These pictures were taken and sent to us very recently by a fellow pilot's friend who felt he needed to pass on this important safety warning to other pilots and beginners following a problem with a wing. The wing was sent away for an annual service to a reputable glider servicing agent for routine porosity checks and line testing.

As the above pictures clearly show the pilot is completely unaware of the condition of its leading edge. He took off and proceeded with a short flight before realising something was drastically wrong and landing. On landing and a quick inspection of the wing revealed that a couple of top lines had been fitted following testing which were 8" shorter than normal. Result being part of the the leading edge was tucked under after full inflation.

The pilot on this instance was very lucky, the shortened lines could have caused a full frontal tuck or even worse a total collapse of the wing resulting in the pilot being seriously injured or even killed.

REMEMBER

• Check the work of the glider servicing agent when your wing is returned before flying.
• Always ground fly your wing before taking off.

Always carry out PRE-FLIGHT checks before taking off.