RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN NEWPORT HANG-GLIDING

Transcription

1 MANAGEMENT PLAN NEWPORT HANG-GLIDING NORTHERN BEACHES HANG-GLIDING CLUB 18 th NOVEMBER Page 1 of 11

2 NEWPORT HANG-GLIDING PROFILE Level of Risk Matrix 1 = Extreme risk: Immediate action required. Catastrophic Kill or permanent injury Major Long term illness or serious injury Moderate Medical attention required Minor First Aid required Very Likely (VL) Likely (L) Unlikely (U) Very Unlikely (VU) and 3 = High Risk: Action required. 4 and 5 = Moderate risk: Some action required. 6 = Low Risk: Action may not be required. Page 2 of 11

3 Risk Profile OF RESIDUAL Atmospheric Hazards *Squalls or Storms. Ground loop on landing injury to Pilot or Public. *Unexpected wind changes, A planned upwind landing on the beach may result in a downwind landing spot. Both may be dangerous if there is a person or obstacle in the way. An HGFA Certified Pilot will have been trained on assessing local weather. Real time update of wind and weather info on all smartphones. Squalls can be dangerous but can be recognized and action taken before they become effective. Page 3 of 11

4 OF RESIDUAL *Light soarable wind and Glider numbers flying simultan eously. Public. Pilots. Mid-air collisions caused by crowding of hang gliders in the air. Pilots are trained to be watchful in the air. Senior Pilot/SO on site decides on the maximum number of Gliders simultaneously flying. Senior Pilots in the air to land to implement this strategy *Meteoro logical changes. Pilot injury. Damage to equip ment. public. Weather changes affect winds in strength, variability and direction. MOD. [U] MOD. Pilot training in local weather developments. Pilots inform themselves of weather forecasts. All flying is only under taken with strict weather observations at all times. Page 4 of 11

5 OF RESIDUAL Tidal Hazards and Meandering people on beach. *High / Low tides and people on beach. *High tides main concern. *High tides take away a small percentage of space on beach to land and avoid people. MOD. [U] MOD. *Beach crowding and High Tides affecting landing spaces are both factors for all pilots to assess before launching and to monitor while flying prior to setting up for landing. *Meande ring people on beach. public. Pilot. Equip ment damage. *Public walk anywhere on the beach, Gliders may collide with people. *Pilots are trained to be observant before setting up a landing space to avoid any conflict near people. Page 5 of 11

6 OF RESIDUAL Lack of Pilot Skills Hazard *Restrict ed Pilots. Lack of Experienc e. Could cause injury to public or self. *Restricted pilots with at least 20 hours logged and under the supervision of a safety officer and ideal wind conditions and beach crowding low may set up for a glide only for a beach landing. Equipment - Hazards *Poor maintena nce. *Parked Gliders. Serious Public injury. Pilot injury. *Structural failure of the hang-glider in the air. *Parked glider ground looping. Follow maintenance schedule (section 9.4 of Operations Manual). Carry out pre-flight check. Do not leave gliders unattended. Page 6 of 11

7 OF RESIDUAL External Hazards *Rogue or visiting pilots. public. pilot Equip ment damage. Unlicensed pilots or out-of- town pilots without a proper briefing are unfamiliar with the site and its procedures. *Pilots/Safety Officers to watch out for pilots they do not recognize and ask for HGFA membership and pilot ratings. If in order, give briefing on site procedure. Damage to infrastructure. *Erect plaque or signs with information about procedures and contact information. Page 7 of 11

8 OF RESIDUAL *Dogs distract ing pilots. Public and Pilot injury. Equip ment damage. Dog injury. Some dogs get excited and give chase to a Hang Glider coming in to land. MOD. [U] MOD. Pilot asks dog owner to restrain the dog. Non flying pilot chases roaming dog away. Signs direct owners to control dogs or dogs be on a leash. Page 8 of 11

9 OF RESIDUAL Structural Hazards. *Obstacl es Sewage breather pipe. *Clipping Pipe on take-off phase. *Pilots are to be aware to clear breather pipe on take-off. Volley ball net. Dune fences. Large Pine trees at rear of beach. *Coming in contact with volley ball net or dune fencing. *Collision with large pines. *Pilots must land clear of volley ball net, dune fences and pine trees. *North end of beach best but if crowded, use south end or elsewhere which avoids obstacles and people. *Pilots to limit in-air overcrowding which reduces maneuverability. Page 9 of 11

10 Other Safety Considerations Like other aircraft in the Australian airspace, hang-gliding is controlled by the Civil Air Safety Authority (CASA). It has delegated its powers to the Hang-Gliding Federation of Australia (HGFA). Every legitimate hang-gliding pilot must be a member of the HGFA that tests, licenses and carries 3 rd Party liability insurance for any injuries to the Public or damage to property. In keeping with the Operations Manual issued by the Hang-Gliding Federation of Australia, the Northern Beaches Hang Gliding Club has appointed Safety Officers to the site at Newport, who have a supervisory function. Examples of their duties are the training of and advice to pilots, restricting the number of hang-gliders in the air, if necessary, and liaising with other users of the location. The flying at Newport is on a small scale therefore the pilots know or introduce each other. At Stanwell Park, which has an international reputation as a hang-gliding site that attracts large numbers of pilots from all over the continent and the world, communication problems are more likely to occur there. Page 10 of 11

11 ERIC GREEN HANG GLIDER LAUNCH SITE FOR FLYING NEWPORT. This launch site rated for intermediate to advanced Hang Glider Pilots. Path can be seen below launch. Due to the height of launch a Glider easily clears the path by more than 15 metre vertical height on a flight path to the landing zone, no risk to pedestrian traffic. Page 11 of 11