On my second flight in a 1-34 the canopy opened up during take-off. I was wearing my GoPro and wanted to use the video as an example of my decision making during the "emergency".
Love the 1-34, it's an awesome ship. Obviously a good way to remember to check the canopy before takeoff :-) For future reference if it happens again just hold a little right rudder, the slip will keep it closed till you can trim the plane and use both hands to latch it. Since it was only a second flight in the plane I think your response was justified. For all the fear mongers, a glider flies just fine without a canopy although it is a shock to the pilot getting hit in the face with a 70mph wind!
Same thing happened to me years ago. I forgot to latch the canopy, it blew open in flight All that happened was that our caps blew off before we closed up. I flew the rest of the flight and landed. Got out of the sailplane, looked back down the runway, and there was my cap on the ground. It had wrapped around the horizontal stab, and was held in place by the air stream until just before we stopped. I'm wearing that cap as I type this.
Great story.... I lost my favorite sailing cap during a sailing trip on the Chesapeake Bay last year... Turned around to look for and recover it... No luck... It sunk and is probably a crab or oyster habitat now... (Miss my cap...!)
They say that experience is the best teacher but I wouldn't exactly want something like that to happen to me. Back around 1973 or '74 at Fremont Sky Sailing airport in California I remember watching a young lad, about 14, taking off in a 1-26 who forgot to secure the canopy too. He was only about 50 feet off the ground when it blew open. I bet that he might have wet his pants but although he initially ballooned a high tow position he re-gained control and kept a cool head. Then he was able to secure the canopy and continue his flight. But watching from the ground, it was a lesson to ME as well, and from that moment on I remembered to make double sure that the canopy was latched correctly. Good video. I'm glad that you posted that. It could save a life or two of other glider enthusiasts.
Got to love RU-vid for every video uploaded there's always someone with a negative comment for it. I say well done sir and im glad you got yourself and the aircraft safely to the ground. Safe flying :)
A little right rudder works wonders in this situation. I've had this happen in a 1-26. Thanks to a little cross wind, I had to use some right rudder, and the canopy flopped back over. I held that right rudder all the way to 3,000 feet, then pulled the release. I trimmed up and let go of the stick then used both hands to close the canopy. It wouldn't latch. The frame got tweaked when it opened. After a minute of fiddling I had to find plan B. I was wearing a sweatshirt with a hood. I pulled the drawstring out of the hood and used it to tie the canopy closed. I managed to find some lift on the way back to the field. I managed a 55 minute flight. After landing and getting out I was able to flex the canopy frame back into shape and it worked good as new. I learned a couple of lessons on that flight. >Don't Panic >Keep flying the plane >Sometimes it's ok to fly a little sideways >If what you're doing isn't working try something different >Trim is your friend >The plane will fly itself for a little while, if you give it the chance >Take a breath, relax. Wait, is that lift?
Had a simlar incident in my second solo flight in a 1-34 in narromine Australia back in the 70s.. had just done my first solo, landed was getting out when the instructor said go again.. too me by surprise and with all the adrenalin of the first flight did all the checks except my harness... At about 200 ft hit a big thermal and coming out 'BANG' flew up out of the seat into the canopy, luckily the canopy didn't open :).. and like you after the initial shock firt priority was to fly the plane, also holding tightly onto the stick was my only tether to the aircraft :)... quickly assessed outlanding.. ruled it out because of embaressment of explaining to instructor...:)... so with my left hand over my right shoulder held tightly onto the right strap and continued until release, when able to fly S&L and refix my Harness... lesson... when something surprises your normal routine,, that is time to be extra vigilent
Good job keeping a clear head and getting it down safely. We all make mistakes, like forgetting to lock the canopy down, so yes, that bit was stupid. But your actions when the canopy flew open were spot-on.
