Flying report 8/1/14

We had a great day yesterday after the rain finally stopped. It was a shame it took a little longer to clear than the forecast but when it did clear we had a great day. Because of the rain we did not start to fly until 12 noon but certainly made the best use of the day after that. The wind was also lighter than forecast so for the first couple of hours we were only getting around 14 – 1500′ but the visibility was very good and we had lots of warm sun.

By 2pm the wind had increased to around 20kts and our launches went up to 17 – 1800′ which was much better. Several members were away on holiday so 15 members on the flying list was pretty good. Infact because of the late start it was just about enough as we would have been hard pushed to make sure everyone flew if there had been anymore on the list. As it was everyone did fly and the 2 x K13’s and the K18 gliders we did use were kept busy all day. We did not use the K21 because of the soft ground.

A very good day and well worth the wait for the rain to clear. We stopped flying at about 16.15 as the light was going and everyone had flown.

Total Launches…………..25…………. A good total as we only had 4 hours flying time.

Longest Flight……………15mins…..A very good effort from a really nice chap but modesty stops me from mentioning his name. Well done to David S. Phil P. and Nick J. for all getting the second longest flights of 10mins.

Average Flight Time…….7mins…. This did include a few S.C.B.’s.

Total Hours Flown………..3hrs.

Steve P.

Flying Report 16/12/14

We had a brilliant day with cloudless sunshine all morning and a gentle westerly breeze giving us launches to around 1700′. The only problem we had was a late start due to the canopies misting up and being slow to clear. We started to fly at around 10.45am which was a shame as we were very busy with about 25 members on the flying list when we started to fly and more came later.

We welcome 2 new members who both signed up for full membership today, by the way they are flying it should not be long before they are off on their own.

Everyone managed to fly and some managed 2 or 3 but we could have done so much more. We had to stop flying at about 15-30am once again due to misting canopies. Overall a very good day and a very busy day with the instructors being kept busy all day.

Total Launches……………..37.

Total Flight Time…………..4hr. 40min.

Longest flight……………..14min. Well done to John H. in the Junior and Ken M and Nick in the K21, closely followed by Tony M, Phill C, and once more John H. all with 13mins.

Average Flight Time………..7mins. but this did include quite a few S.C.B.’s.

Steve P.

Flying Report 3/12/14

Wall to wall sunshine was the order of the day today. No fog, no rain, not much warmth either but that was a small price to pay for such a nice day.

To start with we had a breeze from due north so we had to make a decision where to launch from but after a while it became obvious that we needed to be at the far end. With a small amount of east in the wind we were getting good launches up to 1700′ and we all got some practice in crosswind launches and landings.

There were no thermals of course but there was reduced sink in places and so some pilots (ok, just one) managed to extend their flight by a few minutes. We had a good turnout but there were a few of the usual members missing. Because we were a little late starting and an early finish because of misting canopies we did not manage to do as many launches as we would have liked so apologies to those who missed out on missed launches. Several members did get 2 flights but we could have done quite a lot more given more time. But we all had a good day in glorious winter sunshine with no problems except a broken cable on the last but one flight, it seemed to be just fair wear and tear as it broke on the shackle next to the chute. At least it did not cost us any launches as we were finishing by that time.

Total Launches……………..21

Total Flight Time…………..2 hrs. 27 min.

Longest Flight……………..11 min. Well done to Dave C. This is the second week running Dave has got this prize, must remember next week to launch straight
after him and follow him around and go where he goes !!!!!

Average Flight Time…………7 min.

Steve P.

Flying Report 24/11/14

It was well worth flying today and we were lucky there was no mist or fog to spoil the day. We had sunshine all day with varying amounts of cloud but a very light wind from the West which limited our launches to around 1400′. It was cold first thing but by the time we started to fly it was a little warmer so overall not too bad.

We had a good turnout and all the Doughnuts went very quickly. The field was wet but not a problem. The only problem we did have was misting of the canopies which finally stopped play a little early at 3-30pm.

A good day for training and staying current, no long flights but we all had a nice day. We had a visit from a member of another club who had two flights and also enjoyed his visit. We hope to see him again very soon. As I said earlier we had no fog but it was not very far away, we could clearly see it south of Stratford and a lot more out to the West. We were very lucky.

