Glider destroyed by lightning

[Cooperman]

Hi my name is Graeme Cooper, 10 years ago I was in the front seat of
the ASK21 glider that was destroyed by lightning in 1999, the flight
was a birthday present to celebrate my 30th.

Please visit my justgiving webpage to read my story and see what I am
planning now for my 40th

http://www.justgiving.com/big40reachfortheskiesagain

Please help me to raise awareness and funds for the Parkinson's
Disease
Society by sending the above address to anyone who you think may be
interested to see it.

If you would like to make a donation that would be great too!, please
include your interest in flying i.e. BA Passenger plane pilot, Royal
Navy helicopter pilot, Heron gliding club member etc next to your name
so that I and others can see it. It would be good to see support from
abroad!!. I am contacting all the British gliding clubs for support.

Every penny counts.
Many thanks
--
Graeme

P.s. I have included a link to my scrapbook below of the days events
of 1999 that you may find interesting:-

http://sites.google.com/site/thebig40reachfortheskiesagain/Home/999glidingpdf1.pdf?attredirects=0

[Darkwing]

"Cooperman" > wrote in message
...
> Hi my name is Graeme Cooper, 10 years ago I was in the front seat of
> the ASK21 glider that was destroyed by lightning in 1999, the flight
> was a birthday present to celebrate my 30th.
>
> Please visit my justgiving webpage to read my story and see what I am
> planning now for my 40th
>
> http://www.justgiving.com/big40reachfortheskiesagain
>
> Please help me to raise awareness and funds for the Parkinson's
> Disease
> Society by sending the above address to anyone who you think may be
> interested to see it.
>
> If you would like to make a donation that would be great too!, please
> include your interest in flying i.e. BA Passenger plane pilot, Royal
> Navy helicopter pilot, Heron gliding club member etc next to your name
> so that I and others can see it. It would be good to see support from
> abroad!!. I am contacting all the British gliding clubs for support.
>
> Every penny counts.
> Many thanks
> --
> Graeme
>
> P.s. I have included a link to my scrapbook below of the days events
> of 1999 that you may find interesting:-
>
> http://sites.google.com/site/thebig40reachfortheskiesagain/Home/999glidingpdf1.pdf?attredirects=0
>


I'm confused, is this SPAM?

[Cooperman]

>
> I'm confused, is this SPAM?- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Dear Darkwing

Not spam just something I thought you may be interested in. I see
that there has been descussion about my accident in many of the
threads to do with lightning.

Regards Graeme

[Maxwell[_2_]]

"Cooperman" > wrote in message
...
>
>>
>> I'm confused, is this SPAM?- Hide quoted text -
>>
>> - Show quoted text -
>
> Dear Darkwing
>
> Not spam just something I thought you may be interested in. I see
> that there has been descussion about my accident in many of the
> threads to do with lightning.
>
> Regards Graeme

Seems hard to tell for me as well Graeme. Perhaps you should do more to
certify donations are for a no-profit charity.

[Robert M. Gary]

On Jan 31, 8:00*am, "Maxwell" <#$$9#@%%%.^^^> wrote:

> Seems hard to tell for me as well Graeme. Perhaps you should do more to
> certify donations are for a no-profit charity.


Its not really chartity. You give him money, he takes 5% as a service
fee. He then donate the money (along with a gov't grant he knows how
to match it with). So, yes a charity gets money but he's for-profit
himself...

-Robert

[Monk]

On Jan 31, 11:15*am, "Robert M. Gary" > wrote:
> On Jan 31, 8:00*am, "Maxwell" <#$$9#@%%%.^^^> wrote:
>
> > Seems hard to tell for me as well Graeme. Perhaps you should do more to
> > certify donations are for a no-profit charity.
>
> Its not really chartity. You give him money, he takes 5% as a service
> fee. He then donate the money (along with a gov't grant he knows how
> to match it with). So, yes a charity gets money but he's for-profit
> himself...
>
> -Robert

5%? He's selling himself short if that's the case. Most non-profit
organizations spend much much more than that on administration. Very
small portion actually get's to the recipient. None the less my
family and I have volunteered for for several fundraisers and we will
continue to do so.

[Cooperman]

On Jan 31, 4:15*pm, "Robert M. Gary" > wrote:
> On Jan 31, 8:00*am, "Maxwell" <#$$9#@%%%.^^^> wrote:
>
> > Seems hard to tell for me as well Graeme. Perhaps you should do more to
> > certify donations are for a no-profit charity.
>
> Its not really chartity. You give him money, he takes 5% as a service
> fee. He then donate the money (along with a gov't grant he knows how
> to match it with). So, yes a charity gets money but he's for-profit
> himself...
>
> -Robert

I WANT TO MAKE IT CLEAR, NO WAY I AM MAKING ANY MONEY ON THIS.

