SoaringNZ Issue 37

NEW ZEALAND’S PREMIER SOARING MAGAZINE

CLUB CLASS NATIONALS HIMALAYAS FAREWELL DICK GEORGESON AIRWORTHINESS • CLUB NEWS i s s u e 3 7 M a y - J u l y 2 0 14

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C OMMIS SIONS A ND S T O CK LIBR A RY SP ECI A LIS T S

contents may–july 2014

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features 12 Dick Georgeson 17 Seagulls 18 Club Class Nationals 2014 24 The Himalayas 34 2014 Central Districts Gliding Competition 37 November 2013 Glidefast Course 40 A Record Number of Records 42 Youth Soaring Development Camp 46 Vintage Kiwi Rally 48 An interesting Soaring Flight 62 So you have landed out...Now what?!

65 Wynn Craven 66 Operation High Latitude II regulars 6 Log Book 45 GNZ Awards & Certificates 50 Vintage & Classic: Restoring Double Foxtrot 52 Safety 52 Inadvertent Low-Turn Spins 58 Preflight inspection of your Parachute

57 57 60 68 74

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Airworthiness Youth Glide News Jerry’s Mountain Flying Course Gliding New Zealand Club News Classified Advertising

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ISSN 1178-4784 May 2014 3

from the editor may–july 2014

O

f all the special things I have discovered about the sport of gliding in the thirty plus years I’ve been involved in it, I think one of the best is that every single time I have met one of my heroes, they have turned out to genuinely nice people who have been equally as pleased to meet me.

Terry Delore was a gliding legend long before I met him.

Now he and his family are some of my closest friends. Likewise, my meeting with women’s world record holder Yvonne Loader has developed into a lovely friendship. Some of my best soaring flights have been with either Yvonne or Terry and I have spent many happy hours in their company, on the ground as well as in the air. I met Steve Fossett when he was here and liked him immensely. At events I have met world record holders, world champions, famous authors, their helpers and supporters and all the rest of everyone involved. There is something about gliding people…

The gliding community has farewelled two exceptional members in recent months. I never met Wynn Craven but I bet we would have got on like a house on fire. Not only would we have had gliding in common, but we had the magazine. Wynn was the man who started New Zealand’s original gliding journal, the Gliding Kiwi back in 1955. He was extremely proud of what GK grew into. SoaringNZ has built on the platform of the Kiwi, providing regular articles on gliding events here and overseas. I would have like to have met Wynn, to talk about how far we’ve come.

Dick Georgeson was a huge gliding legend. In fact, I don’t think you could get legends much bigger than Sholto Hamilton Georgeson. His daughter said at his funeral, that a man with a name like that had to be larger than life. I probably met Dick around the time I met Terry and Yvonne, back when I was first involved in the Canterbury Gliding Club in the mid ‘90s. Dick’s own flying was starting to taper off but his interest in the sport didn’t. Once I started SoaringNZ, I could count on a phone call from him within days of each issue coming out, to discuss the articles and talk about what was happening in gliding around the country. He would always start and end the conversation with assurances of what a great job I was doing. I have to say, I liked hearing that.

When we started Youth Glide, both in Canterbury and later nationwide, Dick was passionately interested. He wanted to

new zealand’s premier soaring magazine

CLUB CLass nationaLs himalayas farewell dick georgeson airworthiness • club news i s s u e 3 7 M a y - J u l y 2 0 14

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Frank Saxton over Lake Station, Nelson Lakes. Photo Frank Saxton.

Dick Georgeson with Jerry O'Neill at the opening of the Canterbury Gliding Club's new Springfield glider field last year. Je three men who funded the original project. They all 'helped'.

know what the young people were doing and he delighted in hearing of their achievements. He wanted to know how he could help. When the Canterbury Gliding Club needed a new home, Dick stepped up and helped. With gifts of money, with his time and his interest, Dick helped.

Dick’s early flights into the wave over the Mackenzie Basin were responsible for creating the sport that we know today.

When Dick first did it, no one had any concept of what the wave was, or what it would do to a pilot and his puny craft. Dick went (to borrow a classic quote), where no man had gone before. He didn’t even know if the glue holding his glider together would

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magazine deadlines

Next issue: Grand Prix, Sisteron, France. Our team at the Worlds, Lezno, Poland. Sunseeker Duo.

