20220924 hang glider mid air collision ellenville NY

[@johnvella5834]

Both pilots had plenty of time to turn right. That was constant bearing for quite awhile.

[@georgehunter2813]

The oncoming pilot had the greater responsibility to yield out away from the ridge....he did at the last second. But basic ridge flying rules apply. Both not paying enough attention. Can't be lax when another glider might be closing.

[@Erik_Danley]

Interesting. I’ve never done hang gliding before and I thought how could two gliders in collision course communicate what to do (obviously that would be near impossible), so I wondered if there was a general understanding like both should turn right. I guess that’s the case huh

[@MelindaGreen]

They had 10 seconds from the time that I could see the other glider (0:30), to the time they touched. That's not a lot of time with everyone tracking a number of others.

[@johnvella5834]

@@MelindaGreen I am a retired gliding instructor, and if you look at the the footage again there was no attempt at the camera pilot making an escape turn to the right. What ever he was looking at it wasn't where he was going. If you want to stay alive in this game scan rate is everything.

[@MelindaGreen]

@@johnvella5834 neither pilot saw the other, otherwise they would have responded. I'm saying there were a lot of distractions and it all happened in a short window. It could happen to anyone in that situation.

[@mbboisvert]

Remember RIGHT of way. Turn RIGHT. The other pilot was more at fault as he had the valley to turn into. Thank you for posting.

[@edwardkiernan]

The other guy cross-controlled and barely turned right. Of course you should have turned right as well, even with the ridge. Glad everyone was okay.

[@AvishalomShalit]

no he didn't, he over controlled his feet are to the RIGHT of his CoG, not to the left.

[@MrMoyesboy]

There is always a chance that we aren't going to see another glider, we cant look every direction at once. We have to make sure we minimise this chance! Provided everyone minimises the chance there is then very little chance that two pilots will both not see each other. That is what it takes to actually have a mid air. I think everyone who flies with others has had that moment where we avoid a pilot who hasn't seen us. We have to compare notes and speak to the pilot if its happening regularly with a particular individual. We also see here the mid air when it isn't actually crowded and there is plenty of room for everyone. That, unfortunately, is the most common mid air. So when it has been busy and now it isn't... that's the worst for people relaxing their look out! Glad you are both ok!

[@penrynbigbird]

That was a midair kiss, a collision and someone's going down under canopy or worse. Very lucky indeed and very avoidable as others have pointed out. Thanks for posting - lots to learn here.

[@banalpedant41]

1983 Dansville NY I was soaring the ridge for my first soaring flight. One dude the locals called "mad Murray" liked to take pictures of other pilots and the time when he flew straight at me was all I could take. I landed early and waited for him to land. The thought crossed my mind to get in his way during his landing but I came to my senses. Seems funny now but I spent most of that flight paying very close attention to Mad Murray only to pay attention as to when he landed. Don't ever fly close to some people. The same type of person tailgates while driving. I can guarantee you I would have lost it on the pilot.

[@skeetzoid]

Thanks for the story! I've seen road rage while driving on the ground, good thing you didn't succumb to "sky-rage"

[@banalpedant41]

@@skeetzoid LOL The reason I chose to fly hanggliders was to get away from tailgaters. lol I'm not proud of it but if a person chooses to risk my life by flying closely they have already opened up a big can of worms as far as I'm concerned. I'm not saying this is what happened in your case but people need to know some people get really freaked out by this group of pilots that can't seem to be alone no matter what they do in life. I equate it to tailgating because it makes no sense.

[@banalpedant41]

Oh and what is with the guy in the single surface glider not pulling in for speed when he needed quick response more than anything? He weight shifted but totally forgot about needing speed. I doubt if he was very experienced.

[@soaringroadtrip]

That was scary, glad you guys are ok!

[@alanaldpal950]

I was watching his shadow to see we’re the other pilot was going to come from. Because the other pilot was coming from behind a ridge the other pilots shadow did not appear until just before impact. Shadow of other glider can be an additional clue that you are near other traffic or on a possible impact course but as seen here….. not always

[@blankfield42]

Super lucky. Glad you guys are ok.

[@skeetzoid]

"Hang gliding is a dying sport." Somehow, the crowded weekends in Ellenville contradict that trend. I feel like Linda Blair spinning her head in the Exorcist when it's this crowded.

[@beebee766]

head-on - always break right. Ridge Rules: guy with ridge on right has right of way.

[@TheDAVE858]

Good fucking Lord... The guy in the red glider was below & closer to the hill & thus grossly had the right of way. As far as the other guy goes, not only was he not paying attention, but also his harness was not configured correctly as he was hanging like he had an anvil in his harness boot. Then when he finally notices the problem, which he had plenty of time to correct, he cross controlled & impacted the other pilot. Nobody died, but seriously, WTF!?!?

[@timothycurran8474]

There should have been a SERIOUS discussion in the LZ with the other pilot. You had the right of way but dead right or dead wrong is still dead!

[@patrickswayze2596]

So umm,,, I’m still watching this slow mo replay, only problem it I started it Friday night and I have to go to work shortly, does it go for much longer?

[@patrickswayze2596]

😛

[@skeetzoid]

@@patrickswayze2596 if it was any slower I probably would have been able to travel back in time and avoid that collision altogether. But that would mean this video would not exist.