You don’t give me any money.
All money that is donated online goes to Justgiving who provide the
service.

My story is true, if you type the three words:- glider lightning
parachute into Google you will see a BBC News web page confirming the
story http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/558095.stm.

You will also see the accident report on the Google page
http://www.pas.rochester.edu/~cline/ASK%20lightning%20strike/ASK%20accident%20report.htm

Failing that you could always contact the London Gliding Club Direct.
It is from here that I flew when the accident happened. It is also
where I am returning for the flight. Contact details can be found on
their web page:- http://www.londonglidingclub.co.uk/

Justgiving is company used by many charities in England details of
which can been seen on their web page http://www.justgiving.com/

On the justgiving home page you can search for friends, type my name
'Graeme Cooper' and you will find my fundraising page:-
http://www.justgiving.com/big40reachfortheskiesagain

6,464,618 people have helped raise £367,182,396 for 6,013 charities
using Justgiving (according to their home page.)

This page explains the 5% fee that Justgiving (NOT ME!!!) gets. For
those UK citizens the Govenment give extra money in Gift Aid so the
Charity gets more than the £1 donated even after the fees have been
deducted, please see:- http://www.justgiving.com/statements/about_us/fee.asp

It is true that donations from outside the UK will not qualify for the
Governments Gift Aid. So the charity will receive less than the £1 you
donate as Justgivin (NOT ME) will take 5% + credit card fee. If that
worries you and if you still wish to support me and my chosen charity
then donations can be left on the Parkinson's Disease Society's home
page although I will be unaware of it.

As for the Parkinson’s Disease Society, details of this charity can
been seen on their web page:- http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/

Now hopefully this has cleared this up and find my story of interest.

Messages of support would be nicer!

Regards
Graeme

[Bertie the Bunyip[_28_]]

Cooperman > wrote in
:

> Hi my name is Graeme Cooper, 10 years ago I was in the front seat of
> the ASK21 glider that was destroyed by lightning in 1999, the flight
> was a birthday present to celebrate my 30th.
>
> Please visit my justgiving webpage to read my story and see what I am
> planning now for my 40th
>

A tsunami in a mirror dinghy?




Bertie

[Joe Feise]

Cooperman wrote on 01/31/09 09:41:

> Messages of support would be nicer!


You seem to be new to this Internet thingy...
People get tons of spam nowadays, and on the Internet, nobody knows you are a dog...
And asking for donations in a post to a newsgroup is considered a bit shady
nowadays, in particular if you are not a regular.
One thing in particular stands out to me: you are posting through Google Groups.
That's unfortunately a standard spammer route. Your DSL provider (a whois on
your IP address shows Opal Telecom DSL in the UK) should have newsgroup access.

-Joe

[Cooperman]

On Feb 1, 3:19*am, Joe Feise > wrote:
> Cooperman wrote on 01/31/09 09:41:
>
> > Messages of support would be nicer!
>
> You seem to be new to this Internet thingy...
> People get tons of spam nowadays, and on the Internet, nobody knows you are a dog...
> And asking for donations in a post to a newsgroup is considered a bit shady
> nowadays, in particular if you are not a regular.
> One thing in particular stands out to me: you are posting through Google Groups.
> That's unfortunately a standard spammer route. Your DSL provider (a whois on
> your IP address shows Opal Telecom DSL in the UK) should have newsgroup access.
>
> -Joe

Hi all,

Yes I am new to this forum thingy. I found this group on Google group
search that’s why I registered with Google and posted my message
there.

I realise that you may get a lot of spam etc...

I do not wish to appear shady so I am asking that donations do NOT be
sent.

Instead I hope you find my story interesting and comment on that.

I thank those who have donated including my friends, family, gliding
clubs/members from England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales as well as
donations received from the USA and recently from Canada. Your
messages of support have been welcome. These can all be viewed at the
bottom of my fundraising page.
Together you have helped raise £466.79 (inc Gift Aid) = Approximately
£440 directly to the charity after justgiving have taken there admin
fee.

I would rather discussions were focused on the events that day in
1999, the findings of the air accident investigation report, the
strength of the lightning that is now known to be out there and my
return to the sky in a glider for an aerobatic flight rather than my
motives or character.

It was found that the lightning that stuck the glider that I flew in
was up to six times the strength that passenger planes are built to
withstand with minimal damage, SIX TIMES!
Be safe up there!

