Walk away after CRASH on your own? Paramotor geometry part 25.1

[@mjwakefield]

Two and a half years of flying, several hundred hours, and I broke my first part on the Scout. Launched in conditions I shouldn't have, "rode the bull" for 80 seconds, and flew into strong sink. With full throttle and a wing inflated over my head I was sinking rapidly from 75' to impact. I shutdown the engine before impact and flared with a full wrap of brake but I hit harder than my legs could hold. The Scout impacted the ground, shattering two spars and the bottom hoop section. I bent the frame and stand a bit as well, and my under-seat reserve made a dent in the earth. My flying buddy thought he had watched me break my back, and ran to my side. Once I caught my breath and unclipped, I was fine! I walked away from the crash a bit sore, some bruising where the back plate was pushed against my spine, but no major injury. I honestly believe the Scout saved my life and prevented serious spinal injury. I've ordered the parts and fabric required to repair the Scout and will fly again in a week!

[@SCOUTaviation]

+Mike Wakefield I am glad you are OK! Was it a stal? Do you have a video to analyze and learn a lesson?

[@ranman58635]

@@SCOUTaviation, I'm glad someone made use of the but bag. He did say something that I hope he addressed. The back plate had no foam or plate.

[@mtmountainflyer9734]

Thanks for the great Cameo Byron (Team Fly Halo) and for sharing the footage of your accident. Educational.

[@trobmj1]

Another great video. Thanks. Fly safe!

[@channingburton7476]

Very Good Video. Bryon...one of my Hero's in the sport sharing his experience in a accident that could have ended badly. Cheers to you guys for putting out much needed safety videos.Start Safe, Stay Safe.

[@mrsonor1090]

Nice and informative as always. Thanks for all the info. Looking forward for some more info on that 4-stroke beauty you are working on. Best regards from Sweden. Have a nice day and fly safe.

[@SCOUTaviation]

right now we are editing one ;)

[@scottfrench4334]

kyle I

[@suburbanhobbyist2752]

Great stuff Miro! Just finished my training and I have a Scout on order. It's this kind of information and next level thinking/research that led me to go with you guys and your paramotor. I'm beyond excited so hurry up and make/ship the damn thing already!

[@SCOUTaviation]

Working day and night :P So we will meet in some epic adventure someday!

[@suburbanhobbyist2752]

Thanks for the update! Yes, that would be very cool if I ran into you out there somewhere with our Scouts. The Iceland trip was amazing and inspiring. Thanks Miro!

[@AV8R_1]

It didn't take 25 videos for me to know I was getting the Scout when I get my paramotor.. I start training in three days! As much as I love the look of the carbon I'll probably go with the enduro anyway just in case I have a few crappy landings

[@SCOUTaviation]

Hey, so good luck with your training! It is possible to change the enduro cage for carbon later on, no problem there.

[@MrJdsenior]

There is another obvious thing you could do. How about some load tailored crush foam underneath the seats for a relatively hard butt drag, maybe 6" to a foot thick? I see a lot of pilots crash that way on the internet, and it seems that would go at least some distance to preventing back/hip injuries on moderate impacts. At least the difference of crashing in sugar sand vs. wet driven on hard packed beach sand, and that would be SIGNIFICANT. Other aspects of the geometry look good. Maybe you could even aero shape it a bit so not too much increased induced drag. I see you discuss it later in the vid, after I wrote this, BUT, seriously: IT DOESN'T MATTER whose FAULT anything is, it happens, you design the vehicle, THERE ARE TIMES WHEN YOU SHOULD throw the reserve, in fact I see SOOOO many pilots going in on the net that SHOULD HAVE, and try to "work" the foil out all the way to the ground, deal with it. Personally, I don't think a TERTIARY, or secondary reserve chute is a bad idea, to be thrown fairly low, say low enough to get it inflated within 10-20 seconds of "two chute out" impact, as it gives that chute less time to get fouled by the other two before, hopefully, in that case, landing, rather than impacting. You also talk as if you only have the choice of a crumple zone OR an airbag, the two are IN NO WAY mutually exclusive. Dumb argument. And I find it hard to believe that it does much to increase drag BEHIND your legs, legs up, maybe, legs down I'll bet you could design it to REDUCE the drag (rear fairing, anyone) but this machine overall is not BY ANY MEASURE a low drag (or high lift) flying machine, it basically relies on a LOT of HP/lb to keep it in the air, it's just SO LIGHT that it doesn't take a pile of HP to do it. Something like the Rutan Quickie (drag of a Cessna landing gear) or a high performance sailplane at 50 or 60:1 L/D, that is a high lift low drag aircraft. Obviously, there is no way to make everything inherently safe in this sport, but like in F1, you might consider incorporating everything you reasonably can to increase safety, and to me, as an engineer, this one does not seem, at first glance, to be anything BUT a no brainer. Unless I'm missing something, if so, enlighten me. As with EVERY engineer, wouldn't be the first time. ;-) And by "terminal velocity", he means of that total rig, which is NOTHING like terminal velocity (150-300 mph (diving) ) in a free fall with no chute, but still WAY TO FAST to be hitting the ground. I've heard people say they had sore backs for days after hitting the WATER in that configuration in SIV classes. Seriously, you could also design so the throttle cable CAN'T get pulled into the prop....really????

