The Soft Release?

[Gary Boggs]

I'm not sure about the rest of the world, but here in the USA it's pretty
wide spread to release the tension on the tow rope before pulling the
release handle by getting a little high, and then doing a shallow dive. If
I remember right, this came about because the tow hooks on the Schweizers
were swinging forward, beating themselves to pieces when pulled with a lot
of tension on the line. I think this maneuver is no longer necessary
because the tow hooks on the Schweizers were modified with a friction device
in the slot in front of the arm that cushions the arm as it swings forward,
but the practice is now standard in many places. It may be a good idea in
theory, but the reality of the situation is that this is not an easy thing
to do for a lot of pilots. There are many pilots that pull up too far, and
then actually overtake the rope before pulling the release, so that now the
end of the line is dangling somewhere along side the ship. I sounds like an
easy maneuver, but in my opinion, it's more dangerous than it's worth. I
think the practice of attempting a soft release should be eliminated. In my
opinion, pulling the release with tension on it is much safer. I think
undoing the occasional knot in the rope is far safer than the possibility of
getting tangled in the end of the rope. Is this practice used anywhere else
in the world? Please give me some feedback.


Gary Boggs

[Mike Lindsay]

In article >, Gary Boggs
> writes
>I'm not sure about the rest of the world, but here in the USA it's pretty
>wide spread to release the tension on the tow rope before pulling the
>release handle by getting a little high, and then doing a shallow dive. If
>I remember right, this came about because the tow hooks on the Schweizers
>were swinging forward, beating themselves to pieces when pulled with a lot
>of tension on the line. I think this maneuver is no longer necessary
>because the tow hooks on the Schweizers were modified with a friction device
>in the slot in front of the arm that cushions the arm as it swings forward,
>but the practice is now standard in many places. It may be a good idea in
>theory, but the reality of the situation is that this is not an easy thing
>to do for a lot of pilots. There are many pilots that pull up too far, and
>then actually overtake the rope before pulling the release, so that now the
>end of the line is dangling somewhere along side the ship. I sounds like an
>easy maneuver, but in my opinion, it's more dangerous than it's worth. I
>think the practice of attempting a soft release should be eliminated. In my
>opinion, pulling the release with tension on it is much safer. I think
>undoing the occasional knot in the rope is far safer than the possibility of
>getting tangled in the end of the rope. Is this practice used anywhere else
>in the world? Please give me some feedback.
>
>
>Gary Boggs
>
>
Although this doesn't relate directly to what you are asking,
its very useful for the tug pilot to be able to unmistakably feel when
the glider has released. Releasing with a bit of tension in the cable is
a way of doing this.
--
Mike Lindsay

[[email protected]]

Gary,

Arizona Soaring (Estrella) still uses the soft release. I got to
execute one during my BFR last week. If what you said about the
Schweizers is correct, I agree with you that they shouldn't be taught.

Terry C, you troll these waters and instruct at Estrella, what say you?

~ted/2NO

[Gary Emerson]

Amen! I'm a firm believer that the release should be performed with
normal tension in the tow line. Way easier to see the rope spring away
from you so you can confirm the release and it's a lot harder to get
tangled up in the rope when it's going away from the nose of the glider.
The soft release is a great way to cause a serious accident that also
endangers the tow pilot unnecessarily. From the tow pilot end it's lots
easier to know someone has gotten off with a normal release and initiate
the proper turn immediately.

Gary

Gary Boggs wrote:
> I'm not sure about the rest of the world, but here in the USA it's pretty
> wide spread to release the tension on the tow rope before pulling the
> release handle by getting a little high, and then doing a shallow dive. If
> I remember right, this came about because the tow hooks on the Schweizers
> were swinging forward, beating themselves to pieces when pulled with a lot
> of tension on the line. I think this maneuver is no longer necessary
> because the tow hooks on the Schweizers were modified with a friction device
> in the slot in front of the arm that cushions the arm as it swings forward,
> but the practice is now standard in many places. It may be a good idea in
> theory, but the reality of the situation is that this is not an easy thing
> to do for a lot of pilots. There are many pilots that pull up too far, and
> then actually overtake the rope before pulling the release, so that now the
> end of the line is dangling somewhere along side the ship. I sounds like an
> easy maneuver, but in my opinion, it's more dangerous than it's worth. I
> think the practice of attempting a soft release should be eliminated. In my
> opinion, pulling the release with tension on it is much safer. I think
> undoing the occasional knot in the rope is far safer than the possibility of
> getting tangled in the end of the rope. Is this practice used anywhere else
> in the world? Please give me some feedback.
>
>
> Gary Boggs
>
>

