Making a Glider Easier to See in the Air

In the Alps during springtime, a purely white glider is almost impossible to
see against the snow - that's why dayglow stickers are required in the
French Alp. I don't have the impression that it helps enormously, but
anyways...

Apart from this scenery, I think that in a usual environment putting colored
pads on the glider is exactly what is required for camouflage.

As to silver-shing tape, or retro-reflectors on non-moving parts - thats
pure nonsense.

wrote in message
ups.com...
I have orange tips and checkerboard rudder on my LS6. I've been told
that my glider is "easy to recognize". Not sure if that means easier
to see.

I believe military visibility tests indicated that either all white or
all black were the best colors for visibility. Adding color stripes
tends to make the visible high-contrast area smaller, hence less
visible, so they should be relatively small. However, on a white
glider, my preference is to have a small amount of color for the times
we are in the vicinity of clouds, or in hazy conditions where white
doesn't provide enough contrast.

I see that France requires high-vis color stripes on gliders in the
Alps. Any comment from pilots flying there on the utility of those
high-vis markings?

Kirk
66

A friend has a small mirror ball mounted on the kingpost of his hang
glider. That "passive strobe" helps visibility.

what about lasers facing forward? The low powered version would hardly be dangerous at a kilometre or so spacing between head-on gliders, I have just tried one in the sunshine and its quite visible, also runs on a couple of tiny batteries for hours.
The nay-sayers may give us the blinding factor, but being so low-powered and so far away, surely its a better option than a collision?

Bagmaker

bagmaker wrote:
what about lasers facing forward? The low powered version would hardly
be dangerous at a kilometre or so spacing between head-on gliders, I
have just tried one in the sunshine and its quite visible, also runs on
a couple of tiny batteries for hours.
The nay-sayers may give us the blinding factor, but being so
low-powered and so far away, surely its a better option than a
collision?

A laser is only bright if viewed directly on axis. If you are a few
degrees outside of the beam, you won't see anything. I suppose one
could use some sort of gyrating mirror to make it visible over a wider
angle, but frankly, the idea seems a bit too disco for my liking...

Marc

Nobody has brought up FLARM yet. It's the future of collision
avoidance. Becoming the norm in Europe and rapidly spreading in
Australia...
But I think they're afraid of American ambulance chasing lawyers.
Jim

European web page:

http://www.flarm.com/index_en.html

The demo video:

http://www.flarm.com/product/movies/index.html

Australia:

http://www.rf-developments.com/page008.html

Except FLARM does nothing to prevent the doctor in his Bonanza from
running you over when he is heads down playing with his new moving map
(or nurse...).

And it requires all participants to have FLARM installed.

Excellent for Europe, perhaps. Not such a good answer in, say, the
midwest of the US.

BTW, strobe lights have been tried on gliders before, but apparently
are not very useful in bright sunlight. A "disco laser" would probably
work great. Might get you shot down, too!

Kirk
66

rich wrote:

I wonder if a canopy could have a tinted reflective film applied like a
window. It might be more scratch resistant, keep things cooler, and
hopefully be replaceable.

That sounds rather dangerous to me, as it makes it impossible to see inside
the canopy from the outside. When I am thermalling and get another glider
close by, I *allways* try to make visual contact with the pilot of the
other glider, so I am *sure* he has seen me. I see the other pilot looking
in my direction and preferably giving me a short wave, I know he is aware
of my location.

Something silimar is the reason why dark tinted or reflective windows are
illegal in cars around here (the Netherlands): pedestrians and cyclists
have no way of knowing if the driver has seen them.

André

the doctor in his Bonanza

With V-tailed doctor killers, there's no hope. Perhaps the laser idea
(but a 50 Watt or higher unit) could work on them. The water cooling
and huge batteries could be a problem.

We can always install FLARM and PCAS devices, neither of which up the
need for battery power too much or break the bank. $1000 US and no need
to certify every two years. Coupled with a good look out the window,
you're laughing.
The FLARM is also a GPS data logger. In Australia there's talk of
using them exclusively for contest scoring, so they know you flew with
one. At least two recent Australian competitions (at Lake Keepit and
Gawler) have been flown with FLARMS in every glider. GFA has published
results of user polls.

http://www.gfa.org.au/Docs/ops/FLARM...ls%2005-06.doc

Excellent for Europe, perhaps. Not such a good answer in, say, the
midwest of the US.

Not sure what the difference is between flying in Europe and Midwest
USA. Both crowded places with generally bad visibility.

Jim

"JS" wrote in message
oups.com...
the doctor in his Bonanza

With V-tailed doctor killers, there's no hope. Perhaps the laser idea
(but a 50 Watt or higher unit) could work on them. The water cooling
and huge batteries could be a problem.

We can always install FLARM and PCAS devices, neither of which up the
need for battery power too much or break the bank. $1000 US and no need
to certify every two years. Coupled with a good look out the window,
you're laughing.
The FLARM is also a GPS data logger. In Australia there's talk of
using them exclusively for contest scoring, so they know you flew with
one. At least two recent Australian competitions (at Lake Keepit and
Gawler) have been flown with FLARMS in every glider. GFA has published
results of user polls.

http://www.gfa.org.au/Docs/ops/FLARM...ls%2005-06.doc

Excellent for Europe, perhaps. Not such a good answer in, say, the
midwest of the US.

Not sure what the difference is between flying in Europe and Midwest
USA. Both crowded places with generally bad visibility.

Jim


It strike me that no single system will be optimal. A multilayerd system
would be much better. Visibility enhancement is good but you have to be
looking in the right direction for it to work. Adding a simple system like
the transponder receivers or a more elaborate system like FLARM to alert the
pilot that an intruder is nearby makes the high visibility systems work
better.

bildan

Jim,

Where I've been flying lately (Southern Illinois, East of St Louis) I
can probably count the gliders within 100 km of me on any given day on
the fingers of one hand - and most of those are trainers in the
pattern!. OTOH, I see lightplanes droning along pretty much at my
altitude all the time. So FLARM would be pretty useless, while a
transponder detector would be nice (I'm waiting for one that is small,
reliable, and has an aural cue).

Europe, on the other hand, has a lot of gliders crammed into tight
airspace, but relatively fewer VFR bugsmashers not talking to anyone.
So FLARM becomes a real player.

Now having all contestants carry FLARM at a big US regional or better
contest - that could be useful. Not likely, though, if the ELT example
is anything to judge by!

Kirk
66