Glider pilot runs out of oxygen on 900km flight

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  • เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 ต.ค. 2024

ความคิดเห็น • 60

  • @emmecourg9260
    @emmecourg9260 3 หลายเดือนก่อน +2

    I am not a glider pilot myself, more a sailor, but I enjoyed the explanations and landscape. Also, I like this very strong connection to the winds and weather 😉
    Might add this in my todo list !!
    cheers from France

  • @lsl7080
    @lsl7080 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    I just randomly stumbled upon this, and oh this is beautiful

  • @dsacton
    @dsacton ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Outstanding, Ben! What an adventure! Thanks.

  • @Richardhenryhoffman
    @Richardhenryhoffman 3 หลายเดือนก่อน

    Thanks for the excellent reporting and commenting throughout the flight. This doesn't only give the viewer first hand situational awareness, but also allow us to know exactly what you are thinking at the time of each big decision.
    I recently bought a Ls-3A which should should soon go on a few cross countries.
    Regards from South Africa

  • @Tannerxcsoaring
    @Tannerxcsoaring 11 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    Nice Ben, I flew those routes when I worked at Truckee in 1991- 1997, Super fun, fast and mostly high. Flew Les Sebald's Grob 102, always topped off with water. The big desert air taught me a lot.

  • @ArcusJet
    @ArcusJet ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Ben, Congrats on super flight !!! Thanks for spending the time making these awesome videos. They're really done well. EXCELLENT work.

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  ปีที่แล้ว

      Thanks, Gordon! It was good flying with you. Hope to meet you at Minden one of these days.

  • @johnfoster1201
    @johnfoster1201 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Well done! Always exciting to break new personal goals.

  • @jimmyjackman9215
    @jimmyjackman9215 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Congratulations, it looks like it was a fun flight!

  • @RangerTim28
    @RangerTim28 7 หลายเดือนก่อน +4

    14,500 is Mt Whitney.... as long as you are in shape, should be no problem.....that being said, I might not be able to do that today, lol

  • @johnjurotte7256
    @johnjurotte7256 10 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    211km@540:1 = YAHOO!! Nice flight

  • @Bleemus
    @Bleemus ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Brilliant. Love you vids. Commentary is excellent.

  • @RWBHere
    @RWBHere หลายเดือนก่อน

    Nice job! Shame about the O₂ running out, but you had aimed for 800km, so it's understandable. Thanks for sharing your triumph. 🙂👍

  • @Lviz
    @Lviz 5 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    cool channel ! *subscribed* greetings from Europe/Austria..

  • @Sara_PY
    @Sara_PY ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Congrats, Ben!!

  • @AirJoe
    @AirJoe หลายเดือนก่อน

    Hey Ben I love watching these videos. Keep it up!

  • @jrfsailing07
    @jrfsailing07 3 หลายเดือนก่อน

    Hey Ben, great video!!

  • @jjiacobucci
    @jjiacobucci 20 วันที่ผ่านมา +1

    Congradulation on a well done flight and a well put together video. What software are you using to illustrate the gliders with their identification banner ? I felt as if I was watching a sailplane grand prix video which are professionally produced. Well done !

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  20 วันที่ผ่านมา

      Thanks! I use Sports Track Live. Link in the description.

  • @julesbegg
    @julesbegg 9 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    Great video

  • @Baldadiz
    @Baldadiz 6 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    Only 2.43K subscribers??? NO WAY....

  • @keylargo70
    @keylargo70 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Nice video.

  • @SparrowHawkPilot
    @SparrowHawkPilot ปีที่แล้ว

    Let’s get you equipped with the dual stage regulator so you could use what otherwise would be unusable O2 due to pressure drops while your cylinder is approaching empty.

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  ปีที่แล้ว

      I do have a dual stage regulator. It can't prevent you from running out of oxygen.😁

  • @david3599
    @david3599 8 หลายเดือนก่อน +3

    Great video but I am confused as to why you deployed spoilers to lose altitude. Of course no responsible pilot would deliberately go above the legal height without oxygen but yours ran out and didnt get noticed while already above. Hikers routinely climb above 14,000 feet without oxygen so why not continue on glide knowing you are descending anyway? Risking not making the destination seems to outweigh the risk of dumping height and not making it and the risk of hypoxia is low at that altitude. Different situation if you were above 18,000ft Grateful if you could share your thought process at the time.

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  8 หลายเดือนก่อน +14

      I pulled the spoilers for two reasons. One is to be legal. The other is the reason for the law: Above 12,500ft, the lack of oxygen affects your brain. Even if you don't pass out, your mental capacity is diminished. If I had some other emergency while my brain was deprived of oxygen, I would be less able to handle it correctly. When you're hiking above 12,500, it doesn't matter that much if you're slightly dumber than usual, but it does matter when you're piloting an aircraft.

    • @david3599
      @david3599 8 หลายเดือนก่อน +2

      Thanks for the clarification. I was just wondering as in any case you were descending so both the legality and potential hypoxia issues were on their way to being resolved, would be a shame to dump height then damage something in a field landing because you were short. Seems more likely that any additional emergency would be at that point than when you had plenty of height.

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  8 หลายเดือนก่อน +4

      @@david3599 Yeah, I hate to dump precious altitude, but like I said in the video, I had plenty of margin to spare, so descending to 12,500 didn't add much risk of landing out.

    • @martijn9568
      @martijn9568 5 หลายเดือนก่อน

      ​@@BenHirashimaI think you may be underestimating the risks in mountain climbing.😅
      But I believe the reasons pilots have to go on oxygen much sooner than mountain climbers is because of the activity levels of mountain climbers, and that the fitness of the average pilot varies a lot more.

