SAFA Skysailor Magazine

38 SKY SAILOR May | June 2024 AIRS Safety Wrap-up – April 2024 by Iain Clarke – SAFA Safety Management Officer Greetings fellow pilots. Over Easter, I was actually motivated to look at my gear and go try some ground handling for the first time since my crash in Spain in August last year. I’ve just been discharged from the physiotherapy department and the surgeons reckon the X-ray looks pretty good. We had some pretty strong winds in southern Tassie over Easter, and I was really looking for some reasonably benign condi- tions. Judicious positioning behind trees in the carpark at Winton allowed for some minor playing around with the wing on the ground and partial inflations before a full inflation was attempted. The good news is that my shoulder did not tell me, ‘Don’t do that again!’ Winton’s closed now and my interest is limited to possible winter flights at Gaffs. If that does not happen, this will be my first flightless year since my return from the 2008-2013 hiatus. If returning to flight after a prolonged absence, care must be taken to ensure you take the time to get fully dialled in. Be cau- tious, go ground handling first, and pick a day with optimal conditions for your first flight. I’m not rushing this process; I cannot sustain another injury as severe as this one and I definitely don’t want to damage this recovery. Let’s change the subject and get into some reports. We’ll lead off this issue’s offerings with some tree landings. First up: Beechmont. #1535 – PG flew too close to the tree lines and sunk out, Qld/S A low hours PG2 pilot was flying their paraglider at Beechmont (Qld/S). PIC was flying close to the treetops when they encountered sink. A tree landing resulted. Pilots are reminded to head directly to the LZ if no lift is found. Allow sufficient vertical and horizontal separation from obstacles to allow for a safe escape when sink is encountered. When a tree-landing has occurred, make yourself secure and await assistance; a fall from height can be fatal. Now some reports from a site that is now closed – Point Cartwright, on the Sunshine Coast of southern Queensland. #1701 – Half PG wing tip in a right-side frontal collapse landing in tree, Qld/S A PG2 pilot was ridge-soaring the paragliding site at Point Cartwright (Qld/S). The supervising pilot contacted the pilot by radio and asked them to land to allow other pilots to fly (this site only allows three pilots to be flying at any time). PIC headed south down the ridge towards the landing area, then decided to pull big ears to decrease elevation to land in the designated landing area.