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#11
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
On Feb 13, 10:02*am, "
wrote: This soft release deal seems to be a lot more common than I thought! Searching the Internet brings up some interesting stuff. *Here is something form a SOP manual for a glider club: Soft Release Procedures A soft release, or low-tension release, is standard operating procedure at . We do this to prevent damage to the fuselage structure and excess wear of the Schweizer tow hook which can occur after repeated high-tension releases. A soft release is performed in all of our aircraft for standardization. As an added bonus this type of procedure also all but eliminates harmful knots forming in the towline after release and alerts the tow pilot that you are about to release. The purpose is to relieve some of the tension on the towline, not put a lot of slack in the line. When a “bow” begins to form in the towline, the tension has been reduced enough to release. To perform a soft release: 1) * * *HOLD the release handle with your left hand. 2) * * *REPOSITION slowly to just beyond the right wing of the towplane. This is done to enable the glider pilot to continuously view the towplane during the following steps, and ensure rapid and visible separation from the towline after release. 3) * * *Initiate a BRISK CLIMB until the towplane appears about 10 degrees below the horizon. This climb must be rapid enough to accelerate the glider. This speed difference relative to the towplane is what will create the slack you want. 4) * * *PITCH OVER to stop the climb BUT NOT ENOUGH TO DECEND. 5) * * *Once a “bow” forms in the towline forms, RELEASE. At this time the glider should be level with the towplane or slightly above. With proper slack in the line you should here little to zero noise when releasing the rope. 6) * * *After release, TURN RIGHT to clear the towplane and rope. *** Never dive to accelerate the glider. This is not as effective as climbing and may cause you to fly below the towplane Any mechanical device benifits from being operated at lower stress loads to the structure..Tost,Schweitzer, the tow plane or your auto... |
#12
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
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#13
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
On Feb 13, 8:32*am, ray conlon wrote:
Any mechanical device benifits from being operated at lower stress loads to the structure..Tost,Schweitzer, the tow plane or your auto... So leave it all parked on the ground then it will never wear out! Anyone doing a soft release behind me is going to pay for the tow up to the time I find out they left. Anyone doing a brisk climb while on tow behind me is going to hear about it on the ground afterward. It may be of interest that the Arizona site that has been linked with mandatory soft releases also thinks it's OK to use bits of hardware store chain instead of approved Tost rings. Go figure that one. Andy |
#14
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
this article was posted at soaring cafe. there, the pilot who
actually flew the flight commented, saying: "I’m pretty sure I didn’t ask Corey to pull up and then dive to put slack in the rope on release. We don’t do that at Beloit and its not necessary with the Tost release on the Grob 103. ‘Much more likely he was too low on tow for a safe release and I asked him to move up into a proper high tow position before releasing." |
#15
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
and may cause you to fly below the towplane
Any mechanical device benifits from being operated at lower stress loads to the structure..Tost,Schweitzer, the tow plane or your auto...- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - Not true........Mechanical devices are designed to do the job........Why should I put myself / passenger/ glider/ towpilot in danger just to give the tow hook "less stress"? How about "less stress" on me? Like a "normal release". THat climb and dive deal give me too much stress. Mechanical devices, tools, etc work for me....I don't work for them. BTW......no "T" is Schweizer...(yet another of my pet peeves) LOL Cookie |
#16
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
Here's a nice response form an earlier RAS discussion onthe same
subject form "66" 1. Tost release is designed to release under normal load. No special requirement, just pull release. 2. Schweizer release may actually not release the tow rope under a real soft load (if arm sticks, for example, and towring is recaptured when release closes). As long as load isn't excessive (i.e. pulling up prior to release) no damage should result from normal tension release. 3. Tow pilots generally do not like soft releases - it's embarassing to climb an extra thousand feet or two with nothing on the end of the string (BTDT). Especially on a nice bumpy day, with a light glasshole behind me, I want to know when he/she decides to leave! 4. Why do a maneuver just prior to release that will decrease the rate you get separation from the towplane and distract you from clearing your airspace prior to release? 5. Worse case is that you match speeds with towplane, pull release, then eat the end of the towrope. Dumb. So now, tell me again why a soft release is taught? Oh right, to save a few bucks on maintenance... Only thing worse than a soft release is a kiting release - those guys (you know who you are) deserve a good thrashing! Just get behind the towplane, stabilize, clear the airspace, release, watch for the rope to leave, then turn away. Easy... Kirk 66 |
#17
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
On Feb 13, 8:06*pm, Tony wrote:
this article was posted at soaring cafe. *there, the pilot who actually flew the flight commented, saying: "I’m pretty sure I didn’t ask Corey to pull up and then dive to put slack in the rope on release. We don’t do that at Beloit and its not necessary with the Tost release on the Grob 103. ‘Much more likely he was too low on tow for a safe release and I asked him to move up into a proper high tow position before releasing." OK...we have to let the pilot off the hook on this one! When you are the subject of an acticle you are sometimes presented in a bad light because of the author's lack of understanding. One of our local pilots landed in a soybean field a couple of years back. Somebody called the police, and the police called the FAA. The FAA told the police it was a "non issue". In the morning paper the article read. "Glider plane crashes in 27 acre soybean field....Crops destroyed" (Giving the impression that all 27 acres were somehow destroyed, when in reality about 15 soybeans got pulled off thier stems!) We called the newspaper and asked them to retract the story and write what really happened. We found out that the reporter did not even go to the glider landout...he merely called the police station and asked if anything interesting happened that day. The paper said they had no intention of retracting the story or presenting what really happened! Don't always believe what you read! Cookie |
#18
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
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#19
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
Jim Beckman wrote:
Wrong offer. Tell the person who wrote the story to come on out to the glider field and they'll get a free demo ride. Bring your photographer along, too (photogs love subjects like sailplanes). Exactly. You might even get a video out if it - like the one on the main page of my club web site http://soargbsc.com, starring yours truly :-) in the back seat. Tony |
#20
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Nice article on soaring on EAA web site
On Feb 13, 5:30*pm, Andy wrote:
On Feb 13, 8:32*am, ray conlon wrote: Any mechanical device benifits from being operated at lower stress loads to the structure..Tost,Schweitzer, the tow plane or your auto... So leave it all parked on the ground then it will never wear out! Anyone doing a soft release behind me is going to pay for the tow up to the time I find out they left. Anyone doing a brisk climb while on tow behind me is going to hear about it on the ground afterward. It may be of interest that the Arizona site that has been linked with mandatory soft releases also thinks it's OK to use bits of hardware store chain instead of approved Tost rings. *Go figure that one. Andy I received a private email about this post. It seems that at least one person had the impression that I was saying the soft release would be both undetectable to the tow pilot and so violent as to be a hazard. I replied: "The problem with a well executed soft release is that it gives the pilot no cue as to the release. If the tow pilot is not looking in the mirrors he may well miss it. This is no problem at all for ride operations where the release is always at the same altitude but it may when the glider pilot releases early in lift. Making a "brisk climb" is not required for a soft release. Anyone inexperienced pilot reading RAS and then attempting a "brisk climb" to start one could get the tow pilot into trouble." I also replied that I had experience of soft release at both ends of the rope. Andy |
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