[Sky_Walker]

So what techniques do you use when you find yourself already on final and realize the wind has shifted and you have no choice but to land downwind. I had a pretty nasty wack this weekend, I tried dragging my feet to slow myself down as much as possible before flairing but couldn't manage to run hard enough to keep the glider from wacking.

Obviously the best idea is not to land downwind but what are you guys thinking when its unavoidable ???

[Jason]

flare hard, its not a time to pussyfoot around,


run hard- if you can do a no wind no step landing then you can stop all of your forward airspeed, however if you are landing down wind and stop all your forward airspeed you are still going as fast as the wind, if you can't stop all your forward airspeed its even worse

this is why its important to always do no step landings, if you can't do them in no wind, learn how to. a 2 step landing in no wind is a whack downwind, a nostep landing in no wind is a run out landing downwind

[noman3]

always look for a uphill landing,even down wind you can pull off a landing going uphill.If there are no hill,i guess your screwed.

[sg]

If you absolutely have to land straight down wind, then what Jason said is correct. You gotta nail the perfectly flare and run like hell.

BUT.... id say in 99% of cases, you never have to land directly down wind.

I almost always have enough altitude at any given time to add at least a small turn into the equation before landing.

Landing quarter downwind is a lot better than down wind.

Land nearly 90 degrees cross to down wind is almost no issue at all.

So my advice is to first get as much angle away from straight down wind as possible, and THEN apply Jasons advice.

Give me just 5 feet and ill remove some of that down wind component. (this assumes you are retaining good energy/speed since you are on approach).

[iSoar]

As a pilot that hasn't had enough experience yet to have a down wind landing I've wondered this as well. I agree with flare aggressive and run like you stole something but ... other than ego ... why don't H3 pilots (and from the stories I've read even some H4's) just put it down on the wheels (assuming you fly with wheels). Is there risk involved with landing on wheels downwind that I'm missing?

Thanks all
-Brandon-

[sg]

[iSoar]

[Paul H]

What he said.

[Jason]

[fly,surf,&ski]

[CAL]

[sg]

[fly,surf,&ski]

Cal your not really flairing early - it just feels that way due to the increased ground speed.

that being said if you flair too late in a downwind landing- your pretty much screwed!

[Sky_Walker]

All dragging my feet did was let me wack in the circle for spot landings ...

[Wingspan34]

I'm an older guy with knees that don't want me to run like a sprinter. For this reason I REALLY don't like the idea of down wind landings. Add to that, the fact that I fly a[n older] blade wing that stalls at about 19 mph, weighs 74 lbs, and down wind landings are a recipe for disaster. With a small down wind component of only 5 mph, my glider would be traveling over the ground at 24 mph even with a perfect, full flair.



Now, I haven't flown with wheels since almost forever, but in these parts they wouldn't do much anyway. The local fields are typically rough hay fields or harvested corn or other crop fields. Wheels (less than 1 - 2 ft in diameter!) won't roll on this type of surface.

So how would, or do, I deal with actual or potential down wind landings?

#1) Avoid them at almost all costs.

But, . . .

#2) If I notice myself unexpectedly zipping over the ground on final and I'm too low to correct the situation, I would flare hard. Before impacting the ground (there's just no way I'm running out a landing at 24 mph with a 74 lb glider falling onto my shoulders) I would release the down tubes and proceed to ball up. But you don't want to "tuck" so far that you put your head into the dirt either.

Clamping onto the down tubes in a death grip as the control bar touches the fast moving ground is a great way to snap your arms. So, while there can be a natural reaction to put your arms out (and still attached to the control bar) to protect yourself, it's probably much better to let go and pull them into your body. However, I've experienced a couple landings like this where holding on to only ONE down tube tended to rotate my upper body so that my head wasn't flying straight forward toward the ground. This could be a good thing.

#3) Prevention. I like the idea of having more than one tell tale/wind indicator in the regular LZs I land in. It's critical to have AT LEAST one! It should, ideally, be located so that it gives a good reading no matter where the wind is coming from. A good wind indicator is the best way to avoid setting up your final in the wrong direction.

Also, keep an eye on LZ wind indicators as soon as you can see them clearly. A few minutes of monitoring what they are doing, prior to beginning your landing set-up can make a big difference.

[Jason]

[FormerFF]

The LZ at Lookout runs in a northeast to southwest direction. The best flying weather occurs when winds are out of the northwest, but because the LZ is in the wind shadow of foothills, the wind is light and switchy much of the time. At some point during your approach, you have to make a decision as to which direction you are going to land, and start your downwind. If the wind switches after that point, you're probably committed to a (mostly) downwind landing. The good news is that it's most likely to be a gentle tailwind of less than 5 mph.

The LZ is firm, smooth, and grassy, and a wheel landing is always an option. It's also wide enough in most spots that you could use SG's trick of making a gentle turn to be 90 degrees into the wind.

[Jason]

Friday I was coming in to land and had been unable to see the wind streamers in the LZ during my approach. I knew the general direction but as I got down into ground effect(less then 10 feet)I saw the streamers and I was coming in quite cross, with the speed i had a turned maybe 30 degrees leveled off bled off the rest of my speed and had a no stepper

speed is good

[Wingspan34]

Right Jason. I'm forgetting that with a good flair, in no wind, the glider should have no forward speed. Simple enough. That 19 mph is when the glider begins to loose adequate lift to keep the nose up. A Glider's stall speed is not the same as its speed after a solid flair induced stall.

But unfortunately, I don't think I can move at even 5 mph with 74 pounds plopping down on my shoulders. Also, the glider will have a forward and downward momentum as it drops onto those shoulders. That can make a simple 5 mph trot tougher. Add rough ground to that and I for one, am likely to plop, if not whack. And for down wind speeds above 5 mph, . . .

[Jason]