Tie-downs and LSA's

[Jack Tyler]

NB: Once again I'm struck by how there is no 'Safety' category in this forum. This site could be so much more than it is...

This heart-wrenching video is short and worth viewing - apparently shot from a security camera and showing what happened when gusty wind conditions met an unsecured LSA:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=O-wjtP90d_g

I thought it was a good intro to mentioning that, a few months after the 2011 Sun 'n Fun's extreme weather event with many planes were damaged, AvWeb did an excellent video comparing different tie-down products. They used a hydraulic engine hoist and measured the relative performance of four different anchoring systems. The damage to the anchors resulting from simply resisting the force they are supposed to handle was also worth noting.

You'll find the video list here: http://www.avweb.com/allvideo/
Unfortunately, I don't think the search function finds videos so you'll have to work your way backwards thru the list a few months to find it.

In a prequel to the tests but after Sun 'n Fun, Paul Bertorelli discusses the performance of some tie-down products here:
http://www.avweb.com/blogs/insider/AVwe ... 479-1.html
Worthwhile reading. But do note that Paul's comments were, to some extent, contradicted when he did the actual testing mentioned above - which is why seeing the video is so useful. For those with a subscription, there's also a regular article with test results in the Archives section of Aviation Consumer.