Glider crash at Moriarty

Very sad news. Any details on what happened?

By Journal North Staff
UPDATED: Friday, June 5, 2015 at 5:30 pm
PUBLISHED: Friday, June 5, 2015 at 4:30 pm
SANTA FE -- New Mexico State police have identified the deceased pilot of a downed glider aircraft found Thursday afternoon southeast of Santa Fe in the Lamy area as 72-year-old Joseph Shepard of Illinois.

According to police, the glider was reported missing Wednesday, after it left the Moriarty Municipal Airport. Satellite and cell phone data, along with a sighting by a pilot who'd been following the glider, led authorities to the Lamy area.

Starting early Thursday, crews from New Mexico Search and Rescue, the Civil Air Patrol's New Mexico Wing, the Army National Guard and the U.S. Border Patrol made searches on the ground and from the air. At about 3 p.m., wreckage was found and confirmed as the missing glider.

The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the cause of the crash..

On Friday, June 5, 2015 at 7:53:13 PM UTC-6, Tim Taylor wrote:
Very sad news. Any details on what happened?

Speculation only so far. Perhaps an autopsy will reveal if medical issues were a factor.

What I find most alarming is that in this time of so many electronic gadgets available why it took about 24 hours to locate the crash site. Granted it was in a very remote area but for electronic signals that should not matter.

A SPOT transmits ever 5-10 minutes depending on how the owner sets it up. Even after a crash the spot should keep broadcasting its position. So yes, if moving it can be some distance from its last report, but then the next number of reports will be where the glider is. But someone needs to monitor the spot track or the pilot needs to be registered on the ssa web for spot tracking. Even then, no one may look at it until he is over due coming back. Spot and Delorme can have faster refresh rates.
BillT

On Saturday, June 6, 2015 at 12:05:08 AM UTC-5, Bill T wrote:
A SPOT transmits ever 5-10 minutes depending on how the owner sets it up. Even after a crash the spot should keep broadcasting its position. So yes, if moving it can be some distance from its last report, but then the next number of reports will be where the glider is. But someone needs to monitor the spot track or the pilot needs to be registered on the ssa web for spot tracking. Even then, no one may look at it until he is over due coming back. Spot and Delorme can have faster refresh rates.
BillT

A few observations. In a situation like this,SPOT will only broadcast its position if:
1. It is on and in track mode.
2. It is intact after the accident.
3. It can see the sky properly.

Joe did have his SPOT registered on the SSA page. The wonderful Press can't spell his name correctly, so if you looked on the registered trackers with his name spelled that way, you won't find him. And from what has been reported, the accident was within just a few miles of the last SPOT report, even though the previous report was 50 minutes prior to the last report (that whole, seeing the sky thing). There was not a series of reports from the same place, indicating the SPOT did not survive the crash.

Joe was a wonderful man and will be missed. He was a friend of my family for over 40 years. His wife, Jane, passed away a few years ago. One of my all-time favorite Jane and Joe stories was related by Jane of a typical landout. When she arrived with the trailer, Joe said "Oh, thank you again for coming to get me. I am amazed at how quickly you got here...." Then, as soon as the plane was in the trailer and they were in the car, Joe said, "Where is the map? There has to be a faster way back to the airport..."

Godspeed to you, Joe!

Steve Leonard

On Saturday, June 6, 2015 at 8:47:08 AM UTC-4, Steve Leonard wrote:
On Saturday, June 6, 2015 at 12:05:08 AM UTC-5, Bill T wrote:
A SPOT transmits ever 5-10 minutes depending on how the owner sets it up. Even after a crash the spot should keep broadcasting its position. So yes, if moving it can be some distance from its last report, but then the next number of reports will be where the glider is. But someone needs to monitor the spot track or the pilot needs to be registered on the ssa web for spot tracking. Even then, no one may look at it until he is over due coming back. Spot and Delorme can have faster refresh rates.
BillT

A few observations. In a situation like this,SPOT will only broadcast its position if:
1. It is on and in track mode.
2. It is intact after the accident.
3. It can see the sky properly.

Joe did have his SPOT registered on the SSA page. The wonderful Press can't spell his name correctly, so if you looked on the registered trackers with his name spelled that way, you won't find him. And from what has been reported, the accident was within just a few miles of the last SPOT report, even though the previous report was 50 minutes prior to the last report (that whole, seeing the sky thing). There was not a series of reports from the same place, indicating the SPOT did not survive the crash.

Joe was a wonderful man and will be missed. He was a friend of my family for over 40 years. His wife, Jane, passed away a few years ago. One of my all-time favorite Jane and Joe stories was related by Jane of a typical landout. When she arrived with the trailer, Joe said "Oh, thank you again for coming to get me. I am amazed at how quickly you got here...." Then, as soon as the plane was in the trailer and they were in the car, Joe said, "Where is the map? There has to be a faster way back to the airport..."

Godspeed to you, Joe!

Steve Leonard

The new Spot Gen 3 stops broadcasting if it is not moving. This "improvement" was to save battery life.

Robert expressed the frustration that many of us felt at Moriarty that we could not find Joe for approx 24 hours. In addition to SPOT, InReach, Flarm files from other gliders, radar tracks (if transponder equipped), cell phone data perhaps, is there any other device or technology out there that we are missing to help find a missing pilot & glider?

PLBs and hand-held radios can work if the pilot is conscious and can hit the "button," but if the pilot is incapacitated that obviously will not work. Steve mentioned that the SPOT (or a Delorme InReach) needs to be operational, in tracking mode and in a location to transmit to a satellite(s), for it to work. Unfortunately, if it is under debris, for example, it will not help and we would have to rely on the last SPOT or InReach transmission (which is what we did in this case).