[@modus_ponens]

Despite the serious subject, the video was quite fun :D

[@Showmetheevidence-]

Pretty cool video and I like that you didn’t only ‘sell’ the SCOUT (even though I love your brand & products)... Nice info. Also I feel like so,e of these situations could be helped with a few tweaks in paramotor designs - you guys are the experts, but surely some of these types of accidents could be better prevented on the kit?

[@austinsmith9413]

In a different video that shows the guy crash with the reserve he said, "the reserve saved my life, the crumple zone saved me from paralysis." I am concerned that maybe the crumple zone value was downplayed in this video, but I can see your point.

[@shaneross7428]

I seen you start oscillating just before landing then dive right. Was the ground wind high?

[@billcallahan9303]

I haven't watched all of these yet but could you do one on a fire in flight & what you could do, if anything other than getting to the ground quickly. I ask this because my battery is 4 inches from my fuel tank. It worries me. A precaution I took is to cover the positive terminal with electrical tape. Is there anything else preventative that I can do? Thank you!

[@Jobla2000]

Regarding drag of the airbag. Not so sure about that. I have a pap pa 125 and was never really happy with the medium size harness I bought it with. After 6 years I replaced it to a large size with airbag and been flying that for 2 years. I haven't noticed any difference in consumption. Also in paragliding airbag is not considered to cause much drag.

[@suburbanhobbyist2752]

As far as the accident shown in the video...it seems like he threw his reserve too quickly? It looks like the wing was just about recovered before the reserve fully inflated and it was the reserve that caused the spin?

[@machinesandthings7121]

SuburbanHobbyist I agree, the pro lem was not disabling the paraglider. I've seen lots of vids where the pilot tries to pull brakes, B lines etc on one riser, and fails due to twisted lines etc. A hook knife is a must. Had he cut a riser on one side his desent rate would have been plesent, with only minor injuries.

[@lobbyrobby]

I don't fly paramotors yet but I do have some skydiving experience. A downplane is one the scariest malfunctions you can go through. Of course in skydiving you can cut away. Paramotoring not so much. So did that guy just panic and throw his reserve? It looks like the wing would've been ok

[@SCOUTaviation]

If you are in panic, throw. In panic one is not able to analyze, calculate pros an cons. That is why it is called panic. Throw with no hesitation. An SIV training would give the pilot more confidence and prevent a panic reaction. More experience would minimize panic reaction. Byron was an inexperienced new pilot at the time of incident. I am certain he would react more calmly now. Yes quite often the main wing re-inflates afterwards but that is not a reason to regret the reserve toss.

[@lobbyrobby]

@@SCOUTaviation well said.

[@NeoVoodooTech]

I am interested in this hobby. Is there anyone who has never had a crash or is it like driving a car? You are garunteed to have at least once accident?

[@machinesandthings7121]

NeoVoodooTech I never used a paramotor, just free flight paragliding. But yes you are going to have some "crashes" all mine were minor. Mostly during launch, and landing. Kind of depends on what you want to consider a "crash". I think of it more like sking, biking etc. You are going to fall over at some point.

[@phrog849]

I mean I've biked for years and only crashed once because someone biking next to me got too close and got me tangled, so I'd imagine a launch or landing crash at 10-20 mph would be a similar experience.

