A matter of urgency

[John Boucher]

RV4KER

I consider my suggestions as being PROACTIVE and to promote safety in general. You are welcome to disagree but I don't find your comments good enough reason to shoot them down!

eg. You question my first comment - No Radio No Fly - WHY? Do I really have to explain that.... by questioning that you are basically saying it is fine to fly without a radio. As for rest of your explanations as to being subjective, I reserve my rhetorical comment on yours!

So, what would YOU suggest to make AVIATION safer?

I have been watching the forums of late and when especially when an aircraft is down - My lord, hindsight is a perfect science! It is quite amazing that no bright spark has had a go at Ranger going down with his pax. Maybe some people have finally learnt that the value of life and the happier outcome by far outweighs that of being critical to a downed pilots situation - especially if he aint there to defend himself!

[RV4ker (RIP)]

Bad Nav
Nothing personal chom and not shooting them down, simply disagree with some of them and again just my opinions on what you suggested...... I do not subscribe to "over" regulation of any sort which is subject to interpretation.... Experience has shown those the regulations are trying to "catch" will operate outside those "reg's" in any case and thus it simply hampers and further restricts those who already operate within those... (A bit like the CAA requirement to carry splints in your first aid kit as well as have instructions etc in 2 official languages but that another debate...)

Over regulation leads to the "FOK hulle ek sal maak soos ek wil mentality once we get gatvol...."

Radio - Why? Why must a plane have a radio? There are reg's for flight in controlled airspace, special rules etc, but if you fly around in sticks why must you have a radio. Just an observation. How does forcing a pilot to have a radio in his plane make him safer? He has to know how to use it and be comfortable doing so. Eyeball 101 still in my opinion better. I know a couple guys who are no longer with us after ending up as smoking holes in ground because they focussed all attention on radio rather than fly aerie. Just my opinion. Same argument as enforcing transponder. I choose to have a radio in all my aeries but I do not subscribe to it being mandatory.... Focus on teaching guys that planes can fly without radios and how to operate in busy circuit without a radio, then the radio becomes a tool rather than a hindrance. Many fear it and thus avoid it in any case. My opinion is simply that if you have no radio you would be far more aware of your surrounding area?

As for the rest they are too subjective. Give a man some power and he will abuse it. "Don't piss me off or I will ground you". It all leads to selected regulation... (Again just my opinion)....

What to do about flight safety.
Join a representative body, read, speak to fellow pilots. Get additional training. Do advanced course and fly with other guys as often as you can. ACCEPT THAT THE SAFETY OF YOUR AERIE/FLIGHT IS YOUR SOLE RESPONSIBILITY"... Peer to peer review is very difficult to implement and even more difficult to enforce, but we by our actions need to lead by example.

Everyone has different limits. Some fly well within those, some (without knowing it) well outside them... Personally before every flight I answer a couple questions...
Would I feel like a (possibly dead) doose when all you oukes on here have 20/20 hindsight and show how doff I was. If answer is yes, then I don't fly...
What would my obituary say... (Her lies poephol who took on the WX and lost... or her lies poephol who was too slapgat to check oil or too lazy to add extra 20l of fuel) etc... If it sounds silly I adjust my attitude and try again and if still silly I don't fly.
Simple.

MANAGE YOUR PERSONAL RISKS.....

PS
I have never been part of a flying club so can't coment on safety officer issues, but look forward to see how it goes in the club arena's...

[John Boucher]

No harm done George...

The topics I noted was for personal application and merely suggestions. At no time did I advocate the enforcement or policing of the points and I are not being applied in the role I play. The points noted should be one of self discovery and application...

As for the radio... Our airfield lies within the Kimberley CTR and on the boundary. Rather risky doing the radio silence thing with training aircraft returning from the GF, traffic calling A-beam JWeston from Postmasburg / Ulco / Lime Acres / Kuruman and then one has to consider the R/C aircraft operating left off 02 threshold. I recall doing circuits and landings just after going solo and a very experienced trike instructor messing around in the circuit without a functional radio - we were on a collision course on the base legs of 20 and was advised from someone on the ground to look out for Mr. Radio Silence! The letter ANC pops in and what - don't stop flying the plane - AVIATE .. NAVIGATE .. COMMUNICATE

As for the other points, there ways of approaching your fellow aviators in a mannerable and diplomatic way - the last thing I want to see is a fellow member of my club or from the flying fraternity get killed and I had the means to have prevented it by simply informing him / her! I have had the opportunity to do that already and let me tell you - a low time pilot possibly appreciates it more than a "I got it taped" pilot. I believe I have made a difference in his flying career.

