Hi guys and girls just a short report of my incident yesterday and to thank all concerned for help and advice.I am day 2 of my cp course flying off treak cliff yesterday on my second flight I lost a lot of height but also my comms with my instructor which left me having to make a decision on landing of which I made a stupid error and ending up wrapped around the power lines next to the landing field thankfully I was and am ok with no injuries.I just want to apologise for all the inconvenience to other pilots,the power cut in the caves,the concerned walkers,helimed,paramedics,police,electric company and lastly to add this was completely my poor planning and decision making that lead up to this incident my instructor has given me all the tools I just dropped them out of the box but thankfully I walked away still excited to become a paraglider pilot and be part of such an amazing community.
Sparky(my new Nick name)
So day one we learn to fly solo. Every flight we take needs a flight plan. At Treak and Bradwell there are trees and power lines low down. A good plan is to fly out early if you are getting low. Rule of thumb 2/3 rds down from take off at both sites and you need to be thinking about heading out. Remember that radio's fail, more exciting on SIV as one of my good friends will tell you. Keep your landing options open. It may mean lots of short flights to start with but even a 10% risk of not making a safe landing makes late calls high risk compared to the consequences. I am an expert on bad landings but have been very lucky so far but now I am much more careful. I became famous quite early on for similar incidents. Listen to Steve, make sure you have your own plan and limits for every flight. If you are unsure ask before you take off. But most of all enjoy the rest of your training. There is a hell of a lot of experience in the club and a lot of help, especially when you pass your CP.
WOW! Just read this and im seriously happy to learn from someone else's mistake here. Glad you're ok, and that photo will be something you can laugh at one day but WOW. Im just starting my CP with Steve and this has really brought it home just how much mental planning and site awareness you really need. I can barely see the lines in the pic, it must have been seriously scary.
Did you get your CP finished?
Ive just set up a FB group for Newbies to help us coordinate a bit on booking lessons to help out the instructors. It might help with folk wanting to share lifts, accommodation etc as well. Feel free to join and to share with anyone you know whos learning or wants to learn.
Derbyshire Soaring Newbies