Passenger Comfort.....

wrote:
I'm a relatively new commercial pilot and have had several passengers
with NPE...near puke events! Some have been uncomfortable from the
moment we start the tow, others at altitude and others while
thermaling. I keep the chatter going, recommend steady breathing and
to look at the horizon. I make sure the air vent is open as well.

Can anyone offer some tips to keep the passengers from losing it? I
want each one to have a great ride and first gliding experience. I
keep the manuevers gentle and frequently ask how they are doing.

It seems the ones who say they will be fine, and laugh at me when I
point out the airsick bag, have been the one's to get queasy.

I've never had anyone actually get sick on me while giving a ride, although
one person said she "wouldn't mind" if we landed early. I think some people
are more prone to getting sick, and typically, they know it. I agree with
the other people who say not to tell them about the barf bag until they need
it. If your passanger asks about it before they get in, thats a *BAD* sign.
Someone at my club once joked that every passanger who asked about the
barf bag on the ground had gotten sick in the air.

I think fresh air and a clear view out of the cockpit are the best way to
minimize airsickness. Never give a non-pilot a backseat ride. However,
I find that turbulent movement and reduced G's are what tend to make me
feel sick rather than being at any particular orientation. A tight bank
would have little impact on me, but the moment the ship breaks into a stall
would tend to upset me. Staying out of thermals helps, but its no garuntee,
and tows through bumpy air are probably worse than thermals. So there may
be little you can do about it.

I think having the controls (whether on an airplane, or a car or a boat)
makes a big improvement. Obviously you can't hand over the controls during
take off or landing, but you may want to consider giving them the controls
in the air.

dan

In article ,
dan wrote:

I think fresh air and a clear view out of the cockpit are the best way to
minimize airsickness. Never give a non-pilot a backseat ride.

That's rather difficult to avoid. At our club you are not allowed to
fly from the back seat unless you are an instructor. I've got 250 hours
total time, 68 hours and 95 flights of it giving rides, all with the
passenger in the back seat.

I've had two people get sick. One friend got sick at the end of an 80
minute flight in 1993. I don't fly first-timers for that long any more.
Another friend got sick on her first glider flight earlier this year.
She's been fine on subsequent ones and we think she may have started
with residual car sickness from a "sightseeing route" on the way to the
airport, and unwise food just before the flight (a big hot chocolate).

--
Bruce | 41.1670S | \ spoken | -+-
Hoult | 174.8263E | /\ here. | ----------O----------

At our club you are not allowed to fly from the back seat unless you are
an instructor.

I would ask your club leadership to review this rule and the reasons for it.
Learning to fly from the rear seat should be part of learning to be a pilot.
With just a little instruction I see no reason why you should not fly from
the rear seat, I did well before gettign my PPG.

The visibility is a bit different, but not hard to deal with. In some ships
it also lets you see both sets of instruments, so it could be considered
MORE safe than flying from the front. And the feel of the ship may be
different (better) from the rear seat because you are closer to the CG: the
pilot rotates around the CG rather than swinging up and down out in the
nose. In some ways it may feel like you can fly more smoothly.

In article ,
"Roger Worden" wrote:

At our club you are not allowed to fly from the back seat unless you are
an instructor.

I would ask your club leadership to review this rule and the reasons for it.
Learning to fly from the rear seat should be part of learning to be a pilot.
With just a little instruction I see no reason why you should not fly from
the rear seat, I did well before gettign my PPG.

Oh, I've flown from the rear seat a number of times when pair flying
with other pilots, in several different types (Twin Astir, Janus,
Blanik, DG1000). It's not a problem at all. In fact just for fun I did
my last BFR from the back seat of the Grob and the (visiting, UK "A" cat
since 1964) instructor was about to sign me off when another member
pointed out that club rules (that neither of us knew about) prevented it.

It's a great pity as I really would like to be able to see what my
passengers are doing and they'd probably enjoy it more too.

--
Bruce | 41.1670S | \ spoken | -+-
Hoult | 174.8263E | /\ here. | ----------O----------

Roger,

At the club where I did my initial training it was madatory for a
"close to solo" student to gain experience in back-seat flying before
being awarded his solo wings. It seemed very clear to me that being
in the back seat was very similar in positioning, with respect to CG
and outlook, to the single seater I would be transitioning into in due
course.

