Sad news, Lake County glider crash, LAK-17B FES Mini

[aaav...@yahoo.com]

Friday,07-Aug-2020

Matt Herron was piloting LAK-17B FES Mini Glider, which took off from Lampson Field near Lakeport at about 2 p.m. en route to Mendocino County, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said.
That's all I found.
https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Matt-Herron-famed-civil-rights-photographer-and-15470885.php
AV

[Tony]

Sad Loss. I only met Matt at the recent SSA Convention. I wasn't aware of any of his background until yesterday, besides the fact that he was a fellow glider pilot. RIP

http://mattherronwriter.com/pages/matt-herron-bio.php

[2G]

On Sunday, August 9, 2020 at 6:49:09 PM UTC-7, Tony wrote:
> Sad Loss. I only met Matt at the recent SSA Convention. I wasn't aware of any of his background until yesterday, besides the fact that he was a fellow glider pilot. RIP
>
> http://mattherronwriter.com/pages/matt-herron-bio.php

Here is another article on the crash:

https://www.sfgate.com/sf-culture/article/Matthew-Herron-civil-rights-photojournalist-dies-15470992.php

[Stephen Szikora]

Wow. Still flying at 89.

[2G]

On Sunday, August 9, 2020 at 10:19:06 PM UTC-7, stephen...@sympatico.ca wrote:
> Wow. Still flying at 89.

A few more details:
https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/north-bay/san-rafael-man-dies-in-lakeport-glider-crash/2341239/

[shaun_...@hotmail.com]

What an incredible bio!

[john.leib...@gmail.com]

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/11/us/matt-herron-whose-camera-chronicled-a-movement-dies-at-89.html?action=click&module=Well&pgtype=Homepage&section=Obituaries

[John Foster]

On Wednesday, August 12, 2020 at 2:55:07 AM UTC-6, john.lei...@gmail.com wrote:
> https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/11/us/matt-herron-whose-camera-chronicled-a-movement-dies-at-89.html?action=click&module=Well&pgtype=Homepage&section=Obituaries

So sad to loose Matt. Any word yet on what exactly happened? From what I've been able to piece together, it appears the crash happened on take-off or shortly after that, as it seems it was quite close to the airport.

[Tango Eight]

https://maps.findmespot.com/Track?ishr=7e7ff713-5f43-4c13-bbf7-ab5f0106dc22#panel-history

Doesn't look like a take off accident.

T8

[AS]

My condolences to the family and friends! I always enjoyed reading his contributions.
The SSA 'Where to fly' site does not show a soaring operation at this site. How did he get airborne? Is there a local tow plane/pilot available?

Uli
'AS'

[Dan Daly]

miniLAK FES is self-launcher.

[AS]

Thanks, Dale! I did not know that.

Uli
'AS'

[Frank Whiteley]

AirNav suggests 9 gliders may be based at Lamson Field Airport at Lakeport, CA.

Frank

[Eric Greenwell]

The subject line is confusing: there isn't any LAK-17B FES Mini. The website lists
a miniLAK FES (aka LAK-17 MINI FES), which is self-launching, and a LAK-17B FES
which isn't listed as self-launching.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to email me)
- "A Guide to Self-Launching Sailplane Operation"
https://sites.google.com/site/motorgliders/publications/download-the-guide-1

[John Foster]

Sorry, I don't have a Spot account. Your link requires a log-in with Spot to see it.

[Tango Eight]

Try this one:
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=07XZJKXJYiKC5eFyO61H9IttUHsMoDuIu

T8

[2G]

There is no confusion: Matt Heron was flying a self-launching mini-LAK out of Lampson Field. Do you REALLY expect newspapers to get motorglider model numbers right?

Tom

[kinsell]

On 8/12/20 6:13 PM, Eric Greenwell wrote:
> AS wrote on 8/12/2020 4:51 PM:

>>
>> Thanks, Dale! I did not know that.
>
> The subject line is confusing: there isn't any LAK-17B FES Mini. The
> website lists a miniLAK FES (aka LAK-17 MINI FES), which is
> self-launching, and a LAK-17B FES which isn't listed as self-launching.
>

The FAA registry lists seven LAK-17B FES MINI ships registered in the
US, including one for Matt J Herron.

I believe this is Matt Herron Sr, with a son Matt Herron Jr also a
glider pilot.

-Dave

[Frank Whiteley]

The junior Matt Herron was also flying that day according the the SSA Sailplane Locator.

[kinsell]

NTSB prelim is now out, adds a few details:

https://app.ntsb.gov/pdfgenerator/ReportGeneratorFile.ashx?EventID=20200807X30140&AKey=1&RType=Prelim&IType=LA

[Bob Hills]

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2020/aug/21/matt-herron-chronicler-of-the-us-civil-rights-movement-in-pictures

Bob 7U

[2G]

That is interesting: the report lists the model as a LAK17A in one spot and a LAK17B in another. The difference, of course, is that the LAK17A is self-launching while the LAK17B is not. I had cautioned about believing the media on the glider model; it turns out that you can't believe the local authorities as well. I was skeptical because there were no tow planes at Lakeport. I wonder if Matt completed the motorglider endorsement process.

Tom

[kinsell]

The FAA registry has it as a LAK-17B FES MINI, which is hard to find
information on.

I did find a German language article on it:

https://www.aerokurier.de/segelflug/download-e-kiosk-pilot-report-lak-17b-fes-mini/

[Eric Greenwell]

I think the miniLak (aka LAK-13.5 mini FES) self-launcher is being confused with
the Lak 17b-FES sustainer. LAK does not list a self-launching 17B on their website.

