Installing nose hooks in older DG Gliders
A nose hook makes sense even for older DG gliders.
The following article was seen in the German “Fliegermagazin”:
A Recommended Modification
We have received word from DG Flugzeugbau that the modification of older gliders in the DG-100/101 and DG-200/202 series must be modified to add a nose hook for aero towing. This has been mandated by the Luftfahrt-Bundesamt in a supplemental certification directive.
Aero-towing with a nose hook has shown itself to be clearly easier and safer than using a C/G hook. Because of this, new gliders today should be equipped with a nose hook to be certificated for unlimited aero-tow.
The modification of older types is not required but certainly recommended.
Special advice for owners of DG-100s with all-moving tails
The all-moving tail of the DG-100 becomes very effective in the very early stages of an aerotow – and pilots who are not used to flying gliders with an all-moving tail might get caught out. This has led to PIO (pilot-induced oscillations) on more than one occasion. Recently a serious accident was only narrowly avoided when a pilot could not stop his DG-100 from oscillating dramatically behind the tug, and had to release. The landing that followed was a rather heavy one and led to a totally deformed undercarriage.
The oscillation of a glider due to the unfamiliar all-moving tail arrangement could be stopped more effectively if a nose hook were used. For this reason we strongly recommend the following to all owners of DG-100s with all-moving tails:
Get a nose hook retrofitted to your DG-100
and then only use the nose hook for aerotows,
never the C of G hook!
Dear Mr Weber,
More than a year ago after my aerotow take-off accident in my DG-100 we were in contact in order to try to figure out the basic cause of the accident. At that time you gave the general strong recommendation in a circular that in particular DG-100's with an all flying tail plane be urgently retrofitted with a nose release. I had that done to my DG-100 (D-2589) over the winter months and have since flown several aerotow take-offs so I'd like to give you a little feedback.
It was worth it. The aerotow is a lot calmer and the tendency to "branch off" at the start of the tow is not so pronounced. In light of my current experience, I'd have it done again every time. I can only reinforce your urgent recommendation.
With sincere thanks for your commitment to gliding,
Klaus Peter Dannecker