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erry, Dick, and Jon Hamilton, Dick's cousin who sadly died before the opening, were the

hold at the extremely low temperatures he was going to fly into.

It was true pioneering and because of his explorations, there isn’t really any unexplored territory left for my kids’ generation to discover.

There were some great tales told at Dick’s funeral, and those of us who knew him only through gliding got to hear of his business exploits. As a member of the Hamilton clan, of course Dick worked for CWF Hamilton & Co Ltd, the Hamilton Jet company.

He’d held various roles with the company over many years and regardless of what he was doing, he was loved. The high regard that people held him in was heart-warming but not really surprising. Dick loved people. He genuinely cared for others. I am so pleased that I got to meet him and spend time with him, even if it was long after he’d stopped flying. I will miss his phone calls.

Fly high Dick. Fly high.

Jill McCaw

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logbook may–july 2014

Photo Solar Impulse SA

Photo Solar Impulse SA

SOLAR POWERED AIRCRAFT UPDATES

SOLAR IMPULSE 2:

THE ROUND-THE-WORLD AIRCRAFT IS COMPLETED

“…

we have shown that clean technologies and renewable energies can accomplish the impossible,” said Bertrand Piccard, founder and Chairman of Solar Impulse.

The around the world flight is expected to take five months of multiple 5-6 days legs to complete but landings will be made every few days to change pilots and organize public events for governments, schools and universities.

Solar Impulse will fly, in order, over the Arabian Sea, India, Burma, China, the Pacific Ocean, the United States, the Atlantic Ocean and Southern Europe or North Africa before closing the loop by returning to the departure point. “Solar Impulse 2 will have virtually unlimited autonomy, and now we need to make sure the pilot is as sustainable as his aircraft. This is why the

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round-the-world flight will be as much a human as a technological feat,” said André Borschberg, co-founder and CEO. The single-seater solar aircraft has a huge wingspan of 72 meters (236 ft) for its weight of just 2,300 Kg (5’000 lbs.). There is a 3.8 m3 cockpit designed for a pilot to live in it for a week. However, for the sake of maximum energy efficiency, the cabin is not pressurized or heated – a further endurance challenge for the pilot.

Test flights are due to take place in May, followed by training flights over Switzerland. The attempt to make the first round-the-world solar-powered flight is scheduled to start in March 2015 from the Arabian Gulf area.

Photo Solar Impulse SA

Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg launched Solar Impulse 2, their new single-seater solar aircraft, designed to take up the challenge of the first round-the-world solar flight without any fuel in 2015. SoaringNZ has previously profiled Solar Impulse 1 as it flew across America and created eight world records.

Solar Impulse is the product of an alliance between Bertrand Piccard, a psychiatrist and explorer and André Borschberg engineer and entrepreneur and a technical team of 80. It has taken 12 years of calculations, simulations, construction and testing to arrive at the launch of Solar Impulse 2 on the 9th April.

The Duo is the first solar powered airplane in the world that might be suited to production. It is also the first solar powered aeroplane with a passenger seat. The project is led by husband and wife; Eric and Irena Raymond. The Duo is Solar Flight’s third solar powered aeroplane. The previous two have also appeared in SoaringNZ. The first flight was conducted at Solar Flight’s test facility in Voghera, Italy

by Eric Raymond on December 17; the anniversary of the Wright Brothers’ first flight at Kitty Hawk. Solar Flight’s mission is to lead the way for the future of sport aviation using the most advanced technologies in the world.

The engineering challenges to build solar powered aeroplanes are formidable. The structure must be incredibly light and aerodynamically efficient to perform well with only the power from integrated solar arrays.

The great triumph of the Sunseeker series is to integrate the huge number of conflicting design challenges into high performance, practical sport aeroplanes. Sunseeker Duo uses all of the lessons learned during 25 years with the original Sunseeker and implements new materials and new technologies.

“The lithium batteries today have seven times more capacity than the nickel cadmium batteries we used in Sunseeker I. When we first sketched the concept for this aeroplane, we couldn’t imagine solar cells with greater than 20% efficiency. These technologies are a dream come true.” said Eric Raymond.