[Robin Birch]

In message >, Gary Boggs
> writes
>I'm not sure about the rest of the world, but here in the USA it's pretty
>wide spread to release the tension on the tow rope before pulling the
>release handle by getting a little high, and then doing a shallow dive. If
>I remember right, this came about because the tow hooks on the Schweizers
>were swinging forward, beating themselves to pieces when pulled with a lot
>of tension on the line. I think this maneuver is no longer necessary
>because the tow hooks on the Schweizers were modified with a friction device
>in the slot in front of the arm that cushions the arm as it swings forward,
>but the practice is now standard in many places. It may be a good idea in
>theory, but the reality of the situation is that this is not an easy thing
>to do for a lot of pilots. There are many pilots that pull up too far, and
>then actually overtake the rope before pulling the release, so that now the
>end of the line is dangling somewhere along side the ship. I sounds like an
>easy maneuver, but in my opinion, it's more dangerous than it's worth. I
>think the practice of attempting a soft release should be eliminated. In my
>opinion, pulling the release with tension on it is much safer. I think
>undoing the occasional knot in the rope is far safer than the possibility of
>getting tangled in the end of the rope. Is this practice used anywhere else
>in the world? Please give me some feedback.
>
Well,
I was taught to release under tension and then pull up once you are
certain that the rings were going away. This increases the glider -
rope separation as quickly as possible.

Regards

Robin
>
>Gary Boggs
>
>

--
Robin Birch

[Jeremy Zawodny]

Gary Boggs wrote:
> I think the practice of attempting a soft release should be
> eliminated. In my opinion, pulling the release with tension on it is
> much safer.

As someone whose training was in 2-32s, I disagree. The soft release is
a useful technique. Too many times I've had to pry the release
mechanism back out with a big screwdriver.

Here's the thing. When I fly a modern fiberglass ship, I don't use the
soft release. But on the rare occasions when I find myself in a 2-33,
2-32, etc. I still use the soft release.

It's hardly an advanced maneuver to master. If a pilot has trouble
doing something that basic safely, how do they ever handle more than a
trivial amount of slack in the rope?

Jeremy

[Doug Hoffman]

Jeremy Zawodny wrote:
> Gary Boggs wrote:
> > I think the practice of attempting a soft release should be
> > eliminated. In my opinion, pulling the release with tension on it is
> > much safer.
>
> As someone whose training was in 2-32s, I disagree. The soft release is
> a useful technique. Too many times I've had to pry the release
> mechanism back out with a big screwdriver.

I'd have to agree with Jeremy on this. Although I still use the soft
release on a "high performance" ship. I have a Schreder-design
towhook. It seems to be a robust design. But why subject it to more
stress than necessary? I was first taught the soft release technique
by a CFIG in Hemet. I use it most of the time now. The procedure
seems perfectly safe. I won't complain about less wear on the release
mechanism. No tow pilot has complained.

Regards,

-Doug

[Stewart Kissel]

If an instructor can give me a logical explanation
for why...I will demonstrate either for him.

Personally, I release in thermals whether the rope
is tight or slack.

[Andy]

Stewart Kissel wrote:
> If an instructor can give me a logical explanation
> for why...I will demonstrate either for him.
>
> Personally, I release in thermals whether the rope
> is tight or slack.

Yup! Pull the plug and crank it tight. If the release can't stand it
then fly a better glider!

Andy

[Vaughn]

"Gary Boggs" > wrote in message
...
> I think undoing the occasional knot in the rope is far safer than the
> possibility of getting tangled in the end of the rope. Is this practice used
> anywhere else in the world? Please give me some feedback.

It would have to be a pretty wild "soft" release to result in a glider
tangled in the tow rope. That said, I know of one nasty accident that resulted
from the apparent failure of a glider pilot to confirm release. Our site always
stressed that the glider must not move out of position until the glider pilot
has visually confirmed rope release. But it is far harder to visually confirm
release after a soft release because the ring tends to dangle out of sight below
the glider's nose and there is no rope "snap" to observe.

I vote for a normal release.