Regards
Graeme

[Morgans[_2_]]

"Cooperman" > wrote

Yes I am new to this forum thingy. I found this group on Google group
search that’s why I registered with Google and posted my message
there.

I realise that you may get a lot of spam etc...

I do not wish to appear shady so I am asking that donations do NOT be
sent.

Instead I hope you find my story interesting and comment on that.

I thank those who have donated including my friends, family, gliding
clubs/members from England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales as well as
donations received from the USA and recently from Canada. Your
messages of support have been welcome. These can all be viewed at the
bottom of my fundraising page.
Together you have helped raise £466.79 (inc Gift Aid) = Approximately
£440 directly to the charity after justgiving have taken there admin
fee.

I would rather discussions were focused on the events that day in
1999, the findings of the air accident investigation report, the
strength of the lightning that is now known to be out there and my
return to the sky in a glider for an aerobatic flight rather than my
motives or character.

It was found that the lightning that stuck the glider that I flew in
was up to six times the strength that passenger planes are built to
withstand with minimal damage, SIX TIMES!
Be safe up there!
********************************

Reply from Jim:

What he was saying, is that you should use the newsreader in your browser to
access this group and others through your internet service provider -
directly, rather than Google Groups.

For what it is worth, some here appreciate what you are trying to do. Good
luck.

Perhaps you should pursue flying on your own, by starting to get your own
glider or pilot license (certificate)?
--
Jim in NC

[Graeme Cooper]

Reply from Jim:

What he was saying, is that you should use the newsreader in your browser to
access this group and others through your internet service provider -
directly, rather than Google Groups.

For what it is worth, some here appreciate what you are trying to do. Good
luck.

Perhaps you should pursue flying on your own, by starting to get your own
glider or pilot license (certificate)?
--
Jim in NC[/QUOTE]

Hi Jim,

I am replying to this through my previous login details in Aviation Bant...

I am still not sure if this is the host website or not? I had posted messages before on Aviation B under the heading 'The BIG 40 reach for the skies again' and had no problems.

I thought Google groups was a different forum as there is no mention of Aviation B on it anywhere.

Hopefully you can now see that I am not SPAM!!! although I do wonder how many spammers actually reply to messages.

Can we now put a line through that and talk aviation instead please!!!.

OH DEAR I AM JUST REACHING 40 AND ALREADY SOUNDING LIKE A OLD MAN!

Thanks for your message of good luck Jim.

I think after my return to the Sky in April 2009 I will be keeping my feet firmly on the ground. I did enjoy my first and last glider flight and in a strange way I also enjoyed the unexpected parachute jump but it was only ever going to be a one off flight. Finances and family commitment would not allow me to pursue it further.

Had any one heard of my accident previously?

Has anyone seen my scrapbook of the days events 10 years ago? or the reconstructions on TV, What do you think?

Please be gentle with me.
Graeme

[Mike Ash]

In article >,
Graeme Cooper > wrote:

> Had any one heard of my accident previously?

I had, although I'm a glider pilot and in that community it's hard to
avoid hearing about it. I very much appreciate you telling your story.
It's certainly an amazing experience you had, and it's good of you to
share your memories with us.

I must admit that my first reaction to your message was that it was some
kind of commercial pitch, but I read a bit further and realized my
mistake.

It's great that you're willing to go up again. I think many people would
give up on the idea for good after a first flight like that!

--
Mike Ash
Radio Free Earth
Broadcasting from our climate-controlled studios deep inside the Moon

[Graeme Cooper]

[QUOTE.
It's great that you're willing to go up again. I think many people would
give up on the idea for good after a first flight like that!

--
Mike Ash
Radio Free Earth
Broadcasting from our climate-controlled studios deep inside the Moon[/QUOTE]

Mike thanks for believing in me!.
I hadn’t realised that news of this had reached the moon already, the word is certainly spreading. You will have to give me travel directions of how you got there, maybe that is something I could try and organise for my 50th birthday but don’t worry I will not be mentioning it in any forums again!
All the best
Graeme

[Mike Ash]

In article >,
Graeme Cooper > wrote:

> I hadn’t realised that news of this had reached the moon already, the
> word is certainly spreading. You will have to give me travel directions
> of how you got there, maybe that is something I could try and organise
> for my 50th birthday but don’t worry I will not be mentioning it in any
> forums again!

Sorry, but it is a secret base, you know.

I hope you enjoy flight #2, and that you are able to see what a landing
looks like this time around!