We do have an idiot that does low fly pasts on Sunday afternoons on the inactive runway crossing the fly zone of the R/C guys.... Why does he do it here one asks.... SIMPLE - Kimberley Tower wont allow him to do it on their airfield so he has to show off somewhere else. What does create - animosity between different weight classes in the flying fraternity!

As for the helmet issue... I still think it is for everyone to decide for himself if wants or does not want to wear a lid! I have a bitter taiste in my mouth over "over regulation" after the rules changes in NTCA and of course the Part 24 thing. Let me tell you, the industry that was supposed to have been aided or assisted has put a serious dagger in many an aviator flying future!

[ZULU1]

Good Day chaps, I have only just picked up this thread, obviously the helmet usage is a personal choice. I have been making helmets for a while now. Also supplying visors and we make bibs. Helmet choice is very important. I am very content with our product, we are making a designed in crumple strip in the top 1/4 of the lid. Microlight accidents are normally low speed events, the helmet must be able to absorb the slow speed impact, if it looks like a cauliflower afterwards, thats the intention, saves the neck area from serious whiplash. If you falleth from many feet then the skid lid wont help in any event.

I am sorry to say that our helmets have been tested in anger and in the cases concerned allowed the wearers to walk away with a few bruises. I do not advise the use of a motorcycle helmet as this may create other problems. To the extent that you are better off without a helmet.

So if you wish to use a helmet just take a serious look at its integrity, there are some good choices out there, and I may add with the imported products some very well designed units.
Another area to really investigate, the visor lock assembly, ours are designed to break, and will do should you apply even the lightest of pressure, look out for serious engineering excercises, they aid the visor in whipping the head back. I have even seen door cupboard catches used !!!


zulu1

[Wargames]

Hi Zulu1,

Would you mind explaining a bit in more detail why a motorcycle helmet is not preferable, and what hickups would come from wearing one?

Regards,

[Duck Rogers]

I also used to fly a Skyfox like Morph did. I trained without a helmet and later decided that it was a better idea to have one on. Since then I never flew it without a helmet.
I also agree that the wearing of a helmet is a personal choice and should be left to the pilot to decide whether he wants to have his head bashed in or not. It's actually a no-brainer really..........

Me, I say "NO radio, then NO fly" If you're scared of the damn thing, then at least LISTEN and take note of what's happening in the air around you and take evasive/corrective action accordingly. How come some people can spend hours talking k@k on the phone but are too scared to open their mouths and talk on the radio?

If you see someone making k@k in an aerrie, then tell them so. I have done so on many occasions and will continue to do so. One day that oke may just come and thank you.....and then again he may not. But at least you warned him.

Asking someone else to preflight your aerrie is not such a bad thing. We have done it a few times at our field without anyone taking offence or getting the moer in........

[3wheels]

Helmets are a must for me.......... they are often not the most comfortable accessories, but sure as hell could be the most useful in that time of need !

[Tracer]

Personally, I will also never fly without a helmet, neither will I take a PAX if they don't wear a helmet.

[ZULU1]

Reply to helmets

A motorcycle helmet is designed to absorb a high speed impact, a road, a car etc. They have years of experience in the matter, a Microlight helmet would not be suitable for this.

A trike accident is almost invariably at low speed, lots of pipes and bars flying around and so on. This design must be able to absorb low speed impacts, so it must be able to self destruct and absorb as much as possible. Basically low speed inertia. Take a Bike helmet and hit it with a hammer, the occupant will fall down, a trike helmet will absorb the smack.

The EU standards for Sport aviation helmets are not unlike the EU "bump" helmets used in industry, the test involves driving a spike in the lid, it must enter. A bike helmet at low speed would be at risk of breaking your neck. Take a look at the UK Lynx and Italian Icarus helmets, they are actually injection moulded, designed to take the impact also.

Some visors fitted to a local "Lynx" helmet are actually dangerous, they have a fibreglass peak and a half visor, anyone with this unit should remove immediately. I can supply the UK derived correct visor. In a accident they will cause serious facial damage.


I attach a picture of a head cup where the pax received a cracked skull, this cup must have received a serious low speed impact and most probably from the pylon.

As always I am open to suggestions on how to improve product design, unfortunately ours have been tested in anger, although saddened by the accident the wearer walked away with a few bruises.

Cheers Paul

[Low Level]

I know this thread is about helmets but just my 2c:

Me, I say "NO radio, then NO fly"

How does forcing a pilot to have a radio in his plane make him safer?

It is about different speeds, altitude and ways of flying out there. E.G. - I flew Rhino via Bronkies to FABB about four weeks ago. Halfway I heard a blik coming the same way over the dam at 6 000 ft. I was relative low level so no real issue, but as it was intended, when I climbed higher going over Daveyton, the blik passed me on my left. Fortunately we had been in radio contact, and both of us knew what was each others intention.

