Man Bails Out Of Broken Glider, Parachutes To A Hospital

Hope he walked into a casino and bet a whole lot of money on black.

First I thought, lucky guy. But give it some more thought and I gotta wonder why he was wearing a chute in the first place. Regs would require it if he was doing aerobatics. Poorly executed aerobatics would also require it - albeit for different reasons.

At least he is alive to tell his story...

The skuttlebutt I heard here in Reno is that the sailplane exceeded red line speed after the pilot became disoriented in zero visibility. We all know what comes next when combining excess speed with turbulence, and there was a lot of turbulence that day. From clear skys, the clouds moved in very quickly. The gusting winds were so strong at ground level that cars on the freeway were affected. Sure glad he had a parachute.

Will be interested to read an actual report on this. I sometimes wondered about the nut tension when the wings were bolted on (without a torque wrench) after trailing to the launch point. A limited panel and greater wingspan demand attentive airmanship, especially as its often turbulent, and can be cloudy, in the areas you find lift, and more so if others are soaring nearby. You're suddenly in a cloud wondering where the horizon, and the other sailplanes, went.

Silly pilot...he should've aimed for Reknown Medical Center ;-)

He planned the whole thing....now THAT's skill! :)