--
Mike Ash
Radio Free Earth
Broadcasting from our climate-controlled studios deep inside the Moon

[george]

On Feb 3, 1:53*am, Graeme Cooper <Graeme.Cooper.
> wrote:
> .
> It's great that you're willing to go up again. I think many people would
> give up on the idea for good after a first flight like that!

After reading the accident report all I can say is he has to fly
again.
Just make sure that there isn't a Cu in that part of the sky

[John Smith]

george wrote:

> After reading the accident report all I can say is he has to fly
> again.
> Just make sure that there isn't a Cu in that part of the sky

Hard to avoid when flying a glider...

[george]

On Feb 3, 11:28*am, John Smith > wrote:
> george wrote:
> > After reading the accident report all I can say is he has to fly
> > again.
> > Just make sure that there isn't a Cu in that part of the sky
>
> Hard to avoid when flying a glider...

True. But not on a trial flight...

[John Smith]

george wrote:
> On Feb 3, 11:28 am, John Smith > wrote:
>> george wrote:
>>> After reading the accident report all I can say is he has to fly
>>> again.
>>> Just make sure that there isn't a Cu in that part of the sky
>> Hard to avoid when flying a glider...
>
> True. But not on a trial flight...

Depends on what you think a glider trial flight should look like. Mine
usually last, passenger stomac permitting, about two hours to
demonstrate what glider flying is really about. (And, passenger stomac
permitting, they usually end with a loop and a turn or two, to
demonstrate the meaning of 3-dimensional. Most passengers like it.)

[Peter Dohm]

"John Smith" > wrote in message
...
> george wrote:
>> On Feb 3, 11:28 am, John Smith > wrote:
>>> george wrote:
>>>> After reading the accident report all I can say is he has to fly
>>>> again.
>>>> Just make sure that there isn't a Cu in that part of the sky
>>> Hard to avoid when flying a glider...
>>
>> True. But not on a trial flight...
>
> Depends on what you think a glider trial flight should look like. Mine
> usually last, passenger stomac permitting, about two hours to demonstrate
> what glider flying is really about. (And, passenger stomac permitting,
> they usually end with a loop and a turn or two, to demonstrate the meaning
> of 3-dimensional. Most passengers like it.)

John,

Your point about the duration of your introductory or re-introductory
flights almost earned you a place in my "save" folder in case you later
turned out to be located somewhere near my path of travel--since my
introduction was long ago and only about 20 minutes. However, your envelope
address and lack of a sig-line negated what might have been a successfull
use of "web 2.0"

IWIW
Peter

[Joe Feise]

Peter Dohm wrote on 02/03/09 05:58:

> Your point about the duration of your introductory or re-introductory
> flights almost earned you a place in my "save" folder in case you later
> turned out to be located somewhere near my path of travel--since my
> introduction was long ago and only about 20 minutes. However, your envelope
> address and lack of a sig-line negated what might have been a successfull
> use of "web 2.0"


His post shows
Organization: hispeed.ch, so if you are in Switzerland...
I can imagine a glider flight in the mountains being really great.
My brother learned to fly gliders in the Alps, in southern Germany. He loved it.
Over here, one of the few glider flights I had made me feel bad in the stomach,
which is rather unusual for me. But we were doing really tight turns, and I
probably looked too much at the ground.

-Joe

[John Smith]

Joe Feise wrote:

> His post shows
> Organization: hispeed.ch, so if you are in Switzerland...

Bingo.

> Over here, one of the few glider flights I had made me feel bad in the stomach,
> which is rather unusual for me. But we were doing really tight turns, and I
> probably looked too much at the ground.

Don't feel bad about it, you share this experience with a lot of first
timers and even with some power pilots. The movements when thermalling
can be really extreme (tight turns in rough air), but you get used to
it. That's one reason why some say that a first time glider ride should
just be a simple sledge ride with no thermalling. I don't agree, but I
am very careful and stop all thermalling immediately at the first signs
of uneasyness of the passenger. After all, a passenger ride should be
fun for the passenger.

[Graeme Cooper]

Joe Feise wrote:

His post shows
Organization: hispeed.ch, so if you are in Switzerland...

Bingo.

Over here, one of the few glider flights I had made me feel bad in the stomach,
which is rather unusual for me. But we were doing really tight turns, and I
probably looked too much at the ground.

Don't feel bad about it, you share this experience with a lot of first
timers and even with some power pilots. The movements when thermalling
can be really extreme (tight turns in rough air), but you get used to
it. That's one reason why some say that a first time glider ride should
just be a simple sledge ride with no thermalling. I don't agree, but I
am very careful and stop all thermalling immediately at the first signs
of uneasyness of the passenger. After all, a passenger ride should be
fun for the passenger.