And so to the detail…….

Total Launches…………..24.

Total Landings……………24 (This is just for the C.F.I’s benefit).

Total Flight Time………….2 hr. 51 min.

Longest Flights…………….9 min. Well done to David C. Chris W. and Tony M.

Average Flight Time……..7 min.

Steve P.

Super Tuesday 18/11/14

Today turned out even better than expected. No mist or fog first thing and no cloud in the morning, just a clear blue sky. So we had a brilliant day with wall to wall sunshine all morning and a nice breeze giving us launches up to 1700′.

It stayed dry all day and although it clouded over at lunch time it was not a big problem as we stopped for lunch anyway. Soon after we re-started the sky mostly cleared to give us a good afternoon. We flew until 15.40 when the canopies started to mist up but by then everyone had flown and it was starting to get a little dark as well.

Overall a great day with no problems, many thanks to everyone who helped to get us flying at the far end at a reasonable time and to everyone who helped run the day. It really was a joint effort by everyone.

Total Launches……………29

Longest Flight…………….12 mins. Very well done to John H. who found some lift over the Fruit Farm and outflew everyone else by several minutes.

Shortest Flight……………..1min 15 secs. by David C. but it was self inflicted.

Average Flight Time……….6 min.

Total Flight Time…………..2 hr. 54 min.

Steve P.

Flying Report 13/11/14

We did manage to fly today and certainly made the best of the day. As it was S.E. we had to set up at the far end and so we were a little later starting than usual. Cloudbase was 1400′ pretty well all morning and there was lift under the cloud.

By lunch time the wind was gusting up to around 30kts and it was starting to rain so we called it a day. Everyone flew who wanted to and a couple managed 2 flights. It was very turbulent but I think we all had a good time and we put the 2 gliders away with no problems. It was well worth the effort and was a very interesting morning. It was a shame the rain did not hold off a little longer but overall a good day.

Total Launches…………….10.

Total Flight Time……………1hr. 12mins.

Longest Flight………………10min. Well done to Steve Ba. and Allan and then very closely followed by John H. (with me as extra ballast) getting 9min.

Average Flight Time………..7min.

Steve P.

Flying Report 28/10/14

We had a great day today with perfect weather for the time of year, it was very warm, a good breeze from S.S.W. which was giving us launches to an average of 1500′ with the occasional one to 1800′ and it stayed dry all day. We flew until light stopped play but it was just a shame we were about an hour late starting as we lost several launches at the best time of the day.
All in all a good day with one exceptional flight by John H. in the K21. He managed 20 mins and gained quite a lot of height while us lesser mortals floundered around some 400′ below him. Well done John.

Statistics for the day are below…………..

Total Launches…………..37.

Total flight Time…………..3hr. 49min.

Longest Flight…………….20min. (as above, no one else got even close to this).

Average Flight Time………6min. (To be fair this did include several very short flights and S.C.B.’s)

Steve P.

Flying report 19/10/14

Final Turn in K21What a day’s flying!

The forecast told us that it was going to be an interesting day with a very stiff breeze from the south west but the turn-out of members was very good with many of our new and junior members on site early.

Daily briefing was underway by 0920 and everyone was out on the field immediately afterward. Due to the challenging conditions, only the club’s K21 was employed with a 2-crew rule all day. Launches were very impressive if a little rough. On one occasion, an expertly driven Skylaunch delivered the K21 to 1950 feet above the airfield.

The enthusiasm was notable, the launchpoint crowded to the point that Control had to ask members to move out of the way to afford a better view of the operation. With only 1 aircraft in use, the operation was a continuous cycle of launch, soar and retrieve. Although the golf buggy decided it had had enough by early afternoon, we pressed on with the tractor to the end of the day.

Despite a single-line, single aircraft, dual-crew operation, we flew everyone in 18 enjoyable flights and provided some valuable experience for our new members.

Richard Goes Solo At SOAGC

Today, Richard Croxford completed his first solo flight at Stratford Upon Avon Gliding Club.

richardsolo

Richard who is 15 years old is our youngest ever solo pilot and we believe only the 20th under-16 BGA solo glider pilot.

Richard was sent solo in K13 G-DCBW as his dad, Neil, who is also a student glider pilot, watched with pride.