SSA Soaring Rx: Abort, Abort, Abort

[jnmeade]

What did you think of the Soaring Rx column by Dr. Daniel L. Johnson in the November 2012 edition of Soaring?

He talks about how pilots should be advised of trouble and uses several specific examples, including the Lark crash in Texas that killed three.

He cites a number of examples of how information is passed. In one case, the tow truck driver on a ground launch sees the glider launch with the dolly wheel attached. The glider was about 700 AGL. The driver radioed twice, "Papa Romeo, keep your speed up! You have the tail dolly!" The flight landed safely.

Another example was of a glider pilot on short final who suddenly encountered a severe wind gust that distracted him from the cockpit checklist. The observer radioed "GEAR". The pilot dropped the gear and landed safely.

On the fatal flight, the Lark was out of ground effect and climbing when an observer radioed "Abort! Abort! Abort!". Both the tow pilot and the glider released. The glider was now at about 150 feet.

Johnson's point was that "Abort!" was command driven. "Gear" was status driven. He says "Abort!" was the worst possible thing to say at the worst possible time. It did not explain the problem. It created an alarm. It defocused the pilot's attention. "Abort" should have been given before the takeoff roll, he says.

Johnson is concerned that a command driven communication may more easily lead to panic than would a status driven utterance.

So - would you rather be told what is wrong or given a command to do something without explanation?

BTW, the article includes a well-developed discussion of the dolly wheel CG. The Lark was over gross but well within CG. It could and should have flown with no problem. There must have been pilot error or control interference. But, that is not the point of the question.

Status or command?

 

[Matthew]

I haven't seen the issue yet, so haven't read the full article.

My preference is towards 'status'. The PIC is the one who has to make the command decision, not the guy on the ground.

 

[Jim Logajan]

I read it. It seems to make sense; but "Papa Romeo, keep your speed up! You have the tail dolly!" is both a command and status message. So it falls into both camps. I'd argue that "abort" is really not a command as such since it isn't terribly specific. Abort in what manner?

 

[jnmeade]

I'd argue that "abort" is really not a command as such since it isn't terribly specific. Abort in what manner?

My reaction as a glider pilot and tow pilot is that on takeoff, just after breaking ground, Abort is awfully close to "release". Neither party wants to be hooked to the other if there is a problem. In the article, it noted that both pilots released.

Still, you may have a point. I wonder how the other glider pilots take it?

 

[Matthew]

Even though I said I'd prefer the status command, "Release" is one that I'll gladly give. I've towed enough to have used it more than once, along with the wing wave-off - but not at low level.

 

[denverpilot]

What causes the abort call? Nothing posted here says why they made it.

Second question, did they know the person in the radio? A random abort call low-level doesn't leave too many options. Both releasing is a very interesting decision on both parts.

If someone says abort above V1, you're going flying anyway, so to speak...

Very hard to ignore a friend's voice on the radio, but they needed to, didn't they?

Curious what drove the abort call.

 

[ClimbnSink]

Radio calls of the sort are retarded

 

[tonycondon]

i really liked the article and would prefer status over command radio calls.

Nate - the pilot took off with the tail dolly attached to the glider. The launch chief that day saw it and instead of calmly telling the experienced CFI-G that the tail dolly was attached apparently called "abort abort abort!" The glider ended up spinning in from ~150', killing the pilot in the back seat but even worse his daughter and law and grandson who was sitting (highly likely illegally) on mom's lap. An awful tragedy, and Fred was someone I had met at the Region 10 contest and was a super nice guy and by all accounts a good CFI-G.

Current NTSB report, Preliminary: http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=20120618X10736&key=1

I feel really bad for whoever it was that made that radio call, especially since it has come up in the magazine. but it's a good lesson for all of us that what we say on the radio can lead to really bad outcomes. choose your words carefully.

 

[denverpilot]

Awful. It's shocking that both tow and glider both released at that call too. There isn't any abort mode at 150 feet that's good unless there's somewhere big and flat ahead for the glider to go. Need a bit more for a return. Sigh.

 

[BillTIZ]

I as tow pilot, directed a release release release call for the glider I was towing.

On takeoff after braking ground, with an "experienced" solo student pilot, the tow engine developed a vibration. Adjusting power or mixture would not clear the vibration. Checking altitude, we were barely 100ft AGL.

I elected to continue the climb, as a CFIG I had flown with the student behind me and knew his capabilities and our clubs training requirements for solo. Upon reaching 250ft AGL, the vibration had not ceased. I calmly called the glider by call sign and directed, release, release, release.

He released and excited a perfect 180 turn and landed. I reduced power and executed a pattern to return to the runway.

I've read the article in the SSA mag. Proper calls at the appropriate time.
Both aircraft recovered safely. I as tow pilot, responsible for a flight of two, and I as CFIG directed in a calm manner the maneuver I needed the glider student to execute so I as tow pilot could handle my problem on my own, knowing the student was in a position to safely return himself and the glider to the airfield.

The tow plane had a stuck valve that was causing the vibration and proper repairs were completed.