Over the past two months, the flying qualities of the aircraft, as well as the performance of the battery system, motor, propeller, folding hub mechanism, and landing gear retraction systems have been explored. After some instability in pitch was observed during the unpowered test flights, more area and additional solar cells were added to the horizontal stabilizer.

The Sunseeker Duo has a wingspan of 22 meters; an empty weight of 280 kg and 1510 solar cells with 23% efficiency. The motor has a maximum

Photo Bernard Eckey

Photo Schleicher

SUNSEEKER DUO MAKES ITS FIRST POWERED FLIGHTS

logbook may–july 2014

output of 25kW. The aeroplane is able to cruise directly on solar power with two people on board and is capable of durations in excess of 12 hours. It uses a battery pack located in the fuselage to store energy harvested from the solar cells which line its wings and tail surfaces.

SoaringNZ will have an in depth article on this aircraft in the next issue.

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logbook may–july 2014

GLIDING WEDDING It was an aviation event. Adam & Abby were married on the Tauranga Gliding Club runway on 4 April 2014. Now living in Australia they returned to get married where Adam learnt to glide as a No.34 Squadron ATC Cadet. The glider (Echo Oscar) that he went solo in was part of the ceremony.

Adam has his CPL and Abby also holds her PPL. Tauranga Gliding Club members Sandy & John Griffin provided their Buicks for the wedding cars.

MAGIC GLIDER CLONING TRAILER This photo was sent by Bernard Eckey who says: Yesterday our latest customer had a very pleasant surprise. When he opened the front door of his new trailer he found not one ASH 31 Mi but five!!!

The original way to retrieve your glider.

GNZ MEMBERS Have you logged in to the GNZ website?

Are your ratings and awards official?

Are your contact details right?

Are you receiving SoaringNZ magazine?

Do you need contacts for club members? http://members.gliding.co.nz

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May 2014

logbook may–july 2014 Survey

Announcement The WSPA is pleased to announce the dates for the 2015 WSPA seminar. The seminar will be held at SoaringNV at MindenTahoe Airport in Minden , Nevada( www.soaringNV.com) from June 15 – June 19, 2015 According to the website “The outstanding soaring conditions and stunning scenery surrounding the Minden-Tahoe Airport makes it the best place in the country to take a ride or learn to fly.” Details of the seminar, as they become available, will be posted on the WSPA web page www.womensoaring.org We would like to welcome you in Minden Frauke Elber

GNZ is conducting a survey on what is needed to improve the website. Don't forget to have your say, it will only take you a few minutes.

If you haven't received the link via your club secretary, here it is. You'll have to type it in yourself. https://www.surveymonkey. com/s/VT8TW5W

BLACK TIE DINNER EVENT

The Canterbury Gliding Club is holding a Black Tie Dinner Event to celebrate Dick Georgeson's life.

23 August, Lincoln University.

To express interest and for more information contact Abbey Delore. abbeydelore@gmail.com

Another event for Women pilots – a little closer to home

NEW ZEALAND AIR WOMEN’S ASSOCIATION (NZAWA) RALLY Dargaville, Queens Birthday Weekend 31 May to 3 June The NZAWA has a huge range of members and the rallies are amazing events. The camaraderie and enjoyment is GUARANTEED. They hold many contests for pilots of all levels, including gliding competitions.

NZ AIRWOMEN’S GLIDING CUP (For glider pilots who have been solo) Release and circuit join height to be arranged on the day.

1. Cockpit checks.

2. Aero tow or winch launch - demonstrate one out of position recovery.

3. 360 degree turn left followed immediately by a 360 degree turn right (i.e. figure of 8).

4. Stall and recovery.

5. Incipient spin off a turn and recovery.

6. Steep turns — one left, one right.

7. Circuit planning, pre-landing checks, downwind, base and final approach.

8. Precision landing — on a marked grid over a 1 metre high fence.

9. Airmanship MORRELL GLIDING TROPHY (Non instrument circuit - open to all glider pilots) 1. Instruments to be covered throughout flight.

2. Release from tow at Judge’s discretion, from which point judging commences.

3. Marks awarded on correct judgment of circuit height, control of speeds to stated figures, correct use of brakes, approach and landing.