Geoff Vincent
Grampians Soaring Club
Australia

On Mon, 01 Aug 2005 00:22:41 GMT, "Roger Worden"
wrote:

At our club you are not allowed to fly from the back seat unless you are
an instructor.

I would ask your club leadership to review this rule and the reasons for it.
Learning to fly from the rear seat should be part of learning to be a pilot.
With just a little instruction I see no reason why you should not fly from
the rear seat, I did well before gettign my PPG.

The visibility is a bit different, but not hard to deal with. In some ships
it also lets you see both sets of instruments, so it could be considered
MORE safe than flying from the front. And the feel of the ship may be
different (better) from the rear seat because you are closer to the CG: the
pilot rotates around the CG rather than swinging up and down out in the
nose. In some ways it may feel like you can fly more smoothly.

On Mon, 01 Aug 2005 20:39:31 +1000, Geoff Vincent
wrote:


At the club where I did my initial training it was madatory for a
"close to solo" student to gain experience in back-seat flying before
being awarded his solo wings. It seemed very clear to me that being
in the back seat was very similar in positioning, with respect to CG
and outlook, to the single seater I would be transitioning into in due
course.

Curious coe of practice.

What kind of single seater was this that had a head right in front of
you, blocking your view during aerotow and landing? vbg

Usually I spend 90 percent of my gliderme on the backseat, but in my
opinion the feeling there is not even similar to the feeling in a
single seater.



Bye
Andreas

Andreas said:
Usually I spend 90 percent of my gliderme on the backseat, but in my
opinion the feeling there is not even similar to the feeling in a
single seater.

Maybe the point is just that getting a different view and a different feel
and adjusting to it is useful in making the transition to a single place


"Andreas Maurer" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 01 Aug 2005 20:39:31 +1000, Geoff Vincent
wrote:


At the club where I did my initial training it was madatory for a
"close to solo" student to gain experience in back-seat flying before
being awarded his solo wings. It seemed very clear to me that being
in the back seat was very similar in positioning, with respect to CG
and outlook, to the single seater I would be transitioning into in due
course.

Curious coe of practice.

What kind of single seater was this that had a head right in front of
you, blocking your view during aerotow and landing? vbg

Usually I spend 90 percent of my gliderme on the backseat, but in my
opinion the feeling there is not even similar to the feeling in a
single seater.



Bye
Andreas

For Example John Smith wrote:

Maybe the point is just that getting a different view and a different feel
and adjusting to it is useful in making the transition to a single place

We transition our sutdents when two instructors feel they are ready for
it. They read the handbook, we brief them thouroughly and they go. I
don't know of any student who had the slightest problem.

On the other hand, we consider flying from the back seat with nobody or
a non pilot in the front seat a very bad and dangerous idea. Having lost
three club members in mid airs during the last three years, we are a bit
sensitive for a thorough look out.

Stefan

Andreas,

Obviously having a restricted forward view from the back seat is a
given fact. However the experience in the rear seat with respect to
reduced pitch movement and a different outlook perspective along the
wings was considered beneficial as this more closely simulated the
situation that would actually be encountered in a single seater. In
my case the two-seater training was in a K-13 and the first single
seater was a Ka6.


On Tue, 02 Aug 2005 14:27:50 +0200, Andreas Maurer
wrote:

On Mon, 01 Aug 2005 20:39:31 +1000, Geoff Vincent
wrote:


At the club where I did my initial training it was madatory for a
"close to solo" student to gain experience in back-seat flying before
being awarded his solo wings. It seemed very clear to me that being
in the back seat was very similar in positioning, with respect to CG
and outlook, to the single seater I would be transitioning into in due
course.

Curious coe of practice.

What kind of single seater was this that had a head right in front of
you, blocking your view during aerotow and landing? vbg

Usually I spend 90 percent of my gliderme on the backseat, but in my
opinion the feeling there is not even similar to the feeling in a
single seater.



Bye
Andreas