[@patrickswayze2596]

@@skeetzoid hahaha Glad you were able to keep on flying forward safely my brother, I think I fully clenched up from head to below as you were both about to pass…

[@tetsuoshima7385]

Tune is sick!

[@billydiomis1045]

Daaaamn bro!!! Glad not too serious 🙏

[@skeetzoid]

It's a problem with popular sites like Ellenville. It gets really crowded. I really need to stay away from that fish bowl. Launch, then leave.

[@patrickswayze2596]

Very close call mate, as close as it gets. Glad you both escaped that one which I still tell my students to NEVER trust the rule of right wing tip to mountain as right of way, this is exactly why!..

[@PaulVoight]

Glad that was minor.... I see a whole LOT of time to react and avoid early.... but nobody does anything to avoid till it's too late ???

[@skeetzoid]

Sorry, I was busy looking left and right to avoid PG and missed the HG right in front of me. Saw him 2 seconds before impact. I should have turned right immediately, but the ridge on the right made me think twice.

[@hangglideforfun]

@@skeetzoid I presume that the glider was easier to see in real life due to the exposure levels on the camera, but as soon as that glider came into view on the camera one word kept repeating in my head....."dive, dive, dive" there was a small input, but an earlier and more authoritative dive would have resulted in vertical separation and no contact.

[@skeetzoid]

@@hangglideforfun I wasn't sure if the other glider was going to do the same thing (dive). And no, the other glider was not easy to spot when it was straight ahead against the white sky. By the time I saw it, it was already close.

[@colinfaed5910]

@@skeetzoid I think turning right might have make it worse if you didn't do it early enough. turning right within 2 or 3 seconds of contact would have lifted your left wing and may have resulted in a heavier collision than what appears to have been a glancing blow of wing tips. My instinct would have been to pull in hard and try to go under him. Risky if he did the same, but he did seem to be starting a right turn, not diving.

[@charliemotakpochop]

¨hanks for sharing

[@nanoraflyz]

Omg…. so glad you both are ok.. the rush you get gotta be serious even for ones like us watching, to know that that could have killed you…..what should have happened to avoid the crush?

[@skeetzoid]

Should have seen the other pilot earlier and reacted more quickly, but I was distracted by the paragliders I was trying to avoid on my left and right. Need to follow ridge right of way rules (pilot with ridge on his right has right of way).

[@nanoraflyz]

@@skeetzoid so you had the right of way.. What a experience this is. I’m just so glad that you r ok.

[@bayleyadams9259]

@@skeetzoid in response to "need to follow ridge right of way rules (pilot with ridge on his right has right of way)": Something that's stuck with me from my motorcycle class: "many people have died with right of way". Defensive driving (and flying) tries to find options where you're safe even if the other guy messes up. Like you already said, flying where it's less crowded achieves that. When flying in crowded air, I'd also recommend keeping a more consistent heading. This makes it easier for others to predict where you'll be. I'm speculating, but if the oncoming pilot saw you earlier, he might've thought you'd seen him and were turning right to avoid at 0:34.

[@BariFPV]

I thought I was going to have mid airs with the PGs

[@Scottr2010]

Right wing to the ridge has right of way. I hope you got the opportunity to remind him or her!

[@barrymorse8810]

Hindsight is easier than foresight, obviously. But, in the future, when flying in traffic, flying with VG off instead of full-on could shave seconds off an evasive turn.

[@mikedunn7795]

I didn't see him moving his head to check for other pilots. Situational awareness would be critical when you are sharing the air with several other gliders.

[@pozzee2809]

Hardly a collision! Which means that this was perhaps staged for views?

[@OLDMANTEA]

Playing chicken in the air? What could possibly go wrong?

[@jwm239]

...wondering why other pilot did not turn to the right, away from ridge, since he/she should know you were 'penned in' w/ ridge on your right.

[@skeetzoid]

There were other pilots on my left and my right prior to the encounter. Maybe he was also avoiding them

[@bertold12345]

Good job but that was scary .

[@DD-gi6kx]

what part was the good job...flying straight into another glider

[@bertold12345]

@@DD-gi6kx your reaction

[@patricksamoens3505]

Deux pilotes aveugles ? Même quand on est prioritaire avec la pente à droite on évite les risques de collisions.

[@BariFPV]

What what did the wings clip?

[@skeetzoid]

I checked the tip wand on the S3 and it didn't look damaged. I don't think we hit aluminum (the outcome would have been more disastrous). The other pilot said he checked after landing and didn't see any damage on his wing.

[@gaypreator8547]

Think that was clipping. Just what I saw.

[@christoomey9890]

Yikes….😳

[@fredbloggs6342]

Cvnt did’t even look back to see if the other guy he hit was ok. What a pr!ck.

[@dyingfromthelying]

NOT...

[@markrabe9812]

The guy flying down wind should be losing his license

[@skeetzoid]

No, we were both at fault. It takes 2 people to have a collision. I should have reacted faster to move out of the way, but like a deer in headlights I froze and hesitated.

[@markrabe9812]

@@skeetzoid That's your excuse what's his he was aiming for the whole time

[@TheGrundigg]

@@markrabe9812 Get a life Mark.

[@markrabe9812]

@@TheGrundigg This is my life and it's not going well

[@TheGrundigg]

@@markrabe9812 unlucky mate