Incidents and recovery

Active flying: the wing stays over your head

Most incidents are prevented by active flying: keeping the wing above you in turbulent air with small, timely brake inputs. You feel the wing through the brake pressure.

• The wing surges forward (drops in front of you, brakes go light): check the surge with a firm, brief pull on both brakes, then release.
• The wing drops behind you (you swing forward, brakes go heavy, you feel yourself falling backwards): partly release the brakes, let the wing come forward, and check the surge that follows. Do not pull full brake (stall). Do not release fully and wait (violent surge). Do not freeze.
• One side goes light: weight shift and a little brake on that side to keep it loaded.

Asymmetric collapse

Cause. Turbulence (a gust, a thermal edge, rotor, wake) folds part of one side of the wing, from a small tip fold to more than half the span. Flying too fast in turbulence (full speed bar) makes it more likely.

What happens. Drag increases on the folded side, so the glider turns toward the collapse and dives. A large collapse can start a fast rotation (autorotation).

Recovery.

1. Weight shift to the open (flying) side to stop the turn.
2. Careful brake on the open side, only as much as needed to hold your heading. Too much brake stalls the open side and you spin.
3. Fly away from terrain first. If the wing does not reopen by itself, pump the brake on the collapsed side with a long, deep, slow pull and release.
4. Do not over-control: most modern wings reopen on their own.

Cravat: a wing tip caught in the lines. Weight shift away, opposite brake to hold course, then pull the stabilo line (the outer-most line) on the cravatted side; if low or not clearing, reserve.

Frontal collapse: the whole leading edge folds under. The wing usually reopens fast with a small, symmetric brake input; be ready to check the surge when it reopens.

Stall (full stall)

Cause. Holding the brakes ¾ or more of the way down, or an abrupt pull past that point, so the angle of attack passes the stall angle. Also: slow flight in the wind gradient, a gust from behind, or a badly timed heavy brake input in turbulence.

What you feel. The wing goes quiet, the brakes feel heavy, the wing falls back behind you, and you swing forward under it. If you release at that moment, it shoots forward.

Recovery.

1. Hold the brakes down until the wing stabilises above your head (it comes back from behind you). Do not release while it is behind you.
2. Release both brakes together, smoothly but quickly, to about shoulder height then up.
3. Let the wing surge: it must dive forward to fly again. Let the surge develop to roughly 30° or more in front of you, then check it with brake so it does not dive too far.
4. Do not stop the surge too early: if you brake the moment it moves forward, the wing stays stalled, and a deep stall or spin follows.

Spin

Cause. One side of the wing stalls and the extra drag on that side makes the other side rotate around it. The usual culprit: too slow (too much brake) and then more brake on one side, for example a tight turn at minimum sink. Also: a hard one-sided input during a collapse recovery.

What you feel. The glider rotates fast around the stalled side, the stalled side is behind you, and the rotation can twist your risers.

Recovery.

1. Hands up. Release both brakes. Let the stalled side fly again and let the rotation slow.
2. Let the wing surge forward to re-establish airflow, and check the surge.
3. Do not pull heavy brake to stop the rotation: that stalls the whole wing.
4. Advanced option, near the ground or if it will not stop: briefly stall the flying side to stop the rotation, then release at once and control the surge.
5. Riser twists: reach above the twist if you can, spread the risers apart, and untwist ("swing set"). If you are low or cannot sort it out, throw the reserve.

What the exam says: spin recovery always requires unstalling the wing. It may require raising your hands to trim speed, or a full stall, or more than 500 ft of height. "Always requires opposite brake" is wrong: opposite brake can stall the other side.

Spiral dive

Cause. Entering a steep, banked turn with a lot of speed, or exiting a stall, spin or collapse asymmetrically. The wing rolls into a steep, fast, diving turn. Some wings lock in (the spiral continues and steepens by itself, especially at high wing loading). G-forces build and you can black out.

Recovery. Weight shift strongly to the outside of the turn and apply outside brake, gradually, to reduce the bank. Exit slowly enough to avoid a big pendulum swing (wing-over or oscillation), and control the surge if you exit too fast. As a P3 pilot, the rule is: smoothly exit any spiral that shows a tendency to steepen or accelerate.

Deep stall (parachutal stall, parachutage)

Cause. The wing is at a very high angle of attack and has stopped flying forward: it comes down like a parachute. Causes: pulling the brakes down too slowly and too far, releasing a B-line stall too slowly, coming out of big ears badly, a wet wing, or an old, porous wing with shrunk or stretched lines.

What you feel. Silence (no wind noise), light brake pressure, a high sink rate, the wing overhead but not moving forward.

Recovery. Lower the angle of attack: hands fully up, push the A-risers forward (or pull down on them a little), apply speed bar. A small surge is a good sign: the wing is flying again. Do not pull brake (that raises the angle of attack and keeps it stalled). Do not "wait for the certified wing to fix itself": recovery is not automatic on every wing.