AIRWOMEN’S SOARING AWARD (Presented by Graham & Ena Monk) Awarded for the most notable flight made by a woman glider pilot in NZ in the preceding year, i.e. between the entry closing dates of the last Rally and the coming Rally.

Entries for this award must be posted to reach the Secretary seven days prior to the Rally and must include the following details: 1. Name and Club.

2. Details of most notable flight made with regard to height, distance, area and location, and date of flight.

3. Entrant’s total hours, experience and previous awards 4. Signature of entrant and CFI of Club NZAWA PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPETITION Category 1: NZAWA financial member (wins trophy and year’s subscription to Pacific Wings) Category 2: NZAWA supporter (male or female) (wins year’s subscription to Pacific Wings) Theme : aviation orientated Size : no larger than A4 Print : colour or black and white Number of prints: no more than two per entrant Identification: please print your name and address clearly on the back of each print Photos are to be brought to the rally and not delivered earlier For more information and to register for the Rally see the NZAWA website.

May 2014

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logbook may–july 2014

FURTHER, FASTER, SHINIER! Many will remember Steve Wallace’s inspiring presentation at last year’s symposium.

The answer to halting our declining membership is not better recruiting, it is retention People leave because they get bored.

Who stays and why?

X-country pilots stay Why? Because they are not bored!

Surveys show that X-country pilots are: The most active The most motivated The most engaged The most enthusiastic X-country flying maintains members Clubs with a X-country culture are the most successful.

AUSTRALIAN AIR FORCE ORDERS ELEVEN ASK 21 MI SELF LAUNCHERS

How do we get pilots flying X-country? What can we do as a movement?

We must: Break down the barriers COACH pilots along a pathway of smaller easier steps Instructors teach How to Fly COACHES teach Why we Fly COACHES don’t have to be instructors COACHES can help set goals Goal setting is the key to keeping people motivated.

This contract ranks amongst the largest orders in Schleichers' history and it involves shipping, aircraft registration, delivery and operator training.

Bernhard Eckey, Australian Schleicher agent negotiated the contract with the Australian Air Force.

All eleven motorised ASK 21 Mi will be utilised for the basic training of future Air Force pilots and will be based at four different training centres throughout Australia. Production figures of ASK 21 trainers are fast approaching 1000 and they have a service life of 18 000 hours and an impressive safety record. The aircraft has docile flying characteristics, a modern rotary engine, very low maintenance requirements and the ease of a steerable nosewheel. The first of the eleven will leave the factory as early as May 2014 and by the middle of 2015 the entire new fleet will be fully operational in Australia.

HOW DO WE ESTABLISH A COACHING STRUCTURE FOR GLIDING IN NEW ZEALAND? FIND OUT!

Come to the Gliding New Zealand Symposium

7 June 2014

James Cook Hotel, Wellington

STOP PRESS

Photo Bernard Eckey

To be lead by Peter and Lisa Trotter – Australia's Head Coaches.

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Contributions to Logbook are welcome from all of our readers within New Zealand and internationally.

Email your news snippets to: soaringnz@mccawmedia.co.nz.

Please put "logbook" in the subject line.

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DICK GEORGESON Sholto Hamilton ‘Dick’ Georgeson MBE 7 MAY 1922 – 27 MARCH 2014

BY GAVIN WILLS

Dick in Charlie Foxtrot soaring the Cashmere Hills, 1960

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Yachting became a late blooming passion for Dick and his family.

Dick Georgeson passed away in March after a long and fulfilling life. The following article is adapted from the eulogy read by his cousin and friend, Gavin Wills, at Dick’s funeral. Dick’s funeral was a rare event – a funeral for an elderly man that was standing room only; a funeral that was a happy, celebratory occasion and didn’t involve a single prayer. Dick would have loved it.

Flying from Wigram in his Kestrel – 1970s

With Helen at Wardells in Omarama

Dick was an avid motorcyclist.

Just about to take off for Taieri and new Absolute Altitude, Gain of Height and Distance records, March 1953

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Winning, for Dick, was a great motivator,

but it was the adventures he had and the people he met along the way that for him, counted more than just winning.

Soaring with cousin and fellow gliding legend Gavin Wills

D

ick Georgeson was a lucky man because he had a dream.

It was a childhood dream of flying, born under the lenticular wave clouds of his native Mackenzie Country, in the centre of the South Island.

