Good morning everyone,
We’ve had two lovely and unexpected days of flying over the last couple of days so I just thought I’d share with you some examples of excellent behaviour that we should all bear in mind and replicate where appropriate. Sunday was glorious and many people streamed off Selsley to complete some epic XC; but the first bunch of people I’d like to congratulate are those Red Ribbon and other low airtime pilots who recognised that Combe was going to get busy and that the best time to fly was early in the morning. They arrived at around 7 and made the very best of the day before the thermals kicked off, the hill got crowded and the wind changed. The second group is those guys who recognised that the wind had gone off the hill at around 1 o’clock and hopped in their cars to drive the hour to Westbury. They were rewarded with both my company on the hill and with the very best that Westbury has to offer. An afternoon of thermal soaring including one last lap of the chimney before it goes to the big cement factory in the sky followed by a glorious evening of boating around the ridge when the sea breeze came in. Everyone was well behaved in the air and it was a real pleasure to be out flying.
If, however, you found yourself among the minority of people left at Combe in the afternoon, struggling to thermal along the ridge in a wind that only enabled you to launch when a thermal came through, please take a good long hard look at yourself. A few extra points on the XC league is definitely not worth the danger that you put yourself in! Please read the site guides and abide by them, the recommendations there are gained from bitter experience. Also, please remember that Combe is now closed for the winter.
Another topic that’s pertinent at the moment is Airproxes, that is Aircraft Proximity Reports. The Airprox Board website is here https://www.airproxboard.org.uk/home/ and “An Airprox is a situation in which, in the opinion of a pilot or air traffic services personnel, the distance between aircraft as well as their relative positions and speed have been such that the safety of the aircraft involved may have been compromised”. Any of us who have flown XC will have seen light aircraft or gliders and wondered if the pilot has actually seen you. Twice this year, however, our pilots have come close to large military aircraft operating in Class G airspace. I sit on the Regional Airspace Users Group here at Boscombe Down and would like to raise awareness among military pilots and our own community about how busy certain areas of airspace can get. Military pilots conduct an excellent lookout and scan, but at times operational constraints or the complexity of their aircraft mean they need to look in for short periods. Please do not assume that an approaching pilot has seen you, and take early avoiding action to a) be seen and b) get out of the way. Also, consider whether exercising your ‘right’ to fly through a MATZ is really a good idea. Pilots of fast jet aircraft in the radar pattern may be heads in for extended periods conducting simulated instrument flying or carrying out checks and they cover the distance between where you can see them and when they will hit you VERY quickly. If you feel that you have had an Airprox, please note the exact time so you can find it on your trace later and please let me know so I can ensure that we, as a community, are acting as responsible airspace users and helping other airspace users understand the risks.
I’m off to Spain (Ager) tomorrow so I’ll be thinking of you and, of course, wishing you all the best of the soaring weather while I’m away. As ever, please don’t reply to this message but do e-mail me at safety@tvhgc.co.uk
Happy (and safe) flying,
Nick S
Thames Valley Safety Officer