I did sort of the same thing but in a Twin Commanche - it had 2 door locks, I didn't make sure the second (and more substantial lock) properly engaged when I took off. Half way through the trip the primary latch gave way - maps and bits of loose paper got sucked out the door which came open about 15 to 20 cm. I made a PAN call and headed to the nearest landing strip - on the way I noticed the open door made a really good slip and skid indicator - slip inwards and the door opened, skid outwards and the door closed - in fact I could have probably closed the door in flight by skidding but getting on the ground was the safest option - after landing I found the primary latch no longer worked but the secondary one did and so I was able to complete my journey home and note on the maintenance release the problem.
The exact same thing happened to me once during a winch start. I kicked some excess speed off on a steep climb and the canopy blew wide open! Luckily it didn't fly off so I was able to straighten the aircraft and close it. I was keeping my shaking left hand on the canopy handle pretty much the whole time while I was making the landing.
Well done for staying calm and flying the glider. All to often people forget the basic principles of flight and end up crashing when something goes wrong.
Very interesting .I had same thing happen on a winch launch in a Sleicher ( ?) K13. Couldn't get the canopy closed so decided to just leave it open and `aviate' which was immediately challenging as there was no horizon to get my bearings and the slipstream made it difficult to see. Got the nose over and off rope and decided couldn't land ahead and modified circuit - the slipstream forces of the turn blew the canopy closed 180 degrees into the turn and I got it locked . The feeling of denial - `this is not happening ' occurred exactly as you retell it. I guess cable breaks also prepare you for the sudden change of plan . I was glad it was over pretty quickly while you had to endure the process for quite a while . Thanks for posting the video .
I had the same thing happen to me flying with an instructor in a Schweitzer S-22 back in 1993. I had latched the canopy, but not quite far enough. BOOM, opened up about 50' above the ground. I was in control of the stick, and managed to reach with my left-hand and pull the canopy back around and fortunately was able to latch it securely. However, the canopy frame was twisted a bit, so it was a noisy flight and I was more than slightly humbled after landing. I didn't fly again for 12 years!
On the 1-34 you can visually check the position of the canopy handle and it would look closed but not actually be closed. Lesson learned: to physically check that it is locked by pushing up on the canopy.
Nicely done and thanks for posting for all to see. According to one of our glider instructors, a very slight left wing low slip will cause the slipstream to hold the canopy shut. That's fine to know, but you did the right thing by making sure you flew the glider first and handled the canopy second. I've shared this video with our Junior membership, all of whom fly side hinged Schweizer 1-34, 1-26 and 2-33 gliders. I'm sure it will come in handy one day for one of them.
That must be Refugio! Back in 1968 I initialed the back side of the hanger (right side of the video) with blue spray paint. It's also the exact field where my father was involved in a nearly fatal accident. He was in between a 2-33 and the Super Cub when the glider pilot dropped the wing, and began heading towards the location where my father was. His only option at the time was jump over the tow rope due to a barbed wire fence that was behind him (though the only fence I remember was along the road on the far side "behind the hangars" and the the left, along the paved runway). In any event, the tow rope caught him under the chin, and pulled him approximately 30 feet in the air until the glider pilot released the rope. My father fell on his head, with his body over him. He was lucky to have survived with nothing more than a body brace for 6 weeks.
WELL DONE!!! Lots of back seat flying comments....bottom line is what you did worked. Thank you for sharing this incident, I fly the 1-34 a lot, over 150 flights in the last 3 years. I also do a lot hook ups and launches. Amazing the things you see people forget...I had a guy give the the thumbs up and wag his tail with the canopy open. Keep soaring.
This happened to me some years ago in a KA6CR in the UK. I was at 1300ft on a winch launch when the canopy opened and slid back on the hinges. Problem NOT emergency but still chilly and watery eyes . Landed safely and the canopy just seemed to float around on it's own when I needed air brakes. Our CFI said Yes this is not the first time Maybe we should get it looked at !!!!!!
For a really light craft like that, I'm guessing that having the canopy swung over to the left side would fuck up the aerodynamics a bit, maybe dangerously. I don't know anything about this stuff though.
