DESIGN PARAMETERS FOR A PILOT RESCUE SYSTEM

Abstract

The German Federal Ministry of Trarsport (BMV) has commissioned the Fachhochschule Aachen to investigate the design parameters for a pilot rescue system (PRS). In the case of a mid-air glider accident, such as a collision or the loss of control, the pilot is pulled out of the cockpit by a parachute. Suspended beneath this parachute the pilot descends safely to the ground. This paper completes the fundamentals of the pilot rescue system. The design requirements for the parachute, the lines, and attachment points are identical to those of another glider recovery system. The PRS uses a parachute with the size, mass and volume of the conventional personal parachute. In the first rescue sequence the parachute is deployed by a lifting device such as a rocket or a mortar to carry the parachute clear of the tail. After opening, the parachute stabilizes the tumbling glider to a descent rate ranging from 13 to 18 meters/second, depending on total mass. After stabilization, the riser is disconnected from the glider and at the same time linked up to the pilots hamess. Following this, the seat belts are automatically opened. Due to load reduction, the parachute decelerates to about 7m/s, and the free falling glider accelerates towards the ground. This differential movement pulls the pilot out of the cockpit. Technical problems in such a pilot rescue system are the complex mechanism, the oscillation of the parachute, descending a damaged and possibly unstable glider, the hazard of injuring the pilot during the pullout sequence, and a collision between the pilot and the tumbling glider.