midtoad's blog

Low-and-overs: good or bad idea?

Last Sunday, while I was pushing a 2-33 glider off the runway at Invermere, a sudden flash of movement in the corner of my eye caught my attention. It was a sailplane travelling at right angles to the runway, 2m off the ground, at 200 km/h in close proximity to people, buildings, gliders and spectators. This is of course what is blithely referred to as a low-and-over. I'd like to kick off a discussion as to whether this manouver is a good idea or not.

Rather than simply comment on whether they are good (and should be allowed) or bad (and should be banned), I'd like to discuss them with more depth. I see that there is in fact a continuum in how we could view them:

* they're dangerous and should not be allowed under any circumstances * they're bad and should be avoided by all pilots * they shouldn't be tried by low-time pilots but are acceptable under some circumstances by advanced pilots * they're okay but serve no useful purpose * they're fine if you do them along the axis of the runway, and could be a useful skill * they're fun and should be tried by anyone who wants to * they represent a needed skill and students should be taught and encouraged to do them * they're excellent and should be required of all pilots as a badge of merit

I wouldn't be surprised if we had at least one pilot in the club that subscribed to each of the above viewpoints. So, with many possible viewpoints out there, can we reach any consensus on low-and-overs?

My own thought is that this manouver doesn't increase one's skill as a soaring pilot (but I'm open to correction on that point) so why practice them? (See possible exception further below).

The other thing that I ask myself, in trying to assess any decision is, would I recommend to my best friend that he do this? And I can't truly say that I would in this case.

Lastly, I ask myself how will I explain the situation if the manouver goes wrong. What will I say to: the police, the press, Transport Canada, Babin, the pilot's family, etc, when they come asking how it happened that a sailplane slammed into the side of a hangar at 200 km/h while travelling not in a direction parallel to the runway?

My mind is sensitive to these questions because a friend of mine was recently killed doing a variation of a low-and-over. Chris Muller was flying along the ground at 100 km/h trying to grab a $100 bill clipped to a traffic cone when he found a small ripple in the air and hit the ground. He didn't plan to kill myself, but he was doing a manouver that had no margin for error. Now he's dead, and 1000 of his acquaintances ask themselves if they were an accomplice in his death by never speaking up as he pushed the limits further and further.

The opposing view to stopping such manouvers is that pilots just want to have fun, and all aviation is a risk anyway, and we're just fooling ourselves if we think we can eliminate all risk of death simply by stopping such manouvers. For some pilots, executing such precise manouvers with high stakes is part of the game. Is there room for this in our club, and if so, how best to accommodate it?

I would ask if it would be a good idea for any pilot contemplating a low-and-over to announce the intention beforehand. I ask myself whether low-and-overs should be restricted to a high speed pass down the runway (pre-announced) then a pull-up and 180-degree turn back to the runway? At least this restriction has the benefit of allowing the manouver to be conducted in an area where the glider is expected to be travelling at low altitude - along the runway - and can also be seen as useful training for outlandings, or for a rope break. But then, should we get dual training in how to do them? Should there be an endorsement for them?

Next I ask myself who should be doing low-and-overs. If they're okay for high-time pilots in fiberglass single-seaters, are they also okay for low-time pilots in the 2-33? Since we have no written policy or guidance on this manouver, who's to say who should be doing them, or in what kind of glider? (Well, the Rocky Mtn. Soaring Club facilities handbook says they shouldn't be done at all, but perhaps that rule is to be read with a wink).

What are your thoughts?