised to be aware of the performance differences in aircraft performance charac- teristics when moving to higher-rated wings. In addition, especially for HG pilots, be aware that under aerotow conditions, errors in handling or oscillations accompanied by over-controlling inputs can escalate rapidly and to a much greater magnitude. We urge all pilots to be completely familiar with their new wings in a variety of conditions and situations prior to undertaking aerotow operations. In April 2019, Des Hamilton died in a paragliding accident at Bald Hill, Stanwell Park (NSW). From AIRS #1054 and the Coroner’s report: “Des has launched from the East launch at Bald Hill (Stanwell Park, NSW). While he was waiting to inflate the wing, the wind had shifted to the south. Pilots in the air in front of launch were observed to be losing altitude and heading south towards the SE launch face and the LZ. PIC inflated, launched and then turned to the north, immediately losing altitude. PIC was soon afterwards observed to be scratching close to the hill searching for lift when a wing-tip snagged some vegetation, causing the pilot to collide with the hillside partly over the edge of a cliff. PIC was unable to maintain a grip and fell to his death.” When flying at Stanwell Park, or any site, attention must be paid to the wind direction as lift availability is heavily dependent on this factor. As any change in wind direction becomes apparent, re-assess your flight path and the avail- ability of landing areas. If in doubt, head to the nearest safe landing option. Extreme care must be taken when scratching close to terrain. Adequate clearance must be retained to avoid a collision with vegetation or other obstructions. We in the Ops Team extend our thanks to those pilots and first responders who assist in any of these unfortunate events. Stay safe. PWC Bright, VIC Photo: Alexander Robé