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January 27, 2016 SSA 2016 Convention February 18-20, 2016 (FIRC:February 16-17, 2016) Online registration is still open! Click this link to register now! http://ssaconvention.org/register/ Convention Meals A great time awaits you at the various convention meals! There will be several breakfasts and lunches to choose from! And don't forget about the Friday night OSTIV dinner and Annual SSA Banquet on Saturday! All meal counts must be turned into the hotel and convention center, so please purcahse your meal tickets ahead of time in order to enusre you will get to go! Don't wait, sign up before it's too late! http://ssaconvention.org/schedule/ You can also contact Gaynell Williams at 575-392-1177 or email gwilliams@ssa.org to get a packet or with any questions you may have. Get Convention Updates on Facebook Join the convention FaceBook page to stay in the loop and get the most recent convention updates. You can join the group by clicking this link: https://www.facebook.com/events/145560625782039/ Speaker Series Speakers for Thursday February 18, 2016 Building and Operating a Winch - What I Would Do Differently if I Did It Again Ulrich (Uli) Neumann Five years of winch operation at Carolina Soaring Association: What have we learned, what would we do different if we had to do it over again, what's in the future? More than five years ago, the members of CSA embarked on the journey of building a winch. There have been many iterations before the winch was at the state it is today. This paper is a summary of past experiences and what we would do to improve a future winch. Preliminary Design and Development of Airborne Thermal Location Predictor Mike Davis-OSTIV Today’s glider pilots rely on experience and knowledge of the land to successfully navigate through the air to reach thermals that provide lift. Students in the Electrical and Computer Engineering departments at Colorado Technical University are working on developing a sensing unit that displays near real-time data on thermal uplifts. A smart adaptive device called the Thermal Sensing and Imaging Guide will allow pilots to increase their flight times as well as help instructor pilots provide better feedback to their students. The idea is to adapt a thermal sensor to a glider that will wirelessly communicate with a tablet and display the surrounding temperature. The sensor will gather data from the surrounding area in an undetermined field of vision and wirelessly transmit that data collected to a tablet in the cockpit. An android based app on the tablet will then overlay the temperature of the surrounding area on a topographical map for viewing by the pilot. This will allow the pilot to see near real-world data and adjust the glider’s course to the most efficient route. The Thermal Sensing and Imaging Guide will allow better training of student pilots as well as help seasoned pilots to become more efficient in their flight through thermal uplifts. Flying Stemme’s S-12 Andreas Hebner and Don Bell Stemme’s new S-12 — to be certified in mid-2016 — will be the focus of a detailed “Pilot Report” by Andreas Hebner of Stemme, Germany. He will share photos, performance specs, and design details. Andreas anticipates reporting on the Stemme Horizons soaring safari of last summer and Stemme plans for another excursion in 2016. Don Bell of Stemme USA will discuss Stemme’s future in our US market, its network of service centers, and growing customer support. Weather-to-Fly Revisited Dan Gudgel As soaring meteorology forecasting has become more sophisticated with the use of numerous computer algorithms and computer modeling, there still exists a need for soaring pilots to intuitively understand the basic meteorological lift processes that enable soaring flight to better understand what computer modeling is offering the community. Utilizing diagrams, pictures, and narrative descriptions, Dan Gudgel will present aspects of atmospheric lift mechanisms. This information presented will be useful as an introduction for new soaring pilots but yet still provide a review of the concepts for experienced pilots and flight instructors. Improving the Safety of Low Flying Aircraft in the Vicinity of Unmanned Aircraft Systems Wayne Woldt-OSTIV This presentation will provide an overview of unmanned aircraft system technologies and rules/regulations, while highlighting initial results of a technology for increasing the safety of manned aircraft when flights are conducted in the vicinity of unmanned aircraft. The method involves the deployment of an elevated, high visibility, beacon system at the location of unmanned aircraft system (UAS) flight operations, to enhance aircraft pilot awareness that UAS are operating in a given air space. Anti-Collision Technology for Glider Pilots: Now and the Future Dave Nadler