Flying the Elephants river gorge - two gyros coming overhead faster than me, after they communicated, couldn't see them.

Eyeball 101 has one flaw - no see behind and above. Microlight flying is not a straight line. "Hey what's that - lets go check it out." BHAM - someone is underneath, behind or where ever.

Working radio and using it - N-E-C-A-S-S-A-R-Y.

Finally my ZIM $ - flying with a helmet is a choice.

[John Boucher]

Thank you for your input Duckie & Ldel....

Wise words as always from Zulu1....

[Wargames]

I am on this helmet issue again. Zulu made some comments on helmets that I cannot really agree with.

If I fly with a bike helmet and crash at a slow speed: Will I break my neck, no! if I am going to break my neck, would another helmet safe me, I doubt it!! If the helmet do not break, will there be damage to you? Apart from a "helse hangover" and maybe concussion, not much. The point is, the helmet must take the grunt of the hit, and not your face. The real big issue is really the comms in the helmets, it will have to be a diy, or custom job in any case. I am not against helmets, I would rather fly with helmet that I feel safe in, and to be honest, these helmjets do not do it for me. So to please my wife and gert, I will get one and let you know on the cost involved.

My 2c. Any opinions on this??

[Marc G]

My 2 cents...

If Ranger had been wearing a helmet, he probably would've walked away from his crash without injuries (as Morph said) - Luckily he is recovering, but it could've gone the other way. I know of at least 2 accidents where the guys walked away with minor injuries because the helmets saved them (one helmet was scraped down to the polystyrene inner along a tar runway after the trike did a goosestep).

I personally don't think that the helmet issue should become a legal requirement, because then the story of - what is the definition of a microlight, what about open cockpit light aircraft, etc, - comes in again. We also don't want to over-legislate the sport... the best part of flying a microlight is the relative freedom! You will never be able to control it in any case.

At the flying school where i do some instruction, we insist on using helmets. The result is that everyone who trained there wears a helmet when they have finished their license. In fact, no one at our airfield flies without a helmet. As far as I know, most of the schools around JHB use helmets (not sure about other regions).

I believe that it is irresponsible to fly without a helmet, and even more so to take a passenger without one. I personally won't fly without a helmet. For me, it's a case of when you need it, it's better that it's already there. I never drive a car or fly a plane without a seatbelt on, and never ride a motorbike without a helmet, so why should it be any different for a trike?

I hope the people who are still not convinced, read the thread about Ranger's accident... even he has said that he is now a helmet man!

Cheers,

Marc

[John Boucher]

Well written Marc G

In a previous post I asked the question "What one regards as a Microlight..." Things went off on a tangent. It is fair to say then that the "wearing a helmet" issue refers to TRIKES! The advantages of wearing a suitable helmet far outweighs the negatives.... I agree however that this should be one of choice. Maybe as you state, the relevance of wearing one should be founded at the training stages and be part of the routine without enforcing or regulating the issue.

It is strange how certain people do not like "change". I have compiled a airfield operation procedure for our airfield. The procedures embodies the basics of joining overhead, radio work, tracking centreline etc - basically what is taught when you do your licence. Amazingly certain pilots have complained and said not to over regulate the airfield.... Duh?

My point is that certain chaps will be adamant about wearing helmets whilst others cry freedom!

Thankfully RANGER is ok.....

[Tumbleweed]

The procedures embodies the basics of joining overhead, radio work, tracking centreline etc - basically what is taught when you do your licence. Amazingly certain pilots have complained and said not to over regulate the airfield.... Duh?

Not to question your intentions or the regs, but is'nt some of this best open to specific interpretation of whether good 'airmanship' is not a better trait?

Examples

You are tracking a headwind into your landing strip and there's no one in the circuit till a blik announces taxi to holding point and will be there forever. Why congest the circuit if you are all (maybe 3,different speeds so larger radius of circuit) aware of eachother and joining for finals will alleviate congestion for all?

I reach circuit height long before I reach the end of the runway (1 200m) and by turning crosswind (at circuit height) can alleviate congestion.

Was at a fly-in where ground control kept everyone (9) at the holding point to allow a trike priority who was'nt even in sight, let alone downwind.

At another field, buddy ahead announces finals, I'm at base and a challenger announces at holding point andready. We have him in sight and offer to extend our circuit and allow him take-off, but he stays put.

At our airfield with no 'offramp' some aeries on finals announce full stop but instead of hogging the strip whilst backtracking and congesting the traffic behind him, land long finals and take time turning to accomodate traffic (microlights) to land behind him and vacate without delaying him.

Dunno if its the fuel issue, but rarely see anyone joining overhead if no one in the air but rather announce and come in straight on finals.

Just a few thoughts,