We've also had a XC glider pilot arrive from a field far away. He called the downwind and we watched his gear cycle to the up position. On final a ground CFIG called, "call sign gear" and the gear cycled down. The pilot was very grateful for the call. He had apparently flown apx 150nm with the gear down, and moved the gear lever as part of his pre landing checklist. A gear up slide down the runway was saved.

The proper calm call at the proper time.

 

[Nav8tor]

...I elected to continue the climb, as a CFIG I had flown with the student behind me and knew his capabilities and our clubs training requirements for solo. Upon reaching 250ft AGL, the vibration had not ceased. I calmly called the glider by call sign and directed, release, release, release...

What would you have done if he didn't release? Would you have pulled the towplane release at that low altitude?

 

[Henning]

It depends on the situation. In general I'm for status, but there are situations that do not allow time for anything but immediate action like when ATC called me in a fast and high voice, "04Y IMMEDIATE DESCENT!" that got me pushing fast as a King Air just cleared over the top of me from behind.

 

[dell30rb]

I almost caused a pile-up once on the road because of a squirrel running out in the road.

I didn't see the squirrel. My former girlfriend, did. She let out a scream and pointed directly out in front of us. I had no idea what was happening but adrenaline hit, I nailed the brakes and was ready for anything. After about a second I realized the wheels were still on, the car was acting normally and there was nothing in the road ahead.

Not as serious as a plane crash but an example of how an ill-timed over reaction can really screw up an otherwise non-event.

 

[dell30rb]

It depends on the situation. In general I'm for status, but there are situations that do not allow time for anything but immediate action like when ATC called me in a fast and high voice, "04Y IMMEDIATE DESCENT!" that got me pushing fast as a King Air just cleared over the top of me from behind.

I had a close call once with VFR traffic (not talking) and ATC just told me 'targets expected to merge' my response was WTF give me a heading or descent or something!

 

[BillTIZ]

What would you have done if he didn't release? Would you have pulled the towplane release at that low altitude?

250ft is not low altitude. We train at 200ft and we are in an open desert, no obstructions off the departure end to be concerned with other than 3ft tall scrub.

No, I would have entered the downwind at 500ft and still climbing and then explained that I had a problem and needed him off tow. If it appeared to be a radio communication failure, it's time to rock the wings.

I was developing power and climbing, no smoke yet, no direct loss of power, no need to drop the rope.

 

[Nav8tor]

250ft is not low altitude. We train at 200ft and we are in an open desert, no obstructions off the departure end to be concerned with other than 3ft tall scrub.

No, I would have entered the downwind at 500ft and still climbing and then explained that I had a problem and needed him off tow. If it appeared to be a radio communication failure, it's time to rock the wings.

I was developing power and climbing, no smoke yet, no direct loss of power, no need to drop the rope.

I was thinking it would be low altitude for the tow plane to release the rope because the tow rope could potentially snag it trees (at least at my club field) if the glider pilot isn't quick with the release. Makes sense to climb to higher altitude if you can. Thanks.

 

[weilke]

Here is another one where yelling 'release release release' kicked off a sequence of events that didn't end well (they hit a tall tree next to my wifes office and the passenger died in the fall from the tree ).


NTSB Identification: ERA11FA401
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, July 15, 2011 in Hollywood, MD
Probable Cause Approval Date: 06/28/2012
Aircraft: SLINGSBY CAPSTAN TYPE 49B, registration: N7475
Injuries: 1 Fatal,1 Serious.
NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.According to the glider pilot/owner, he purchased the glider 1 week before the accident and flew it with the previous owner for about 1 hour at the time of purchase. He assembled the glider with the assistance of the tow plane pilot and completed all post-assembly checks before they were joined by his copilot. The pilot and copilot then performed the before-takeoff checks outside the aircraft, confirmed operation of the tow release mechanism, and verified that the spoilers were closed. During the initial climb, the glider pilot noticed that the glider was not climbing, and he and his copilot, a more experienced glider pilot, discussed relative position to the tow plane in order to avoid wake turbulence and improve climb performance. About 200 feet above ground level and over the trees beyond the departure end of the runway, the glider pilot observed the tow plane's rudder "waggle" back and forth, and his copilot shouted, "Release! Release! Release!" The glider pilot released the glider from the tow plane and entered a left turn to the north for a forced landing on the divided highway east of the airport. The copilot joined him on the flight controls before the glider overshot the highway and collided with trees on the east side of the roadway.

The tow plane pilot provided a similar recounting of the events. He explained that, before the flight, the proper signals for “too fast” or “too slow” were discussed but no others. He added that he had discussed signaling with the glider’s copilot many times previously but that they had not recently discussed the rudder-wag signal, which means “check spoilers.” After takeoff, he noted that the tow plane’s performance was as expected, but the climb rate was not. He checked the glider in his rearview mirror and noted that the spoilers were deployed. The tow plane pilot provided the internationally recognized (in the glider community) rudder-wag signal, and, instead of stowing the spoilers, the glider released from the tow.