Rapid-descent techniques (and the P3 long answer)

You use these to get down fast: cloud suck, a gust front, strong widespread lift, a storm.

Technique	How to enter	How to exit	Sink rate	Notes and dangers
Big ears	Pull the outer A-lines (or split A-risers) down on both sides to fold the wing tips. Steer with weight shift. Add speed bar to keep airspeed and penetration.	Release the lines; the tips usually reopen. If not, one gentle pump per side.	Moderate: about 3–5 m/s	Wing loading and stall speed go up, glide performance goes down, sink rate goes up. Big ears alone do not increase penetration much; the speed bar does. Do not pull brakes with big ears in (stall risk). Never do big ears in a deep-stall-prone wing at low speed.
B-line stall	Pull both B-risers down symmetrically and firmly. The wing stops flying forward and descends vertically.	Release both B-risers symmetrically and quickly. Let the wing surge and check it.	High: about 6–8 m/s	A slow release can leave the wing in a deep stall. Not recommended on some modern wings (check the manual). Needs height.
Spiral dive	Weight shift and progressive inside brake into a steep, banked turn; hold it.	Weight shift out and outside brake, gradually; control the surge.	Very high: 10–20 m/s	High G-forces, disorientation, risk of a locked-in spiral. Needs a lot of height and a clear head.

The P3 long answer ("describe a safe and effective emergency descent manoeuvre for your glider"): name the manoeuvre, describe the entry and the exit as above, then list the safety considerations: enough height; a properly packed reserve; clear airspace and distance from terrain and other pilots; a wing you know (check the owner's manual for the approved method); do not combine techniques the manual forbids; be ready to control the surge on exit; stop before you are too low to recover from a mistake.

The reserve parachute

When. When you cannot recover the wing with the height you have: a spiral you cannot exit, a cravat or collapse that will not clear, a spin with riser twists close to the ground, a mid-air collision, a broken line or riser. Not at the first sign of any malfunction: most collapses recover in a second or two. But early enough: below about 100 m (300 ft) there is very little time, and a reserve does not "always succeed above 300 ft". Deployment takes 3–5 seconds and the reserve needs time to open.

How. Look at the handle, grab it, pull firmly, and throw hard into clear air, away from the direction of rotation and away from the wing. Then disable the main wing so it does not fly against the reserve (down-planing, when the two canopies pull in opposite directions and increase your descent): pull in the B or C lines (or a rear riser) hand over hand, or gather the brakes symmetrically, until the wing is bundled. Prepare for a PLF: feet and knees together, knees bent, roll.

Mental rehearsal of reserve deployment should be done regularly; it is the only practice most pilots ever get. Check the pins and the handle at every pre-flight, and have the reserve repacked every year.

Equipment failures and settings

• A severed (broken) brake line does not make the glider unflyable and does not collapse that side. Steer with the rear risers and weight shift, and land in a big field with a long final.
• A tight chest strap keeps the risers close together: the wing feels more stable and gives less feedback, but it increases the risk of a riser twist during a collapse. A very loose chest strap gives more feedback and roll, and increases the risk of autorotation on a big collapse. Set it as the manufacturer says.
• Two A-lines knotted on the outer left: the glider turns left. Check the wing before you leave the ground.

Landing where you did not plan to

• Trees: fly into the middle of the canopy, into wind, at minimum speed, arms in front of your face, PLF position. Once stopped, secure yourself to the tree before unclipping. Wait for help; many injuries happen climbing down.
• Water: unclip the chest strap and loosen leg straps before touching down if you have time, land into wind, get away from the lines and the wing, swim upwind of it. A wet wing sinks slowly and the lines trap you.
• Power lines: never touch two things at once. If you are caught, stay still and wait for the power company. Do not let helpers touch you until the line is confirmed dead.

Cause and recovery: the P4 summary table

Event	Cause	Recovery
Stall	Holding ¾+ brake, or an abrupt pull past the stall point.	Hold until the wing is overhead, release symmetrically and quickly, allow the surge (about 30°+) and then check it. Do not stop the surge too early: deep stall or spin.
Spin	One side stalls (too slow, then more brake on one side); the other side rotates around it.	Hands up; let the rotation slow and the wing surge; check the surge. Do not add heavy brake. Untwist risers if needed; low or unresolved: reserve.
Spiral	Steep banked turn entered with speed, or a bad exit from a stall, spin or collapse.	Weight shift to the outside and outside brake, gradually; control the surge on exit.
Deep stall	Slow over-braking; slow B-line release; bad big-ears exit; old, porous wing; shrunk lines; wet wing.	Hands up, push the A-risers, speed bar: lower the angle of attack. A little surge is good.
Asymmetric collapse	Turbulence folds part of one side.	Weight shift to the open side, careful brake on the open side to hold heading, fly away from terrain, then pump the folded side if needed. Do not over-control.