[@JohnHansknecht]

"Cut your spine like sausage into little pieces" with that German accent. Priceless.

[@Roonasaur]

I'm pretty sure he's Czech or Slovak . . . or maybe Polish?. . . ("Miroslav") . . . and most of them aren't super thrilled about being confused for German. (That whole Sudetenland/Invasion thing . . . )

[@Showmetheevidence-]

Yeah, that’s not German bro.

[@milesb4231]

Nice video. Sadly, a lot of "expert opinion" without actual data...like a FlatTop video but with practical information. If an airbag is so safe when will you adopt it as an option? I'd gladly relocate my Scout reserve for more safety. Also, why not just add impact foam as a standard? Maybe 3/8 inch Shocktec foam to the seat back and underside...

[@brianspinniken7589]

Thanks for surviving and to make sure these good idea's are contributed to the paramotor cages :)

[@RogerBarraud]

0:20 Oi!! We're over HERE!! :-)

[@lucywucyyy]

would it possible to detach one of your carabiners after you open your reserve to prevent down planing?

[@SCOUTaviation]

Special carabiner would be necessary. But the real solution is to grab any line of the glider and wrap it all the way in. Then continue with the glider itself, simply collect as much of it as possible and hug it with love.

[@lucywucyyy]

ok thanks

[@meeksdigital]

12:08 "They could literally cut your spine like sausage" That visual though... Ouch.

[@Rekomeister]

An airbag is not that big ( like a car steering wheel one ) . It will not have a lot of drag under the seat. The problem is how to trigger it and the fact that it needs a 12Volt battery to operate. But may save your life.

[@SCOUTaviation]

+Mihai Voiculescu I meant a self inflatable airbag like on paragliding harness. It inflates through a air inlet right after take off and stays inflated all the time.

[@Rekomeister]

I was thinking of a car style airbag that will inflate under your seat if triggered by a sensor. This sensor equipped with an accelerometer will detect the "vertical" fall ( zero g) and will "explode" the airbag. The only thing is that the airbags tend to be expensive but at least will not break your legs after a vertical fall.

[@stevenporter7065]

they need to start making these things safer! because of the danger for those who are beginners and are afraid of bad things happening!

[@ДобрыйЧеловек-х5ю]

КТО БЫ ПЕРЕВЁЛ ЕЩЁ !!!

[@mikebrady2073]

CRASH ?? Oh I hope not.

[@stevensevede4928]

I thought the flat top only used the grumble Zone lingo

[@glydrfreak]

he was flying a flat top unit during his crash. you can see the third person camera angle here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qnSVdneiad-XgZI

[@MrOryfek]

hahaha probably there will be only one dislike ...from Dell

[@fprintf]

It seems to me from everything I've read that you don't need to be so aggressive about your marketing, which is why so many people pick on you. If you'd relax and stop calling people names and any stuff other than yours as "junk", then it'd be more likely that most non-Dell KZbin channels and the Facebook paramotor group would not be totally against you. Chill man. You are apparently an awesome pilot but I think there are many like me that won't even watch your videos because of your behavior. It doesn't help that you've got some personal stuff that has been in the news that are hard to be proud of... but that stuff would be ignored if you stuck to what you do best. Instead it gets dragged up every time you get aggressive.

[@stevenlarratt3638]

MrOryfek and dell shows up... so much damage to the sport and the public perception of dell is so negative that it will continue to happen until you slink away or have an 'unfortunate' accident... blood on your hands are still no shame... #idiotdell

[@SCOUTaviation]

Steven Larratt I will not share my opinion on Dell although you may easily guess... Please let's not talk about him. We may talk about this paramotor as this is related to our topic and I am open to criticism or arguments. I just want to enjoy my day and not spoil it with Dell...

[@stevenlarratt3638]

Well said Scout! Give them no air and they can't spoil our airspace! Ps his comment about the mentally weak not being able to fly is rather sad and discriminatory against those with mental impairments. It's called a tandem trike, show his lack of respect knowledge and understanding of not only the sport but that of humility.

[@BobThePilotN4WFH]

Miro have you considered a manually triggered co2 inflated air bag? Or exactly what the car mfg use that activates on impact then deflates?

[@shamancredible8632]

How to survive paramotor crash: fly a real plane