1. When Your Body Quits Gravity Wins!!
Set up the next slide by stating that while the briefing is about a particular accident, you would like to take a minute to emphasize weight and balance, even though it is a rather boring subject.
State you want the audience to know that we glider folks are not the only people who have to worry about weight and balance. Then show the next slide.
Gravity Wins!!

2. Weight & Balance - A Universal Problem
We’re not the only folks who had to worry about weight and balance.

3. PIC was 16 years-old with nearly 9 hours of flight time.
SGS 2-22 ACCIDENT
PIC was 16 years-old with nearly 9 hours of flight time.
Pilot’s second solo sortie of the day.
While practicing steep turns, the pilot lost consciousness.
Regained consciousness while approaching power lines, flew under power lines and landed in a field. During rollout the wing struck a pipe and spun the glider around.
Wing substantially damaged - no injury.
The sixteen year old student pilot was participating in an organized ten day summer glider academy at Hobbs, New Mexico. He had soloed a year previously at a similar glider academy. It is not known whether the pilot flew outside the glider academy. The student pilot was re-soloed at the academy and allowed to work toward his private pilot requirements.
The student had soloed earlier in the day.
While practicing turns the student pilot blacked out, regaining consciousness at low level heading toward a set of power lines. He managed to avoid the power lines by flying under them then maneuvering for a landing in an open field. During rollout the glider’s right wing stuck a large pipe sticking out of the ground. The wing was substantially damaged, later inspections revealed further damage that totaled the glider.

4. Dehydrated and the victim of Vasovagal Syncope. Vasovagal Syncope.
PHYSICIAN’S REPORT
Dehydrated and the victim of Vasovagal Syncope.
Vasovagal Syncope.
Fainting occurring as a physiological response to stress. (Physical, Emotional, or both)
Reported hyperventilation played a role.
The student pilot was immediately taken to a near by hospital and given a through check out. While visible shaken the student pilot was not injured. The medical report noted the student pilot was dehydrated. The medical report stated the student suffered from Vasovagal Syncope or fainting that occurs as a result of a physiological response to stress. Whether physical, emotional, or both combined. Hyperventilation also played a big role in this accident.

5. The tow was “fairly rough.”
PILOT COMMENTS
The pilot stated “The winds were not bad enough to where I could not solo.”
The tow was “fairly rough.”
Stated he was “being frustrated” by the turbulence and “having trouble controlling the plane.”
He began to get “frustrated and nervous.”
He was “breathing really hard because (he) was scared.”
He began to “feel strange” and his face and hands “felt numb”, he saw “a lot of little dots” and “passed out.”
The pilot’s comments to the NTSB begin to paint a picture of possible causes of this accident. His comment that the “winds were not bad enough….” leads one to believe he was concerned about the winds. He obviously was questioning his own ability to fly in the windy condition.
The rough tow apparently continued to erode the pilot’s confidence in his ability to fly the glider. Once released, the turbulence did not subside and he became in his words “frustrated and nervous.” That frustration obviously increased, eventually becoming fear. His physiological reaction to the stress resulted in heavy breathing which lead to hyperventilation, flushing from his lungs and blood the carbon dioxide his body needed to maintain the proper degree of blood acidity. This chemical imbalance resulted in classic hyperventilation symptoms: dizziness, tingling of fingers and toes, sensation of body heat, rapid heart rate, blurring of vision, muscle spasms and finally unconsciousness.
His unconsciousness state actually helped save him in a way. It allowed his breathing to normalize and his blood acidity to reach normal levels. Fortunately he had barley enough altitude to regain consciousness and control of his glider prior to ground impact.