When Dick returned home to his Uncle Bill Hamilton’s Irishman Creek sheep station in 1948, having learnt to fly gliders in England, his dream became a mission: to explore the atmospheric waves that he now understood formed the great lenticular clouds of his childhood. These clouds are what we call the Nor’west Arch.

We now know that these atmospheric waves can be monsters over 90,000 feet high and that they can stretch for thousands of kilometres. In 1950, Dick had little idea of any of this. Worldwide, the number of people who knew anything about atmospheric waves could be counted on the fingers of one hand. Aeroplanes had been around for 40 years but they rarely flew above 10,000 ft. Exploring wave in engineless gliders was unheard of and had not been considered by anyone else.

So it was in 1950, when Dick imported the second glider to be registered in NZ and the first to be based in the South Island. It was a tiny wood and fabric thing called a Slingsby Prefect. Restored, it now hangs in the foyer of the Queenstown airport. This little open-cockpit glider would be Dick’s first tool of wave exploration.

Dick was prepared to fly by himself and without an engine, into an unknown, harsh environment that was oxygen deficient, low in pressure, and dominated by gale force winds and bitter cold. In fact it was an Antarctic-like environment but without breathable air. Dick knew that his goal of soaring successfully into the waves over Irishman Creek would be a test of equipment

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design and reliability, as well as his own skills and judgment.

It was this mission and this opportunity that led him to a life in gliding; a life where he reached the extreme leading edges of his chosen sport. I want to briefly outline how gliding was shaped by Dick, and how gliding in turn shaped the man.

First of all, it was one hell of an adventure. As it was for those explorers who set off from Europe to prove the earth was round not flat, there was a lot to learn. Dick had to figure out how to safely launch the glider on which his life depended, how to fly it alone like a hawk and how to manage and repair the frail craft when back on the ground. To do this, he needed help from all kinds of people – a lot of help. Such was Dick’s enthusiasm for gliding other men and women joined him on his journey and then they found themselves soaring like eagles or working like beavers, or often both. Indeed, the newly formed Canterbury Gliding Club, inspired by Dick’s exploits, began to blossom and to grow during these golden years of gliding.

Dick’s inspirational enthusiasm for gliding transferred into his everyday life. His enthusiasm for life and the joy of living was a notable trademark that he exhibited right to the end.

In 1950 he was 28 years old. Think of him in his open-cockpit glider being blown up the steep slopes of Mount Edward near Lake Tekapo and then, connecting with wave for the first time, soaring to over 10,000 feet high, where he was blown backwards in freezing cold, gale force winds. Realising he could not get home to Irishman Creek against the head wind, he had a stroke of genius. Ever keen to impress a lady, Dick turned downwind to land at Fairlie, where his then girlfriend, Sheena Elliott, was throwing a party. Although he landed nicely in the adjacent paddock, the wind was so strong he couldn’t get out of

With his second wife Anna Wilson

Dick spent time with Steve Fossett when the Perlan project was in NZ.

Early gliding camp in the Mackenzie at Simons Hill, Christmas 1950.

the glider and had to wait for an hour and a half for the party to break up and for help to arrive. Perhaps Dick realised then that gliders might be of limited use for attracting girls!

Dick really was a world pioneer of distance flying in wave. In the US, Dick’s friend, meteorologist, Dr Joachim Keuttner, had used wave to climb to great heights before turning downwind to gain distance before landing. Dick knew that if he did that in NZ he would end up floating in the sea somewhere near Chile.

So, he figured out how to surf the waves across the wind, like dolphins riding the face of an ocean wave.

His first demonstration of this was in 1953, with his second glider, the pre-war Weihe which he had bought from his mentor and friend Phillip Wills. Climbing in waves up to 22,000 feet, he surfed this beautiful and delicate craft from Christchurch to Dunedin. The three hour flight was hailed by those who knew as the world’s first wave flight to be made cross-wind instead of downwind. It opened the door for more record flights from Dick and eventually the way for glider pilots around the world to make flights of over several thousand kilometres long.

By now, Dick was excited - he knew he was on to something and that right here at home was the place to do it. This was the beginning of adventure aviation as we now know it. Dick was the chief adventurer, the one to aspire to and the one to beat.

