Playing Chicken With The Birds

On Tuesday, November 20, 2018 at 2:25:00 PM UTC-8, Cookie wrote:
Around here we have turkey vultures and black vultures. Black vultures are much better thermallers.

I've had many times bald eagles thermal with me...they don't seem to care....but will look right at you with the expression..."so, what do you think you are doing here?"

I've had them between the wing tip and the canopy...just flying along.

Years back, I did have a red tailed hawk come through the canopy while I was doing 90 knots, ridge flying a 1-34. It was not pretty, for me or the bird. I got cut up by the broken plexi canopy...blood in the eyes...dirt flew up from the floor and got in my eyes too...the bird hit me square in the forehead...felt like a baseball! knocked silly for a few seconds..scared the crap out of me. not very high either...managed to get it together and fly the ridge back home. Windy with no canopy.

Another time, I was doing a scenic ride...I pointed out to my passenger, the same 1-34 which was flying along with a hawk...Next thing, the hawk smashes into the 1-34's stabilizer, and falls lifeless 3500' to the ground. Kind of took the fun out of the "gliding experience" for the passenger!

That pilot was scared crap too..big noise...he opened the spoilers and landed pronto...We could find no damage at all on the stab!

Just one other experience...flying solo in our 2 seat Lark...I caught up to a red tailed hawk. Maybe 4000' but above a working ridge. The hawk went into a dive, so I go the bright idea to follow him. I quickly go up to 120 knots, and the hawk was leaving me in the dust! I leveled out at about 500' above the ridge, but the hawk continued right down and into the trees. Must have had a good meal in sight?


Cookie






On Tuesday, November 20, 2018 at 8:07:44 AM UTC-5, wrote:
Hi, everyone.

Here in Miami, we have a lot of turkey buzzards. They are VERY good at finding, centering and re-centering thermals. When the lift allows, they will soar (without flapping wings) all the way up into cumulus clouds with 3-4 thousand foot bases.

Because they are so good at the re-centering, I usually soar with them in the same thermal. I try to stay just outside their circle radius so as to (1) not scare them off the thermal and (2) not hit them.

These buzzards are big - almost the size of a turkey and there are often a dozen of them in any given thermal. If we collide it's going to hurt - possibly me, but the glider and the buzzard for sure.

I don't recall reading much in my various glidering books about how to safely soar near the birds, so I'm hoping to find some good advice here.

For example, if I see that I'm on a collision course with a bird and getting close, should I try to turn or dive or climb quickly to avoid it? or should I maintain course or turn away slowly, so as to not confuse the bird regarding my intent?

In short, how does one avoid "playing chicken" with the the birds. :-)

Cookie, wasn't that broken canopy near Hawk Mountain?
Yes, the look of "shouldn't you be down there on the ground?" is amusing.
Jim