  • @toodie-em2mp
    @toodie-em2mp หลายเดือนก่อน

    Good for you, tremendous flight! Never got the opportunity to fly the Whites......loved the video of your flight! Yep, always have enough O2! Glad it all worked out.

  • @rokalefi
    @rokalefi ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Very nice video and congrats! Would you be so kind and explain the whole you do the shots - what kind of music?

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  ปีที่แล้ว

      Thanks! I use an Insta360 X3 camera that shoots in 360 degrees. For the exterior shots, I put the camera on a stick and put it out the window.

    • @rokalefi
      @rokalefi ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@BenHirashima thank you for your fast reply and may I ask how do you mount the Insta camera to your canopy?

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@rokalefi I use a Ram mount that is screwed into the bottom edge of the canopy.

    • @rokalefi
      @rokalefi ปีที่แล้ว +1

      thank you - keep going - looking forward to new videos!

  • @jamesfahey240
    @jamesfahey240 5 หลายเดือนก่อน

    Loved your video. I live on the east coast and only get to fly out west on rare occasions, but any time I fly above 12,500 ft I use oxygen and pulse oximeter to keep an eye on my oxygen saturation level. Could this be a way of stretching your oxygen supply in an emergency? Keep up the good work.

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  5 หลายเดือนก่อน

      Using a pulse oximeter is a good idea, but be aware that they tend to lose accuracy at high altitudes. They can be useful to make sure your oxygen saturation hasn't dropped over time, but they aren't good for telling you if you're getting enough oxygen at the moment.

  • @RiDankulous
    @RiDankulous 10 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    I'm not in the sport but I wonder if there's some device that can give real time continuous blood oxygen level but also be convenient enough for a pilot. The only device I know that takes oxygen readings is the finger clip; not sure if that is continuous.

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  10 หลายเดือนก่อน +2

      Some pilots use pulse oximeters. They have accuracy issues at higher altitude, but can provide a little extra safety.

    • @Farweasel
      @Farweasel 6 หลายเดือนก่อน

      @@BenHirashima I have one because I figured 'norms are one thing but folk vary & my lungs aren't perfect'.
      Therefore it would be good to see where my Oxgenation level began to fall off.
      Then I dicovered most of the flight medical advice is, as you say, these monitor's are not so reliable at height.
      (I have no idea why this would be so unless they are pressure sensitive & I don't see why they would be - maybe fingers swell slightly in lower pressure tho & confuse the reading?)
      Incidentally, is that an LS6 (and why is the lettering the wrong way around if it is)?

  • @robmorgan1214
    @robmorgan1214 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    14k ft is too high? FAA? I'm pretty sure I've been up that high in the mountains w/ zero issues.

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  ปีที่แล้ว +6

      The FAA requires pilots to use oxygen above 12,500 because mental acuity declines at that altitude due to the reduced oxygen in the air. If you're hiking in the mountains, you may not notice it, but a pilot needs his or her brain to be working at 100% at all times to be safe.

    • @laulaja-7186
      @laulaja-7186 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@BenHirashimafor a Denver resident 12,500 should be no problem at all. For Washington DC on the other hand, yeah maybe … and that is where the rules are made. 😢

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  ปีที่แล้ว +5

      @@laulaja-7186 The regulation is actually based on science, not politics. We know how a lack of oxygen affects pilots' brains due to scientific experiments done by NASA and the air force.

    • @kaihorstmann2783
      @kaihorstmann2783 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@laulaja-7186Well, politics aside, when flatlanders (like me) go to such altitudes, the rule is well justified. I hiked the last weeks through the Sierra with my wife and was out of breath constantly when hiking at >= 10000ft. The same week I took a ride at Minden (my pilot let me fly 😊) and rose up to 12000. Without strenuous hiking that worked, albeit I started feeling it. If staying there longer it would have affected me more. The rule is well justified.

  • @8OrangePants
    @8OrangePants ปีที่แล้ว

    So Gordo launched an hour earlier and still stayed up...sounds like the rest of the fleet wasted a lot of a good day launching after the thermals punched through.

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Yeah he launched 50 minutes ahead of me. You can see from his trace that he spent a lot of time scratching and just barely surviving. I heard him on the radio and it didn't sound like he was having fun.

    • @jjiacobucci
      @jjiacobucci 20 วันที่ผ่านมา

      Gordon also has a very reliable jet to help if he really needs to climb.

  • @kevinjohnson5210
    @kevinjohnson5210 3 หลายเดือนก่อน

    Ben, what careras and mounts are on the top of the instrument panel?
    kj

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  3 หลายเดือนก่อน

      @@kevinjohnson5210 those are antennas for Flarm

    • @kevinjohnson5210
      @kevinjohnson5210 3 หลายเดือนก่อน

      @@BenHirashima so the only cam you are using is the 360 on selfie stick --- WOW?

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  3 หลายเดือนก่อน

      @@kevinjohnson5210 correct. It's quite versatile.

  • @12b_engineer
    @12b_engineer ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Entirely inappropriate risk when flying. You don't belong in the air.

    • @BenHirashima
      @BenHirashima  ปีที่แล้ว +6

      Obviously, I disagree. But just out of curiosity, which part are you referring to?

    • @rafabeton609
      @rafabeton609 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      He descended to 12500ft

    • @LKokos
      @LKokos ปีที่แล้ว +2

      What the hell are you talking about?

    • @marc8243
      @marc8243 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      12b… to the uninitiated, cross country soaring can seem risky. Ben is not bothering to narrate constant “what if” contingency planning which is a part of every flight. You should try the sport yourself and learn more about a wonderful sport that is far more rewarding than dangerous!

    • @Tannerxcsoaring
      @Tannerxcsoaring 11 หลายเดือนก่อน +2

      12bengineer obviuosly takes no risk in life and has zero fun - therefore you are indoctrinated into the the Fun police brigade, congratulations.