So, with its limitations, is an ELT the only other possible answer? At Moriarty we hope this never happens again, but if it does, we want to make sure that we are using the proper methodology and every bit of modern technology to help find a missing pilot and glider quickly.

All ideas and suggestions are welcome...

Thanks,
Renny Rozzoni
Moriarty, NM


On Friday, June 5, 2015 at 10:09:05 PM UTC-6, Robert M wrote:
On Friday, June 5, 2015 at 7:53:13 PM UTC-6, Tim Taylor wrote:
Very sad news. Any details on what happened?

Speculation only so far. Perhaps an autopsy will reveal if medical issues were a factor.

What I find most alarming is that in this time of so many electronic gadgets available why it took about 24 hours to locate the crash site. Granted it was in a very remote area but for electronic signals that should not matter.

Spot up dates set at even 5 min. can have a crashed glider quite some distance away from the last update.
At low altitudes in remote areas radar coverage is likely non existent.
A medical emergency can preclude activating a PLB.
What solution remains?

I have been told an ELT is not the answer because in a crash the antenna can be torn off. Maybe, maybe not. The violence of the crash may render the ELT unit inoperative or it may not. Is the chance 50/50? I'll take that over zero percent. At least this is a device that is designed to operate as the result of a crash. What else is there?

The new 406Mhz units may be too difficult to mount in many gliders, that is a big drawback and they are not low cost. I believe rescue organizations can still monitor the older 121.5 Mhz ELTs.

Is there an answer to my question of what device would have allowed this glider to be located in a few hours instead of about 24 hrs?

Robert Mudd
Moriarty, New Mexico

Robert's point is very good. No matter what the naysayers say, having a chance is better than having no chance, which is exactly what you have if you don't have a good 406MHz ELT onboard. Relying on SPOT, a low transmit power device, to get through when you need it most just doesn't seem smart to me.

The Kannad Integra has a built-in GPS, GPS Antenna, and 406 MHz antenna. If the external antenna is damaged in he accident, it can sense the damage and switch to the internal. A remote control on the control panel can be immediately engaged by the pilot before the aircraft impacts. The lithium battery lasts for five years between replacement. I have one in each of my aircraft. The cost, weight, and install hassle is minimal, so I really don't understand why every glider doesn't have one.

A SPOT is a good idea in addition to an ELT, but shouldn't be considered a primary emergency device in my opinion. SPOT is for realtime tracking when some inaccuracy is acceptable, no more, no less.

The expectation that S&R can find you immediately without accurate positioning information is misplaced. This is a hard job and I intend to make it as easy as I can for them should the need arise.


Mark Lenox

On Wed, 10 Jun 2015 10:32:16 -0700, mark.lenox wrote:

Robert's point is very good. No matter what the naysayers say, having
a chance is better than having no chance, which is exactly what you have
if you don't have a good 406MHz ELT onboard.

I fly with a conventional transponder, a 406 MHz PLB with GPS, and SPOT.
And according to you, that gives me "no chance". I don't suppose you're
prone to wild exaggeration, are you?

The SPOT in this case unfortunately didn't perform well, but still
narrowed the search down to a few square miles. Mine works a lot better
than that. In a survivable crash, the odds are quite good that a SPOT or
InReach will survive also.




A SPOT is a good idea in addition to an ELT, but shouldn't be considered
a primary emergency device in my opinion. SPOT is for realtime
tracking when some inaccuracy is acceptable, no more, no less.

If I bail out, the SPOT is going to give extremely precise info on where
I land. Your ELT, if it survives and activates, is going to end up with
the wreckage. Which one do you think is going to give more accurate
information for recovering me?



The expectation that S&R can find you immediately without accurate
positioning information is misplaced.

In any case, someone getting to you quickly isn't going to happen, at
least where I fly. It is silly, in this day and age, not to have a GPS
sending data up to satellites. There's different ways of doing that,
they have their strengths and weaknesses. ELT's are fine, but they're
not the only solution as you seem to so strongly feel. Nothing is
perfect, and ELT's have certainly had their share of failures.

SPOT Gen3 can give 2 1/2 minute tracking, InReach can give 2 minutes if
you pay for it. Having a trail like that recorded before the crash can
be invaluable if the worst happens. In a mild crash, I'd certainly
rather have the messaging capability to direct the crew, rather than the
all or nothing signal from an ELT.

-Dave

On Friday, June 5, 2015 at 9:53:13 PM UTC-4, Tim Taylor wrote:
Very sad news. Any details on what happened?

By Journal North Staff
UPDATED: Friday, June 5, 2015 at 5:30 pm
PUBLISHED: Friday, June 5, 2015 at 4:30 pm
SANTA FE -- New Mexico State police have identified the deceased pilot of a downed glider aircraft found Thursday afternoon southeast of Santa Fe in the Lamy area as 72-year-old Joseph Shepard of Illinois.

According to police, the glider was reported missing Wednesday, after it left the Moriarty Municipal Airport. Satellite and cell phone data, along with a sighting by a pilot who'd been following the glider, led authorities to the Lamy area.

Starting early Thursday, crews from New Mexico Search and Rescue, the Civil Air Patrol's New Mexico Wing, the Army National Guard and the U.S. Border Patrol made searches on the ground and from the air. At about 3 p.m., wreckage was found and confirmed as the missing glider.

The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the cause of the crash.

Sad News, hat a nice guy.
W

Heartbreaking news. Joe and Jane (and Joe and Shirley Emmons) were very kind in welcoming me into Silvercreek Soaring during a year I spent in St. Louis, and I had enjoyed seeing Joe again in recent years at Fairfield, Nephi, and Seminole. My thoughts are with him, his family, and all of his soaring brethren. Especially you folks at Moriarty right now.
Erik