I am getting some tips here, so I guess A full English fry up breakfast just before would be a bad idea and if I keep my eyes closed that may help.

How will it feel doing a loop the loop? I know one thing, I will be double checking that the seat belt harness is well fixed to the glider body before take off as I don't fancy falling out whilst flying upside down and I don't want to do another parachute jump!

[Joe Feise]

John Smith wrote on 02/04/09 01:50:

> Joe Feise wrote:
>
>> His post shows
>> Organization: hispeed.ch, so if you are in Switzerland...
>
> Bingo.
>
>> Over here, one of the few glider flights I had made me feel bad in the stomach,
>> which is rather unusual for me. But we were doing really tight turns, and I
>> probably looked too much at the ground.
>
> Don't feel bad about it, you share this experience with a lot of first
> timers and even with some power pilots.


Well, yeah, I *am* a power pilot... VFR only, though.

[John Smith]

Graeme Cooper wrote:

> I am getting some tips here, so I guess A full English fry up breakfast
> just before would be a bad idea and if I keep my eyes closed that may
> help.

Maybe, I've never tried closing my eyes while thermalling... :-)
The most important point is not to move your head. (Not if you're the
pilot, of course!) Opening the vent and let cold air blow into your face
helps, too.

> How will it feel doing a loop the loop?

Frankly and disappointingly, not too spectacularly. G-load is always
positive, so you keep sitting in the seat, and it doesn't challenge your
inner ear either, because the acceleration is strictly one-dimensional.
If you close your eyes (as you've intended to do), you will not even be
aware that you've done a loop. That's why a loop is well suited for an
intrepid but unexperienced passenger.

[Bear Bottoms[_4_]]

On Sat, 31 Jan 2009 05:24:57 -0800 (PST), Cooperman wrote:

> Please help me to raise awareness and funds for the Parkinson's
> Disease

Sent mine to Doc Hollywood.
--
Bear Bottoms
Private Attorney General

[Graeme Cooper]

;682232']On Sat, 31 Jan 2009 05:24:57 -0800 (PST), Cooperman wrote:

Please help me to raise awareness and funds for the Parkinson's
Disease

Sent mine to Doc Hollywood.
--
Bear Bottoms
Private Attorney General

Doc Hollywood was played by Michael J. Fox who has Parkinsons so I guess you are supporting the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Reasearch, Am I wright? In which case thats fantastic and all for the same cause.

May I take this oppotunity to say a BIG THANK YOU to all those who are supporting me in this. The total amount of donations received so far from friends, family, gliding clubs, members of gliding clubs and aviation enthusiasts now stands at £788.00 (with gift aid) which equates to approximately £750.00 going direct to the Parkinson's Disease Society after Justgiving have taken their admin fee. This is absolutely fantastic and better than I ever imagined and we still have over 2 months to go before the big day.
Thanks again for your support and messages of good luck.
Graeme

[Bear Bottoms[_4_]]

On Tue, 10 Feb 2009 22:32:33 +0000, Graeme Cooper wrote:

> 'Bear Bottoms[_4_ Wrote:
>> ;682232']On Sat, 31 Jan 2009 05:24:57 -0800 (PST), Cooperman wrote:
>> -
>> Please help me to raise awareness and funds for the Parkinson's
>> Disease-
>>
>> Sent mine to Doc Hollywood.
>> --
>> Bear Bottoms
>> Private Attorney General
>
> Doc Hollywood was played by Michael J. Fox who has Parkinsons so I
> guess you are supporting the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's
> Reasearch, Am I wright? In which case thats fantastic and all for the
> same cause.

I don't know. Wilbur or Orville?
--
Bear Bottoms
Private Attorney General

[Graeme Cooper]

Well I did it. See my scrapbook of the days events of 10 years ago that has just been updated to include photos of my return to the sky:-
http://sites.google.com/site/thebig40reachfortheskiesagain/Home/999glidingpdf1.pdf?attredirects=0

Thanks to all those who supported me in this for your messages of support and donations. You have helped me to help the Parkinson's Disease Society help others. The total raised so far is over £1500!

I will leave you in your aviation world, My feet are safer on the ground!

All the best and

Thank you
Regards

Graeme Cooper

[Graeme Cooper]

Sorry its me again, I have updated my scrapbook to include the TV and radio interviews of my return flight and a film of the reconstruction if you are interested. See :- http://sites.google.com/site/thebig40reachfortheskiesagain/

Bye for now
Graeme Cooper