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Winch launches are a lot like a kid with a kite. Run fast (wind in the winch) to get speed and up it goes. At its desired altitude, the glider disconnects and g
by drpixie 1y ago
Winch launches are a lot like a kid with a kite. Run fast (wind in the winch) to get speed and up it goes. At its desired altitude, the glider disconnects and goes on its way. https://youtu.be/YePIJKs5me0 https://youtu.be/YePIJKs5me0 gives you an idea.
On a day with a decent breeze, it is possible to "kite" a glider up to very high altitude by letting the wire out again. But this is highly frowned upon because it means there is a very long (and nearly invisible) wire dangling right through the airspace used by other aircraft!
- beAbU 1y agoThanks, I tried to look exactly this up, but couldn't find anything. Looking at that video, the only thing I could think of though was that cable, presumably detaching shortly after the video ended, and the cameraman is just standing there where the cable could presumably fall. It does not look very thick and heavy, but still!
- drpixie 1y agoTraditionally, winch cables are single strand steel (fencing) wire - I guess because that's cheap. But they break quite often. Cable falls can be a problem. A cable falling over power lines causes all sorts of fuss! Cable breaks can be terrible. The cable will spring back, whip around, and is incredibly destructive - hence the cage around the winch operator. I would not have been standing anywhere nearby and certainly not next-to or behind the drum.