Passenger Briefings

Editors Note: We are soaring ambassadors whenever taking passengers up for a ride.  Hugh offers a comprehensive approach to glider passenger briefings from ground operations, to the use of parachutes when available, and the actual flight (parachutes were not an option when the photo was taken).  Effective briefings can reduce passenger stress and help foster our sport of soaring.

Passenger briefings are a part of my life as an airline pilot. If you are giving rides at your local gliderport, they should be a part of yours as well.

A natural tendency whenever we try to introduce new people to our sport is to focus on the good, but gloss over the not-so-good. I’ve seen passenger briefings that never discussed how to jettison a canopy, didn’t mention the controls that are present in the cockpit, and referred to the parachute as “just a seat cushion that you wear.” This is a disservice to people that we take flying, and it’s a safety hazard as well.

Gliderport Operations

A good safety briefing for a guest at the gliderport should really start well before they even get out of their car. Gliderports are full of potential safety concerns for the uninitiated. Simply having some signs that say “Guests must check-in at the office” is an excellent start, and far more likely to be honored than a “RESTRICTED AREA” sign when the person pulling onto the airport can clearly see the ground crews and pilots milling about in the same area that is described as forbidden.

Flying Risks

Once your guest arrives at the office/clubhouse/hangar, take a few minutes to let them get acquainted with the operation. It’s great to watch a few tows and landings if possible, describe the flow of the airport, and allow them to ask questions about what is happening. Things that seem completely normal to even a student pilot with 10 flights can be completely bewildering to someone who is new to soaring and may be new to aviation in general.

This is generally the point where the ubiquitous release forms make their appearance. I also firmly believe that this is the best time to start discussing the risks associated with getting into a glider. This is a contentious subject, but the statistics support the fact that going for a flight in a glider is not safer than going for a drive in your car. In fact, from a participant hour to fatality standpoint, flying in a sailplane is roughly 200 times more dangerous than flying on a commercial airliner, or twice a dangerous as riding a motorcycle.

It’s important for our passengers to understand, and consent to, these risks. My go-to speech sounds something like:

“What we are about to do is inherently dangerous. Now, that being said, we are going to do everything possible to mitigate that risk and to make this as safe as possible. From a practical standpoint, this means that we may end up landing someplace other than the airport. I may have to release from the towplane earlier than I would like for a variety of reasons, or the rope may break. These are all things that I have trained for and been tested on. It’s also possible, even though it’s extremely unlikely, that we may be forced to leave the aircraft in flight. For that reason, we are going to be wearing parachutes today for our safety. If you are still comfortable with going flying today, then we will get your parachute fitted and do a safety briefing on that as well."

Use of Parachutes

You are using parachutes for these rides…right? Good. My parachute briefing goes like this:

“If we have to leave the aircraft, I will say “Bail Out, Bail Out, Bail Out.” That’s going to be your cue to jettison the canopy, release your harness, and get out of the aircraft. As soon as you are clear of the aircraft, I want you to LOOK at the ripcord handle. Grab it with BOTH hands because one of them may not be working, and because of how adrenaline works you might not be aware of it, and pull the handle straight out in front of you to the full extension of your arms. Once the parachute fills, remember to look at the horizon, not the ground, and roll when you hit to cushion the impact. Now I want you to take the parachute off so that you understand how to get out of the harness once you are on the ground."

I can actually hear the keys on your computer clacking as you fire off a furious, self-righteous email about how you don’t fly with parachutes for whatever reason you have convinced yourself is valid. I actually have a theory about this mindset:

Glider pilots that don’t fly with parachutes don’t like thinking about the situations that would cause them to need to use one, because doing so forces them to acknowledge that what they are doing is inherently dangerous.

Now, if you as a solo pilot wish to ignore those risks, then by all means. Fly without a parachute. But the moment you decide to expose another person to the same risks, then you have an obligation to both be honest with them and do your best to keep them safe. This means wearing a parachute. And if that means you have to talk about how and why you might actually use it…that’s actually a positive in my book.

This generally brings us to the cockpit orientation and portion of the briefing. This is always something that I spend a fair amount of time on because the more that my passenger knows about the cockpit, the safer they will be AND the more they will get out of the flight. Have them get into the glider with the parachute on and adjusted for flight, not just laying in the seat. Doing this well before pushing out means that there is no time pressure, and you will both have a few minutes to make sure that they are comfortable. Adjust the harness, and make sure that they understand how to both put it on and release it. Adjust the controls and explain what they do. Most importantly, take the time to show them where the tow hook release and the canopy jettison controls are. Finally, tell them where to put their hands and show them what to hold onto if they feel the need to white knuckle. I usually recommend their shoulder harness for this duty, as it feels secure and keeps their hands away from the things that might cause the rope or the canopy to go away at an inopportune moment. This HAS happened to passengers in military aircraft who pull the wrong handle and suddenly find themselves ejected from the aircraft.

Going Up

Finally, it’s time to discuss the flight. Explain the weather and what to expect. Is today a good soaring day with plenty of thermals? This might be great for you, but it may be a quick one-way ticket to pukesville for your passenger. Explain that it’s normal for the circling to cause people to feel queasy and that once they start feeling sick, it probably isn’t going to get better. Show them how to increase airflow to the cockpit, make sure they’ve got an airsickness bag handy, and remind them that you aren’t looking for heroics. If they start feeling bad, SAY SOMETHING so that you can get them on the ground and into fresh air as soon as possible. I also make sure to tell them that the purpose of the flight is not to show off how great of a pilot I am, it’s for them to fall in love with soaring. That means that with the exception of takeoff, tow, and landing, I can stop whatever I’m doing if they feel uncomfortable or nervous.

Prior to pushing/towing out, discuss the safe areas to stand and walk while in the safety-critical areas of the airport. As you probably have noticed, this briefing isn’t something that takes me 5-10 minutes. Usually, by the time we are actually pushing the glider out to go fly, we’ve been at the airport for well over an hour. During this time, I’ve been pointing out each launch and landing, what the ground crew and pilots are doing, and trying to improve my passenger’s situational awareness of the operation.

Once you finally get out to the line and are ready to go flying, don’t allow yourself or your passenger to feel rushed. Talk to them through the entire process, and let them know what is going on. A go-to saying of mine is “it’s normal unless I say it’s not” since there are always parts of the flight that may seem strange to someone new to the sport. Once in the air, DO ask them how they are feeling regularly, DO ask how they are enjoying it, DO point out cool things like the hawk off of your wingtip, DO NOT SHOW OFF.

Finally, remember that the debriefing is as important as the briefing. What did they like? What could you have done better? When do they want to come back and do it again?

Although this process may seem over-cautious and tedious, I’ve found that the people I’ve taken flying in all manner of aircraft have felt much more confident and had a more enjoyable time with a thorough, honest safety briefing than without. It makes your passenger an equal in the flight with regard to the risks involved, and an informed participant is better any day of the week than an ignorant participant that doesn’t really understand what they are getting into. 

Banner photo by Wings & Wheels

Hugh Grandstaff is a Captain and Simulator Instructor for Air Wisconsin Airlines. He has been flying for 23 years in a wide variety of types and categories of aircraft and grew up in an aviation family. Hugh has worked as a deckhand on tugboats, a research assistant at a major university, a navigation and cargo officer on ocean going ships, an executive at a scrap metal processing company, and currently as an airline pilot. Hugh graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, and lives with his wife Sylvia (a much more interesting and accomplished pilot than himself) in their tiny house on a small plot of land connected to a grass runway in Alabama. Hugh also served as CD for last summer’s U.S. club class nationals.