Probably wouldn't be that big a deal aerodynamically, but if the canopy swung closed suddenly it could injure or kill the pilot. Or it could fall off the hinges and hit the wing or tail surfaces, which isn't good :).
You're not entirely wrong there. I think that's far more likely for a more high performance airplane, though. As someone who has once flown Schweizer gliders of that type, I wouldn't really think of that as being a problem.
aaron8862006 You might be right, seems like in Europe we have a lot more modern, high-performance gliders even at club level. And I sure wouldn't want to lose my canopy in a Discus!
Fantastic stuff! Congrats! Just two side notes: After releasing off the tow plane, slow down a bit, trim the bird out for slow flight and use your knees to hold the stick, that way you could have tried to close the canopy with both hands. Also, I would have landed on the paved runway though, its always a little bumpy on the grass... Besides that an amazing and awesome job! Exemplary!
I had almost the same situation in '95 or so - identical thought process and almost an identical flight profile. Back on the ground, the tow pilot came back and thanked me for not doing something stupid and killing us both.
I think you handled it very well and thank you for uploading it so others can learn. I guarantee you you'll never make that mistake again... I bet you'll double-check the canopy latch every time from this point forward.
Excellent video. What a great lesson. You did a great job, you could've easily not lived to tell this tale. My first instinct was pull as soon as you got your wits about you, but your choice was the right one. Good job.
not really, no. spoilers are designed to "spoil" the lift over the wing. they deploy on top to disrupt the airflow and allow a steeper decent. they don't lock in place once deployed and have to be held in position
There are those that have successfully dealt with an emergency situation and those who have not. I have had two engine failures in single engine helicopters and a tail rotor drive shaft failure in Alaska and my passengers and I have walked away from all of them. Good job on being part of the club.
I am a tow pilot as well as a glider pilot,We use radios at SPA and when i am towing I always ask,Glider pilot are you ready and if so are your Airbrakes locked and your canopy secured.Just before Launch.
Since 2007 there were 37 fatal glider accidents, none of them involved instruction but I was surprised to find one that involved a checkride with a simulated rope break below 200 feet. As for oldtimers, nobody is getting younger. :)
In the UK we use a formal pre-flight check, which includes "Canopy down and locked" and "Eventualities" - where would we go if the launch failed. I've flown in the USA many times, and the pre-flight checks seem to vary from club to club and not be as rigid as ours.
Same exact thing happened to me in a 1-34. The canopy didn't fly open till I released at 2000agl. I lingered in the landing pattern for a bit trying to bleed altitude but eventually had to just let the canopy sit in the open position. Softest touchdown of my life. Runway was only 1000ft long, on top of a 900ft hill. If you come up short..you hit the side of the hill. If you overshoot..you end up in the woods.
UK Gliding checks - CBSIFTCBE (used on all gliders and motorgliders I have flown) Controls full and free Ballast within limits Straps correct Instruments set and operationg normally, QFE/QNH set, no broken glass Flaps tested and set if fitted Trim operate to limits and set Canopy closed and locked Brakes extended to check correct and same on both sides - fully open and half open - then closed and locked Eventualities - what are you going to do in case of a launch failure at any stage? land ahead, 180 degree turn or abbreviated circuit?
Nobody comfortably sitting in front of his PC can really be in the position to judge you decision :-) but from the video I had the impression that at the moment of the accident you were still in the position of releasing (here we fly to about 500ft with the hand on the release), diving, braking and landing straight within the runway's end. If that was true and not a point of view illusion I would have recommended it as safer for several reasons including. Anyways whatever you did a safe landing is the proof you took good enough decisions :-) Take care and NEVER skip your pre-flights !
Same thing happened to me in a 1-34. To this day I believe I latched the canopy and it somehow vibrated loose during ground run in takeoff. After that when I flew a 1-34 I used a bungee cord to hold the latch closed.