Postaccident examination of the glider revealed no mechanical deficiencies. The pilot/owner stated that he knew the meaning of the rudder-wag signal, but responded to the callout from his copilot. He further stated that he believed the spoilers were stowed during preflight and before-takeoff checks, but he did not confirm that the control was locked in its detent prior to takeoff.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The glider pilot’s improper response to the “check spoilers” signal from the tow pilot. Contributing to the accident was the glider pilot’s failure to confirm that the spoilers were closed and locked before takeoff, and the glider copilot’s improper crew coordination response to the “check spoilers” signal from the tow pilot.

 

[rottydaddy]

i really liked the article and would prefer status over command radio calls.

Nate - the pilot took off with the tail dolly attached to the glider. The launch chief that day saw it and instead of calmly telling the experienced CFI-G that the tail dolly was attached apparently called "abort abort abort!" The glider ended up spinning in from ~150', killing the pilot in the back seat but even worse his daughter and law and grandson who was sitting (highly likely illegally) on mom's lap. An awful tragedy, and Fred was someone I had met at the Region 10 contest and was a super nice guy and by all accounts a good CFI-G.

Current NTSB report, Preliminary: http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=20120618X10736&key=1

I feel really bad for whoever it was that made that radio call, especially since it has come up in the magazine. but it's a good lesson for all of us that what we say on the radio can lead to really bad outcomes. choose your words carefully.

What I'm curious about is: did the dolly itself contribute to the stall/spin? I'm not really familiar with how they attach; would it impede movement of the tail surfaces?
It's easy enough to criticize someone making a panicked radio call, but if the glider could have been safely landed straight ahead, more or less, with the dolly attached, that radio call becomes almost irrelevant. Even if you release in panic mode, you then have to un-panic yourself and just try to get down safely.

As for carrying a kid loose in a glider... I wouldn't do it. I hit a thermal on tow once that nearly yanked me out of a 4-point harness; had there been a kid in my lap he'd have probably gone through the canopy.

 

[jnmeade]

A couple of points in the story for those not able to read it all.
1. The flight prior, the same pilot took up his son and another grandchild in the same configuration and flew OK.
2. There was acceptable emergency landing area in the immediate vicinity.

One thing many of us fear is being taken down by the other airplane. Like the glider suddenly kiting up or snagging the tow line, or the tow plane having a control problem. In a case like that, many of us would want to get away immediately and check it out later. This accident points out that it may well be better to quickly assess the situation before a sudden move.
That having been said, it is not apparent who unhooked first. If I saw the tow plane unhook, I'd unhook as well to preclude any chance of the tow line fouling my control surfaces. It shouldn't, but...
The tow pilot, even with a rear view mirror, doesn't have as good a feel for where the glider is and what it's doing. If someone came on and yelled "abort" it would certainly get my attention in the tow plane.

 

[tonycondon]

What I'm curious about is: did the dolly itself contribute to the stall/spin? I'm not really familiar with how they attach; would it impede movement of the tail surfaces?
It's easy enough to criticize someone making a panicked radio call, but if the glider could have been safely landed straight ahead, more or less, with the dolly attached, that radio call becomes almost irrelevant. Even if you release in panic mode, you then have to un-panic yourself and just try to get down safely.

As for carrying a kid loose in a glider... I wouldn't do it. I hit a thermal on tow once that nearly yanked me out of a 4-point harness; had there been a kid in my lap he'd have probably gone through the canopy.

the dolly shouldn't have contributed negatively besides motivating the radio call. My understanding is that the CG should've still be within limits unless the dolly was made from solid lead. The Lark is a T-tail so the dolly down at the fuselage to vertical intersection wouldn't have affected the motion of the controls.

I'm with you 100% on the kid.

 

[BillTIZ]

I was thinking it would be low altitude for the tow plane to release the rope because the tow rope could potentially snag it trees (at least at my club field) if the glider pilot isn't quick with the release. Makes sense to climb to higher altitude if you can. Thanks.

If the tow rope is droppedby tow,for most gliders the weight of the rope will cause a back release. Granted, no back release on the nose hook of a Grob 103, but in my instance it was a 2-33. Many train that in the event of a broken rope or tow release PTT, the glider pilot needs to react and in addition to the turn, pull the release.

 

[KSCessnaDriver]

Just out of curiosity, how long are the ropes you tow a glider? I'm so used to flying with ropes hanging down now, that it isn't uncommon to drag them across the tops of trees if the situation requires it.

 

[tonycondon]

standard tow rope length in the US is 200 ft.

 

[KSCessnaDriver]

standard tow rope length in the US is 200 ft.

Ah ok. That's quite a bit longer than the amount of rope I'm used to dragging, especially (from the tow pilot perspective), when it's behind you, rather than in front of you.

 

[BillTIZ]

Ah ok. That's quite a bit longer than the amount of rope I'm used to dragging, especially (from the tow pilot perspective), when it's behind you, rather than in front of you.

When it's behind the tow, and at approach speed, it is not hanging straight down. But I still make sure I clear the power lines on approach by 200ft.

I can feel the rope snag the weeds when I'm about 50ft AGL on landing.

A tow pilot,dropping his end, the rope will hang (swing through) the 200ft length and hang slightly behind the glider before the back release works and drops the rope. (except for Tost nose hooks with no back release capability)