Glider collisions are a frightening and dangerous hazard technology can help avoid. But, what technology? How can FLARM and ADS-B help prevent collisions today, and in future? Between gliders, and between gliders and other types of aircraft? What about transponders? We'll cut through the hype and clearly explain these technologies, how they can (and cannot) help us glider-guiders, with minimal technobable. If you're baffled by the barrage of confusing articles and advertisements (and especially nonsense on the rec.aviation.soaring newsgroup), come to this talk! Dissecting the Sky: Discovering Energy Lines Pete Alexander Pete will take you on a pictorial journey selecting from his collection of photos to discuss and illustrate finding energy lines in the sky with or without clouds while soaring in thermals, ridge, wave, and convergence when soaring from different locations in the US, New Zealand, and Europe. Winch Launch Failure Recovery - The AAA Envelope George Moore-OSTIV The early winch launch phases are the most demanding of the pilot and the most risky. A launch failure, a cable break or an engine failure, must be dealt with quickly and correctly to insure a safe outcome. This talk discusses strategies for managing launch failures and demonstrates that, properly handled, there need never be a situation where a safe recovery is not possible. The talk employs the recovery envelope defined by the Airspeed, Attitude, and Altitude – the AAA envelope – to demonstrate the safely recoverable regions during a winch launch rotation phase. Variometry for Glider Pilots Richard Kellerman Richard Kellerman is a favorite speaker in the soaring community and has provided weather information for numerous contests. His knowledge is exceptional and he always brings interest and humor into his talks. He has provided us with his biographical profile: Austro Engine- Engineering Innovation Michael Schirnhofer Michael is the Head of Sales and Distribution at Austro Engine – in charge of the departments of Sales, After Sales, Service and Overhaul. Michael will be on site for the full 3 days at the SSA Convention 2016 and available in the Williams Soaring Booth as the main engine supplier for Alexander Schleicher Aircraft. Neuroscience of Safety David Donaldson-OSTIV Why is it that some people rise to the occasion while others freeze? In this highly interactive session we take a brief look at how the brain functions, explaining some of our behavior as it applies to safety in an aviation context. Leveraging some of the latest research in the field of neuroscience, we will look at the physiology of crisis and identify strategies that we can use to improve our performance when we are under pressure; performance that could well save lives. The INs and OUTs of ADS-B John Fisher, FAA Mr. Fisher will provide an overview of the surveillance system by quickly describing the generational leap from ATCRBS, to Mode S and now to ADS-B. He will also discuss the benefits of ADS-B IN by explaining three “IN” applications, SURF, AIRB and ATAS. The presentation will also outline ADS-B rule airspace, and close by describing the ANPRM process as it relates to the Glider ANPRM. Condor Simulation-Based Glider Flight Training Scott Manley Update: Self-Study Flight Training, New Initiative: Accelerated Flight Training (a.k.a Ground School Flight School), Condor, Overview & Feature Demonstration, Question & Answer, Special Guest Appearance Flight Safety-Oriented, Scenario-Based BFR/Spring Refresher Greg Swiderski-OSTIV The accident and incident analysis (some will be presented) shows, that at the core of these bad events lies the decision making process, too fast or too slow, but first of all ignoring the knowledge acquired through the years of the crew flight experience and refreshed during the BFRs and check flights. In critical situations they forgot what they had learned and supposed to know or they failed to apply what they knew. Racing in the Future: Should We Moderate the Impact of Technology John Godfrey This session will be part presentation and part town hall. In addition to presenting a road map for coming technologies and their possible impact on how we race, John looks forward to thoughtful and lively interactions with the audience on these issues. On Site Parachute Packer Parachute repacking will be offered through the Carolina Soaring Booth at the convention for $35.00 chutes will be packed on the convention floor. They will be checked in and out through the Carolina Soaring Booth. Other Things to Know about Greenville There is more to Greenville than just their convention center! You can find resturants, attractions, history, museums and other things to do in Greenville by going to http://www.visitgreenvillesc.com/. The Soaring Society of America PO Box 2100 .Hobbs . NM . 88241-2100 575.392.1177 Facebook Twitter