Not advisable but if you have to there are a few points to keep in mind.
One of the briefings we had at the world Championships in Sweden was recommended
procedures for ditching.
This was a real issue in Sweden as there were few good paddocks in amongst the
forests, however there were many lakes.
It was recommended that if you had the option of landing in the trees or in a lake the
lake option was the preferred.
The reason was that it wass highly likely the glider would be flyable the next day and
as long as you could swim you would survive.
The trees in Sweden are very high so it was mentioned that if you landed in the tree
tops it was likely that the glider would be destroyed and that the pilot is likely to
be injured if not killed(by exposure or the impact). The drop to the base of the trees
is a long way.
During the period of the comp we had two successful lake landings, both pilots had no
injuries and on both occassions the two gliders flew the next day (after an all night
dry out and a complete instrument re-fit.
The recommended procedure, unless a specific procedure is in the flight manual was to
land with the wheel down. The wheel had the effect of reducing the suction tendency of
the bottom of the fuselage, a bit like using your dive brakes on the top surface of
the wing. The fuselage (of fibre glass gliders) has a very aerodynamic shape with
chamber on the bottom surface which on initial contact with the water will act just
like the curved side of a spoon does to a flow of water from a tape (try it).
This is not to say the fuselage will not tuck under with the wheel down, it will, but
certainly not as much as it would do if you left the wheel up. This may depend on the
shape of the fuse and location of the wheel in relation to the position of maximum
chamber but generally that was the recommendation.
In both case of lake landings at the worlds both gliders did tuck under but very
quickly they re-surfaced and floated. The air in the wings and the general buoyancy of
the structure left the glider floating. The tail would be below the water line.
It was recommend that the glider should be landed in as deep a portion of the lake as
possible but keeping in mind the distance from the shore. The reason for this was to
give plenty of clearance for the nose of the glider from the bottom of the lake or
hidden rocks under the surface as the nose went under the water on initial contact.
Also there was concern that if the nose of the glider went in to the mud on the bottom
it may prevent the glider from re-surfacing.
Lastly it was also recommended to leave all vents closed to delay the cockpit from
filling with water.
I hope this helps with the info gathering on this subject.
Always make sure the manufacturers manual is consulted for specific procedures.
Regards Miles Gore-Brown
Can anyone shed some light onto the correct procedure for
ditching a glider into water. Not that I plan to, it is just that a debate arose
at my club as to the correct procedure with regards to,
Should the wheel be up or down and WHY?
Should you land in shallow water close to the shore or deep water
and swim for it?
Will the glider float or sink?
Will the glider nose into the water upon touching the water?
Do some Flight Manuals give procedures for this as I have heard
that in Europe ditching into a lake is a preferred option to the forest?
ANDREW WRIGHT
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