Thanks for sharing! It's good to know there was an echo from all your previous instructors telling you to first fly the aircraft. I teach my students how to avoid misconfiguring the aircraft in what must seem like a monotonous drone, but these accidents will never stop occurring so well done for keeping your head. Also, judging by the massive crack in the canopy you're not the first person to do this! Glad you were able to compose yourself and have a good flight afterwards.
Actually, when I flew 172s, right on the checklist, it says you must check that doors are closed and locked. Remember that checklists are written in the blood of dead pilots.
great flying. and thanks for the video. i think it's extremely important to share those experiences to help prevent future accidents in similar situations. the way you solved the problem probably applies to most emergencies. especially putting the priority on flying the aircraft and gaining altitute first. i'd probably have flown the app. farther into the runway, then deployed the brakes and left them out for the rest of the flight, leaving me with one hand on the stick and one on the canopy.
If you fly enough something will happen. Thanks for sharing! I have actually had one of the owners of Sky Sailing open a canopy on both a Grob 103 and 2-33 on purpose! I would not do that as those are not my aircraft. However, I do open side canopy on 2-3 for pumpkin drops. I once saw and heard over the radio a guy panic and almost crash because the door to his 172 popped open. I spoke to him on ground, just didn't think he was pilot material (didn't tell him that) but he was still shaking.
No regret to your decision, all decisions which lead to successful landing are good but I'd rather release the tow immediately and perform straight-in landing. Why? Because you can not be sure what will happen with canopy, espacially while you are affected by slipstream. There was a case in my aeroclub, that canopy opened up during winch start, ripped apart and destroyed the vertical and horizontal stabilzer. Fortunately, pilot released the tow few meters above the ground and landed safely.
Excellent decision making, good an ya!@Mike Stock. Your attitude sounds a bit strange for a student. You're right about saying that there was some runway left but i do think you missed an important point here. As you know, you'll need your right hand for a few important things on finals wich in this case was handicapped. On top of this, if the canopy would have came loose with the opportunity of damaging the tail while landing....you're gonna have it tough. This guy made the only right decision with minimal risk. It's good to overvieuw your situation as long the plane is flying. Benefit from it, sometimes it's better to use common sense in stead of put yourself in a really time-limited situation.
I have had some rough tows but never seen any need to have two hands on the stick. infact, on real rough days i was only to happy to have my hand near that releas handle. Cheers Pete
Hmm, I have no experience in a 1-34 but have time in a Grob 103. If this happened to me, and if I had thought of everything, I might consider slipping the aircraft down and disregarding spoilers all together. But jeez, I don't know if that would work out so hot either! Maybe just slip it down but have a nice long flare to bleed off the airspeed, especially with such a nice long, wide runway.
Well managed! Don't panic, and fly the airplane! I repeat this in my sleep! The other one, no turns back to the airport below 800', known as the turn of death. Great FANTASTIC job!!
Actually, he already was airborne. Gliders become 'unstuck' long before the tugs do and, at the moment the canopy opened, the tug can clearly be seen in a right- hand climb. There are pro's and con's about what actions could, and should, have been taken on this happening, but, all things taken into account, this pilot did a remarkable job. As usual, people make comments when their only experience is from FSX. I once had a door open on me just after taken off when flying a powered aircraft.
Different training to the UK I guess, your left hand seems to be sat down on your knee rather than holding the release? Having a hand already on it I suspect I'd have pulled the cord before I even knew I'd done it!
yes wheel brakes. Wheel brakes can be on the spoilers lever, on the stick or on the pedals, so that an extra hand is not needed. Flaps (when available) are used to fly slower (when set to positive) or faster (when set to negative).
a 2-33 i've flown on a few times only has one trim setting. that combined with a rough tow has made it necessary, but that is the only occasion i can think of
1) dont hear radio contact with tow airplane 2) dont hear radio contact with ground 3) we dont lounch if have not done our Pre Flight checklist, we have a laminated card with each check
Second flight in the aircraft. I closed and rotated the handle but with the 1-34 if you do not get the pin deep enough in the rail the canopy does not lock. In the future I will visually check to make sure the pin is secured. Lesson learned!