Vaughn

[Jeremy Zawodny]

Vaughn wrote:
> "Gary Boggs" > wrote in message
> ...
>> I think undoing the occasional knot in the rope is far safer than the
>> possibility of getting tangled in the end of the rope. Is this practice used
>> anywhere else in the world? Please give me some feedback.
>
> It would have to be a pretty wild "soft" release to result in a glider
> tangled in the tow rope. That said, I know of one nasty accident that resulted
> from the apparent failure of a glider pilot to confirm release. Our site always
> stressed that the glider must not move out of position until the glider pilot
> has visually confirmed rope release. But it is far harder to visually confirm
> release after a soft release because the ring tends to dangle out of sight below
> the glider's nose and there is no rope "snap" to observe.

If that's the case, you're putting *a lot* of slack in the rope. You
can always fly a bit off center just before release so the rope is more
visible. The same technique works in slack line recovery too. ;-)

Jeremy

[Andy]

That sort of technique may well work if you have a pre-planned release
altitude as on training flights in no lift. The time it takes to
recognize a thermal, and release in it, is far too short to reposition
the glider, pull up, push over, release, confirm release and turn. By
the time you have done all that the thermal is far behind you and your
chances of finding it are poor.

The only value for reduced tension release is to protect poorly
designed glider tow hooks. Like many things you learn in 2-33's it
should be discarded when you fly a sailplane.

Andy

[[email protected]]

I think Gary is right on on this.
Normal tension on the rope during tow for a 2-33 is about 50 pounds.
This will not damage anything.
The problem is that instructors commonly fail to teach releasing in a
steady state situation and many students begin to learn to anticipate
the release and start to pull up before releasing. This is where the
big bangs come from.
Tow pilots HATE soft releases because they only then know release has
occurred by subtle trim change(if in high tow) or mirror. With normal
release tuggie feels slight shake at release, visually confirms, and
gets out of Dodge.
UH

[Jeffrey Banks]

Actully Andy has it right. The soft release genisis
is from a poorly designed
tow hook....and a service bulletin from Scheweizer.
The 2-33 is not a good
example of the gliders most of us fly today. So I
would not use this
method unless I was flying the glider that has the
service bulletin to comply
with.
Now I have seen the soft release go to a 'winch pull'
then push over. It
makes me a bit nervous when a glider pitchs up like
that.

>
>The only value for reduced tension release is to protect
>poorly
>designed glider tow hooks. Like many things you learn
>in 2-33's it
>should be discarded when you fly a sailplane.
>
>Andy
>
>

Jeff Banks

[notme]

Gary Boggs > wrote:
> I'm not sure about the rest of the world, but here in the USA it's pretty
> wide spread to release the tension on the tow rope before pulling the
> release handle by getting a little high, and then doing a shallow dive. If
> I remember right, this came about because the tow hooks on the Schweizers
> were swinging forward, beating themselves to pieces when pulled with a lot
> of tension on the line. I think this maneuver is no longer necessary
> because the tow hooks on the Schweizers were modified with a friction device
> in the slot in front of the arm that cushions the arm as it swings forward,
> but the practice is now standard in many places. It may be a good idea in
> theory, but the reality of the situation is that this is not an easy thing
> to do for a lot of pilots. There are many pilots that pull up too far, and
> then actually overtake the rope before pulling the release, so that now the
> end of the line is dangling somewhere along side the ship. I sounds like an
> easy maneuver, but in my opinion, it's more dangerous than it's worth. I
> think the practice of attempting a soft release should be eliminated. In my
> opinion, pulling the release with tension on it is much safer. I think
> undoing the occasional knot in the rope is far safer than the possibility of
> getting tangled in the end of the rope. Is this practice used anywhere else
> in the world? Please give me some feedback.

Ask a thousand people, and you'll get a thousand answers.

Here's my view. Any certificated pilots should have the skills to execute
either a normal or a soft release. If someone damages an aircraft because
of an improper soft release, they really need to spend some more time
getting instruction.

That said, I've flown with several instructors. Most claim you should
always do soft releases on Schweitzers, and do soft or normal releases on
Tost hooks. I believe Schweitzer says you should always do soft releases
on their tow hooks.

However, I have flown with one instructor who adamantly insists that
normal releases put unneccessary excessive stress on the aircraft
structure and should be avoided on all aircraft, regardless of tow hook.

I've also flown with another instructor (who is also an IA) who insists
that you should always perform normal releases on all aircraft (regardless
of tow hook). He claims that he is unconvinced that a normal release will
do damage to even a Schweitzer release, and I think he is uncomfortable
with the concept of a soft release because it lacks the positive
confirmation that release has actually occurred.

I rarely ever fly Schweitzers, and I typically will practice both release
styles. If I am flying a Schweitzer, I do soft releases. If I'm flying
with an instructor I will always ask them which they want me to perform.

dan

[Jack]

notme wrote:

> Any certificated pilots should have the skills to execute
> either a normal or a soft release.