[kinsell]

And yet here is the flight manual for a LAK-17B FES Mini, which is
capable of self-launch. The 17B FES is a quite different aircraft, and
not relevant.

http://lak.lt/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/LAK-17B_FES_mini_FM_issue1-20200127.pdf

[Eric Greenwell]

The factory is apparently the source of the confusion, that it has a 13.5M glider
named the LAK-17B FES mini, but is a different glider entirely than the other 17B
variants which use which have a fuselage that can use different wingspans: 15M,
18M, 21M. The US dealer does not offer the LAK-17B FES mini; instead, he lists the
miniLAK.

In any case, it appears the initial report got it right, so the media gets the
credit on this one.

[Dee]

Please be respectful of your posts on this thread. Matt Herron, Jr. is a frequent contributor here on RAS. What a great influence his father (and mother) made on so many people's lives during a turbulent time in the US. To get to know him a bit better, you may want to read his book "The Voyage of Aquarius", which recounts the family's experiences while sailing along West Africa. A more recent book, "Our Big Blue Schoolhouse", is a recollection of the same trip from the perspective of Matt Jr (a 13 yo at the time).

Off-topic: The only confusion about what model glider Matt was flying came from bad information from some RAS bloggers who claimed to be in the know. Take 2 minutes to get it right. Matt Sr's own posts earlier this year identify the model quite clearly and so does Wikipedia. We can do better guys.

[Eric Bick (DY)]

On Sunday, August 23, 2020 at 9:35:56 AM UTC-6, Dee wrote:
> Please be respectful of your posts on this thread. Matt Herron, Jr. is a frequent contributor here on RAS. What a great influence his father (and mother) made on so many people's lives during a turbulent time in the US. To get to know him a bit better, you may want to read his book "The Voyage of Aquarius", which recounts the family's experiences while sailing along West Africa. A more recent book, "Our Big Blue Schoolhouse", is a recollection of the same trip from the perspective of Matt Jr (a 13 yo at the time).
>
> Off-topic: The only confusion about what model glider Matt was flying came from bad information from some RAS bloggers who claimed to be in the know. Take 2 minutes to get it right. Matt Sr's own posts earlier this year identify the model quite clearly and so does Wikipedia. We can do better guys.

Thanks, Steve. We published two articles by Matt on his mini Lak FES adventures (it is not hard to find info about it - BlanikAmerica imports them and has a web page devoted to the mini including owner inputs). The first on his trip to the factory to fly both the mini Lak and the Lak 17 m self-launchers. He followed that up with an article on getting the mini from the delivery port to the SSA convention in Little Rock. Matt intended a third article on getting the mini FAA certified and flying. That article will be in the October issue of Soaring magazine, describing the lessons he learned in this process. Matt also contributed other articles to Soaring mag, including one on the effects of aging on pilots. His articles are well worth reading. I will miss his correspondence and his ideas.

[alasdar mullarney]

I wish I could contact Matt Herron Jr. directly.
I worked with Matt Sr., his Dad, to achieve winch launching his LS-6 at Jacumba - I believe a bucket list item for him.
He also hosted myself and Roman Wrosz for an adventure in winch testing at Crazy Creek in June 2014.
What a delightful person to have met. Matt Jr, he gave me an autographed copy of the Big Blue Schoolhouse.
If you read this, my condolences - but you had a great Dad.

[Eric Bick (DY)]

On Tuesday, August 25, 2020 at 6:31:39 PM UTC-6, Eric Bick (DY) wrote:
> On Sunday, August 23, 2020 at 9:35:56 AM UTC-6, Dee wrote:
> > Please be respectful of your posts on this thread. Matt Herron, Jr. is a frequent contributor here on RAS. What a great influence his father (and mother) made on so many people's lives during a turbulent time in the US. To get to know him a bit better, you may want to read his book "The Voyage of Aquarius", which recounts the family's experiences while sailing along West Africa. A more recent book, "Our Big Blue Schoolhouse", is a recollection of the same trip from the perspective of Matt Jr (a 13 yo at the time).

> Thanks, Steve. We published two articles by Matt on his mini Lak FES adventures (it is not hard to find info about it - BlanikAmerica imports them and has a web page devoted to the mini including owner inputs). The first on his trip to the factory to fly both the mini Lak and the Lak 17 m self-launchers. He followed that up with an article on getting the mini from the delivery port to the SSA convention in Little Rock. Matt intended a third article on getting the mini FAA certified and flying. That article will be in the October issue of Soaring magazine, describing the lessons he learned in this process. Matt also contributed other articles to Soaring mag, including one on the effects of aging on pilots. His articles are well worth reading. I will miss his correspondence and his ideas.

The October issue of Soaring magazine (at the printer now, digital version to be posted in a week or two, and mailed about the same time) has an article based on an email Matt sent to me a week before his fatal crash. This is being published with the encouragement of his family, since it describes the experiences Matt had getting his Mini Lak (Lak-17 Mini FES, 13.5 m wingspan) certified, and bugs worked out. It is a logical follow-on to his two previous articles on obtaining the Mini. Matt had planned to write a full article on this. The email, while not what he intended as that full article, provides insight into the process he was going through after getting the Mini to his home from the SSA convention. Matt decided to do the purchase, import, and certification himself, rather than through BlanikAmerica, as a learning experience, since that was the type of person he was - hands-on. His experiences, as documented, will be of value to those wanting to pursue a similar path. I will be interested in comments on the article, once published, which can be sent to me at edi...@ssa.org.

[Nick Kennedy]

Has a accident report ever been released concerning this Herron accident?
Nick
T

[2G]

Here is the preliminary report:
https://app.ntsb.gov/pdfgenerator/ReportGeneratorFile.ashx?EventID=20200807X30140&AKey=1&RType=Prelim&IType=LA
The final report will take a year or more.

Tom

[Eric Bick (DY)]

Preliminary is on NTSB website.