Thank you for sharing your flight. It was informative and educational. I liked your commentary too. What I got out of it is that we are all humans, not robots. We will make mistakes which is why we train for emergencies. It would be arrogant to think that we won't make mistakes. Regardless of the mistake of not locking the canopy, it was more important that you acted calmly because mistake or the locking mechanism breaking would have made no difference. Keep calm and carry on.
Useful training aide. Tell me please what preflight checks do you have in the US? In the UK we have CB SIFT EBC. The final C is Canopy - closed and locked. The E is eventualities, which would also have been useful on this occasion.
Alls ya gotta do is... pull up into a tailslide,the reverse airflow will help you lock the canopy, then gently push out from the vertical to test that the canopy is locked... easy! >>>(c'mon,it's you tube)
Hi me again. I was wondering. Did you have to sit around waiting for tow long on that flight. I have in past done all ground and preflight checks and then ended up having to wait so have tug hook up. I have then popped open the can of peas so as not to cook in the sun, I have also just rested it down while I did somthing else and this if how things can go wrong. Just a thought Cheers, Pete
Dialog is an important process in learning. I applaud your willingness to teach . However, how did a canopy , cracked from one side to the other, pass your pre-flight inspection. This aircraft should have been grounded, repaired, inspected , and returned to service.
The only bit I agree with, your last words. you said it. But thank god I do not have to fly with you, The moment the canopy poped my brain would have thought. "I can land safe steight ahead." This would always be first option. As for gaining height to then refit canapy..well I was always taught. One mistake and you spot it; ok one and you dont spot it then, second one if it comes you are in trouble, The thired mistake more often than not kills, yes you should landed ahead no more thinking needed
Out of interest, did the original in flight canopy opening itself, cause any damage to its form or importantly also its fixings to the fuselage that prevented you closing it? Or was it sheer wind force in flight like it looks or a crappy latch / bit of both? Thank you so much for sharing, and glad you skilfully could. Im simply a curious novice, genuinely trying to understand.
damn...i would probably emeegncy drop off whole canopy ( was my 1st tought when u paused video ). Glad all settled good at then end ( maybe not canopy...looks like bit broken on sides) . Will be checking triple now before start thanks to your video :)
Great job, I've had an engine failure in a p180 at 1000ft and know how hard it is to remember to simply fly the plane. I made it down safely but I also know I didn't do it as well as I could have. The turkeys on here criticising would be the first to lose their little heads when the shit hits the fan. Great job and great vid.
respect to you for admitting your mistake and sharing this for others to learn from and, for not going into a panic and creative thinking on how to operate the controls. I see videos of very young people, age 14 or so, flying and it concerns me that they would panic in this type of situation. Do sailplane pilots use a check list? If so, is there a line item to check canopy secured? Bi-plane pilots fly in an open cockpit but they wear goggles.
So I take it the canopy was not damaged (cracked) from the in-flight opening? In some of the frames it looked as if was stress cracked or scratched pretty badly. In a lot of gliders that type of incident would have resulted in the canopy being shattered or crazed, a pricey lesson. I'm glad you made out okay, and your decision making and handling of the situation was very informative. Thanks for posting.
Thanks. The reason for posting the video is to start dialog and the thought process in other people to think about what they would have done in the same situation. There could have been several outcomes that would have ended in a successful manner. I like the 1-34 but I bought a Diana and will post video from her when I start flying.
Thanks for sharing! Been there, done this. But it didn't come open until in the landing pattern. As soon as it opened, it slammed shut (a little slip I suppose). Was it latched before take off? I firmly believe so. Did I bump the release during free flight? Maybe. Safely landed. Whew!
Well there are several problems. One would be the drag associated with it. Two would be it could break off at the hinge and hit the pilot in the head which could be fatal if it hit him hard enough, or he could crash and die if it knocks him out. Three it could damage the tail if it breaks off which could again cause a crash. There are probably many other possibilities.