> (an) instructor...insists that you...perform normal releases
> on all aircraft...and I think he is uncomfortable with the
> concept of a soft release because it lacks the positive
> confirmation that release has actually occurred.

_Positive_ confirmation is seeing the rope fall away from the glider,
and it works for any release, soft or hard.

As a tow pilot I prefer a normal release, and a glider pilot who gains
separation after release with an obvious, but not a dramatic, maneuver.
No rush, no mistakes, no confusion, no frightening the tug driver.


Jack

[Vaughn]

"Jack" > wrote in message
et...
> _Positive_ confirmation is seeing the rope fall away from the glider, and it
> works for any release, soft or hard.

Unfortunately, not true; at least not in all gliders. Especially not true
if you are a back seater. When I do a soft release, gravity pulls the ring down
out of sight and I either have to gently maneuver away from the ring or sit
there and wait for it to finally come into view.

Vaughn

[Jack]

Vaughn wrote:

>> _Positive_ confirmation is seeing the rope fall away from the glider, and it
>> works for any release, soft or hard.

> Unfortunately, not true; at least not in all gliders.

> Especially not true if you are a back seater.

Ah, the vision thing.... I've found that one can use use elevator and
rudder, gently, as you suggest, to make all things clear from either
seat. I am increasingly reluctant, as the years progress, to beat up the
tow hooks on the Schweizers I fly by using a hard release. I prefer a
modified-soft, if you will; tension reduced (no slack line) and visual
confirmation of separation.

Something more straight forward might be better when working with students.

As a tow pilot I want no doubt at either end that there is a confirmed
release. Neither of us would enjoy the Nantucket Sleigh Ride that can
result from a miscue.


Jack

[Robin Birch]

Forgive my ignorance, I am speaking from the UK and we don't generally
see Schweizers in this country, but can you change the hooks to
something similar to everything else, say a Tost hook? Then you would
get the same release characteristics as all other gliders.

Robin

In message >, Jack
> writes
>Vaughn wrote:
>
>>> _Positive_ confirmation is seeing the rope fall away from the
>>>glider, and it works for any release, soft or hard.
>
>> Unfortunately, not true; at least not in all gliders.
>
>> Especially not true if you are a back seater.
>
>Ah, the vision thing.... I've found that one can use use elevator and
>rudder, gently, as you suggest, to make all things clear from either
>seat. I am increasingly reluctant, as the years progress, to beat up
>the tow hooks on the Schweizers I fly by using a hard release. I prefer
>a modified-soft, if you will; tension reduced (no slack line) and
>visual confirmation of separation.
>
>Something more straight forward might be better when working with students.
>
>As a tow pilot I want no doubt at either end that there is a confirmed
>release. Neither of us would enjoy the Nantucket Sleigh Ride that can
>result from a miscue.
>
>
>Jack

--
Robin Birch

[Robin Birch]

As far as I know it isn't used in the UK as just about everybody has
Tost, or in a small number of cases Otfur type hooks. As a result we
are taught to NOT overtake the rings.

Essentially you fly normally and release, as soon as you can see the
rings go clear then gently pull back to burn off some speed and increase
the separation distance as rapidly as possible.

Robin

In message >, Gary Boggs
> writes
>I'm not sure about the rest of the world, but here in the USA it's pretty
>wide spread to release the tension on the tow rope before pulling the
>release handle by getting a little high, and then doing a shallow dive. If
>I remember right, this came about because the tow hooks on the Schweizers
>were swinging forward, beating themselves to pieces when pulled with a lot
>of tension on the line. I think this maneuver is no longer necessary
>because the tow hooks on the Schweizers were modified with a friction device
>in the slot in front of the arm that cushions the arm as it swings forward,
>but the practice is now standard in many places. It may be a good idea in
>theory, but the reality of the situation is that this is not an easy thing
>to do for a lot of pilots. There are many pilots that pull up too far, and
>then actually overtake the rope before pulling the release, so that now the
>end of the line is dangling somewhere along side the ship. I sounds like an
>easy maneuver, but in my opinion, it's more dangerous than it's worth. I
>think the practice of attempting a soft release should be eliminated. In my
>opinion, pulling the release with tension on it is much safer. I think
>undoing the occasional knot in the rope is far safer than the possibility of
>getting tangled in the end of the rope. Is this practice used anywhere else
>in the world? Please give me some feedback.
>
>
>Gary Boggs
>
>

--
Robin Birch