" wrote:

I have recently purchased a SparrowHawk glider which here in the US.
Since it weighs less than 155lbs operates under part 103 of the FARS as
an ultralight vehicle not requiring registration, a pilot license and
is transparent to County Tax authorities as are hangliders etc. I
operate close to Reno International Airport and very close to the
southern approach to that airport and have had airliners approach
within one half a mile of me apparently without knowledge of my
presence. This is unacceptabe and a collision must be avoided period.
So I stay clear the airspace where it is most probable to find an
airliner. That having been said I have on order a Becker Transponder
and will install in the SparrowHawk asap with a substantial battery so
that airliner's TAS can see me and take collision avoidance if
necessary.
I have followed the arguments and complaints against the use of
transponders in gliders and small planes and am not sympathetic! We are
all flying in crowded airspaces where there are the possibilities of
collisions and the deaths of many people say between an airliner and a
glider. This can be mostly prevented by the use of transponders, a
vigilant ATC and TAS. The cost - about $2000. How can any intelligent
person argue against that. Are some people so illiterate that they have
no appreciation about cost benefit analysis to not understand that this
is one of the best deals ever? What do you think is going to happen to
glider privileges after the first airliner is brought down? Remember
gliders are virtually invisible except when turning if at your
altitude!!
As to mode S. I am neutral to it. It does not increase safety. It
does allow near instant indentification of an aircraft which may be
useful to ATC - maybe? How will it affect me with the SparrowHawk? I
will probably have to be assigned a special ID.
Dave

I manage an airstrip close to a CTR and close to the final approach
path to the international airport inside the CTR. We have an agreement
with the airspace authority which confines our flight paths to a safe
area.

A visiting pilot was given a transponder code and told to keep it
selected on his departure scheduled for 15 minutes after landing,
which he duly did. This caused a TCAS alert on a landing passenger
jet. Our agreement now specifies transponders switched off (not even
squawking standby) within 5 miles of our strip.

Resident pilots already knew the danger, so this was the first
instance of this problem, and ATC had to accept the blame.