Fatality at Gap, France - Please He
John Wright
therefore I have used my reader to reformat it to make it easier to read.
The text is unchanged, apart from spell checking! John S. Wright.
On 21 Nov 1995 20:56:31 GMT, Phil Woodruffe <10034...@CompuServe.COM>
wrote:
Readers of rec.aviation.soaring may recall that there was a fatal accident
involving a free fall parachutist and a Janus C glider near Gap-Tallard
Aerodrome, in the French Alps on 29 June 1995. This is posted by the
pilots who parachuted out of the glider but who are, in an unprecedented
move, being prosecuted by the French authorities for Involuntary Homicide.
We need your help in establishing some facts about usual gliding practice
in the Southern French Alps, and about parachuting. The French Gliding
federation has offered little assistance (apparently worried about
incriminating itself), although we were both members at the time.
Background
==========
Myself (Phil Woodruffe) and Jonathan May were flying at 95Kts at about 7000
feet (5000 agl) abeam Gap-Tallard Aerodrome, following a line of
convergence lift under a cloud street with an embedded cu-nim. A free-fall
parachutist came through the cloud and impacted the left wing, breaking off
the outer 3 metres. The glider became uncontrollable and entered a high "g"
spiral dive. Jonathan struggled out with his parachute opening at about 600
feet. after which the spiral dive changed to a flat spin when I pulled the
stick back. I jumped out at 200-300 feet and my canopy inflated just before
I landed. The parachutist was unfortunately killed following the collision
in what we believe is the first collision between a parachutist and a
glider. Our calculations show that the chance of this happening are less
than a million to one. Importantly, all the parties and wreckage landed
away from the airfield.
The case against us
===================
1. Charges of Involuntary Homicide and Careless/Negligent Flying have been
laid against us both, based on a disputed statement by a local club
official that a briefing was given about a 5Km exclusion zone around
Gap-Tallard Aerodrome.
2. The authorities further believe that parachuting through cloud never
takes place and is therefore not a factor in the accident.
3. Also, the authorities believe that it is common practice to call
Gap-Tallard by radio to seek permission to fly closer than 5Km.
How you can help
================
1. No visiting pilots have any recollection of a "zone" being talked about
at this briefing or any of the other briefings given to visiting pilots in
the area. No such zone is shown on the briefing maps in the club house at
St Auban. If you have flown in the area and particularly at St Auban, do
you have notes made at briefings? In particular, do you have maps that
local club officials have helped you mark up? We believe that none of these
will show a "zone" around Gap-Tallard because no such zone exists, but that
visitors are instructed to avoid the overhead.
Did you attend the "Masters" Competition at St Auban the week before the
accident? What was said then?
2. Do you have personal experience of parachuting through cloud in France?
It is apparently not unknown and may be widespread. Needed are reports and
preferable video evidence.
3. Have you flown in a competition in France which used a parachuting
airfield as a turning point? Gap-Tallard and Le Blanc appear to be used
regularly. Also needed is information about competitions where radios are
sealed (to prevent team flying) and cannot be tuned to drop zone
frequencies. Needed are copies of results, tasks and briefing sheets, or at
least information on what was briefed, especially from Vinon in 1990-94
(which seem to be relevant).
Why contact us ?
================
Obviously, we are worried about the outcome of a case before a strange
legal system in a foreign language. We need to be well prepared for such a
case.
We also believe that the investigations to-date have ignored important
issues and have been somewhat one-sided.
Further, this would set a bad precedent for dealing with sporting
accidents. The UK authorities have stated that in the UK, this type of
accident would not attract criminal proceedings and that they would look to
the respective sporting associations (BGA and BPA) to propose ways of
preventing such accidents occurring. We believe that this would be the case
in most countries.
How you can make contact
========================
E-mail:
Phil Woodruffe 100346,15...@compuserve.com
Post:
Phil Woodruffe, 4c Greenwich South Street, London SE10 8TY, England
Jonathan May, 41 Kilsby Grove, Hillfield, Solihull B91 3XZ, England
Telephone:
Phil: +44 181 853 3419 (Home) +44 171 305 0240 (Work)
+44 171 305 0110 (Fax)
Jon: +44 121 704 3097 (Home) +44 1203 424399 (Work)
+44 1203 425010 (Fax)
Replies from non-UK pilots would be particularly welcome, and it would be
appreciated if you could place a copy of this on your club notice-board.
--
Phil
I want to live forever or die in the attempt
- Spike Milligan
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Michael Steiner
Phil Woodruffe <10034...@CompuServe.COM> wrote:
>How you can help
>================
it won't help you ..
>1. No visiting pilots have any recollection of a "zone" being talked
>about at this briefing or any of the other briefings given to visiting
>pilots in the area.
.. but at least in Vinon they told us at the briefing about the
paraglider championship in Gap and about the 5km zone and if i
remember correctly there was even a map showing that.
-michael-
--
Michael Steiner ___________ IBM Research Lab,
<ste...@acm.org> | Saeumerstrasse 4
http://www.zurich.ibm.com/~sti/ ^ CH-8803 Rueschlikon
---------------------------------(_)---------------------------------
--
Michael Steiner ___________ IBM Research Lab,
(++41) 1 / 724 82 86 | Saeumerstrasse 4
<ste...@acm.org> ^ CH-8803 Rueschlikon
---------------------------------(_)---------------------------------
Jean-Francois Sedan
10034...@CompuServe.COM says...
> 1. No visiting pilots have any recollection of a "zone" being
> talked about at this briefing or any of the other briefings
> given to visiting pilots in the area. No such zone is shown on
> the briefing maps in the club house at
> St Auban. If you have flown in the area and particularly at St
> Auban, do you have notes made at briefings? In particular, do
> you have maps that local club officials have helped you mark up?
I've been flying for 6 years now in Fayence, in the same area.
There is a letter from the Gap airport manager permanently
displayed on the notice board of the briefing room describing the
danger, and the procedure to contact Gap tower when flying over
the airport. The letter was there long before the accident.
> We believe that none of these will show a "zone" around
> Gap-Tallard because no such zone exists, but that visitors are
> instructed to avoid the overhead.
The ICAO maps (mine is 944, 1991 release) have a special mark
indicating parachuting activities in the area.
Jean-Francois Sedan (AAPCA member since 1989)
Billevelyn
>.. but at least in Vinon they told us at the briefing about the
>paraglider championship in Gap and about the 5km zone and if i
>remember correctly there was even a map showing that.
Why do any of the briefing issues or maps matter. In the first place,
anyone parachuting through the clouds needs serious psychological help.
Secondly, if another glider had impacted Phil's, what would be the
outcome. Nothing!
It's absolutely ridiculous to make more of this incident than needed. It
was a quirk, a one in a million chance. Phil hire a good French lawyer
who'll quote statutes referring to accidental death in aviation.
Eagle Data
Hawaii and I have witnessed such in broken cloud conditions where
skydivers have gone right through clouds. I don't believe jumpers are
approved for IFR conditions. Unfortunetely under a cloud is exactly where
a jumper is most likely to hit a glider since we spend most of our time
there due to the lift. Good luck with the case.
John Duprey - USA
David H Noyes
Eagle Data <eagl...@aol.com> wrote:
>I personally have seen videos made by skydivers going through clouds in
>Hawaii and I have witnessed such in broken cloud conditions where
>skydivers have gone right through clouds. I don't believe jumpers are
>approved for IFR conditions.
There was an unfortunate incident a few years back of a group jump in
northern Ohio. When the 10, or so, jumpers came through the cloud deck
they found themselves over Lake Erie. Several drowned...... :-(