6. Circumstances leading up to the accident. Rested? Hydrated?
QUESTIONS
Circumstances leading up to the accident.
Rested? Hydrated?
Winds “were not bad enough”, does this mean they were marginal? Pilot’s opinion.
Let’s look at the circumstances leading up to the accident. What type of rest did the student pilot get? He was away from home in a dormitory setting. His new surroundings certainly could have led to poor quality rest.
The encampment was held in New Mexico in June. The Hobbs ramp is concrete and shade is at a premium. Constant attention to keeping one hydrated is necessary and during busy activity on the ramp one could forget to properly hydrate.
The pilot was worried about the winds and seemed to be hoping someone would call off his flight. Did peer pressure, either imagined or real, keep the pilot from calling the flight off? More than likely it did. The pilot actually set the stage for his troubles with his anxiety and his inability to listen to that inner voice that was telling him the conditions might be more than he could handle.

7. Was his anxiety noticeable prior to the flight?
QUESTIONS
Was his anxiety noticeable prior to the flight?
Did the instructor notice?
Did fellow pilots notice?
Did the flight instructor notice the student’s anxiety? We all have a responsibility to be constantly aware of ours and our fellow pilots feelings concerning our ability to safety fly.

8. QUESTIONS
“Having trouble controlling the plane”, was proficiency where it should have been for the conditions?
The student pilot had soloed earlier that day. But was he proficient enough the handle the conditions, apparently the student didn't think so. As instructors we have to be part educator and part psychologist. You may be convinced the student has been properly trained and is technically capable of controlling the glider. But is the student convinced? If there is doubt in the student’s mind he/she is not truly capable of handling the conditions of the day.
So how do you get a student or yourself comfortable with ever increasing levels of difficulty? The answer I feel is through gradual exposure. Be cognizant of where you or your student are and introduce levels of difficulties at manageable levels. To do this you have to know the particular student’s or your skill. While waiting on the correct conditions might extend the student’s training time, the end result will be a pilot who is confident in his/her ability to fly in a variety of conditions.

9. Physiological - fatigue, lack of sleep, physical fitness.
STRESSORS
Physical - environmental conditions - heat, humidity, noise, vibration, and lack of oxygen.
Physiological - fatigue, lack of sleep, physical fitness.
Psychological - mental workload, social, emotional.
Physical - The student was living in a dormitory setting, away from his home. How about losing your home air conditioner the night before you go to the glider port. Certainly that should not stop you from flying the next day, but think about other stresses, and if they seem overwhelming, they probably are. The New Mexico heat was such that flight operations had been suspended during the hottest part of the day. While New Mexico enjoys low humidity, other parts of the country are not so lucky. Take active steps to keep your body temperature in check during glider operations. Lots of water and big brimmed hat, etc. My next soaring trip is planned for Minden. As a flat lander I can expect to literally be a half-quart low on blood due to the higher elevation. Therefore, I’ll be starting behind the power curve when it comes to oxygen need and production. Be cognizant of your physical surroundings and how it might effect your flight.
Physiological - Our student was probably fatigued due to typical dormitory activities. Whether it was the case or not, our society tends to be less physical as technology increases. Listen to your body, that inner voice that says, “maybe I shouldn’t be doing this today” it’s pretty darn smart.
Psychological - For a student the mental workload of the flight can quickly become overwhelming. The key to combating stress as a result of mental workload is comprehensive training. The more the student knows the less stress he’ll have. Being comfortable with all the knowledge aspects of the flight is essential. Was social stress a player in this accident? No doubt! This young man didn’t want to look bad in his peers and instructor’s eyes. Have you ever worried about how people feel about you?

10. Present this prior to showing the Yoda slide.
TRUST THE FORCE
Present this prior to showing the Yoda slide.
Have you ever heard that inner voice trying to warn you that something you’re about to do is a bad idea? Often described as a gut feeling, a chill up you back, or an overwhelming feeling of apprehension. Para-psychologists label these experiences “Anomalous cognition.” Anomalous means that it cannot be explained through conventional knowledge. Cognition is the process of knowing. In other words, human intuition. Whether intuition is extrasensory perception or tied to normal cognition, is something we may never know. But the fact is, who we are is a combination of our genetics and millions of experiences. Our mind has a way of using our past to protect the present. Listen to your inner voice and have the courage to do what your mind is trying to tell you. In other words, (Show the slide) Trust The Force.