Gliding was as competitive then as it is now, and before long there were records to break and races to be won.

Winning, for Dick, was a great motivator, but it was the adventures he had and the people he met along the way that for him, counted more than just winning. He never forgot someone who helped out with his exploits and many who did became lifelong friends.

Dick and friends

Jetboating was the family passion, invented by Dick’s uncle and adopted father Bill Hamilton.

Dick achieved his first world record in 1960, by reaching an altitude of 36,100 ft in his Skylark 3f. Here he demonstrated courage in the face of great danger, determination and his extraordinary tenacity. At 17,000 feet he entered cloud and for the next hour slowly climbed higher using primitive cloud flying instruments and a recycled WWII oxygen system.

In the cloud he saw nothing and it was wet, as well as windy and cold. At 27,000 ft, still in cloud, the lift died and he stopped climbing. Not high enough - so what did he do? He dived forward at speed into the cloudy unknown. Losing 10,000 vertical feet in the dive, he broke out the front of the cloud onto the leading edge of the Nor’west Arch, directly above the high mountains of the Southern Alps. Here the wave was lifting and he climbed again. After 15,000 feet soaring up the face of the cloud he reached 36,000 feet to make his world record gain of height. However, the outside temperature was minus 57° C and the controls of the wet glider froze. He needed to stop going any higher by opening the airbrakes, but the airbrakes were also frozen shut. Luckily, after a struggle he got them unlocked and began his descent. Otherwise who knows where he may have ended up?

Courage, determination and tenacity were strong attributes in Dick’s character and they served him well in business and in his life outside of gliding.

By now, he realised that facing the unknown as he did, required more than just guts to survive and that he needed the best equipment, good planning and knowledge. He was always researching and trialling better instruments, new radios and, whenever possible, upgrading his glider for more and improved performance. He loved this aspect of research, planning and

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The first soaring flight in the Mackenzie Basin at Simons Hill, 29 December 1950. The stubby wings and struts of the Prefect show its elementry design.

new gadgets. In later life, this love for technology coupled with his thirst for knowledge allowed him to embrace the age of I.T. At 90 plus years, he thought that his iPad was the best thing since sliced bread. This one gadget allowed him to do two of his favourite things - he could learn about new stuff on the web and at the same time communicate with his many friends.

His favourite world record was the 1978 distance flight from Lake Te Anau in the south to Hicks Bay, on the very tip of the North Island’s East Cape. It was almost one thousand three hundred kilometres of engineless flight. But talk about tenacity, it was his 27th attempt that was finally successful! He launched in the company of Dave Speight and Bruce Drake but made some mistakes and got left far behind. But Dick had determination. At 3 o’clock in the afternoon, with more than 800 km or two thirds of the flight still to go, he was only at Hororata, 800 feet above the ground and seemingly about to land. However, the fact that his mates were ahead, coupled with his first wife Helen’s colourful encouragement on the radio and a scrap of lift, gave him the determination to continue and the patience to dig in. The rest was history. He managed to reconnect with the wave, got height and raced on across Cook Strait, to land at Hicks Bay to meet his buddies, just before sunset.

During his 65 years in gliding, Dick made seven World gliding records, countless NZ records and competed in two world championships as well as in many Regional and National gliding contests. The world gliding community recognised him as a guru of wave exploration, and our wider society recognised his contributions to aviation with prestigious awards: the international FAI’s Gold Air Medal and Lilienthal Medal, and by making him a Member of the British Empire.

If Ed Hillary was our hero in the mountains, and Peter Blake our hero on the seas, then I suggest that Dick Georgeson deserves to be our hero of the skies.

In his later years, he supported gliding in many ways, including setting up scholarships for youth to learn about wave flying, and in helping the Canterbury Gliding Club make their recent move to their new site at Springfield.

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A statesman for gliding

I am quite sure that Dick would say that his life in gliding was only made possible by the all the people he met who helped him. While this may be true, we know that everyone who helped Dick did so because they loved the man. He inspired and enthused us, he listened generously to our tales and he encouraged the best in each of us. Helping Dick turned into friendships that crossed barriers of age, gender, race and creed.

And Dick’s friendships, young or old, were always enduring.

I was honoured to take him on his last glider flight. He was nearly 90 and almost blind. After releasing from the tow plane above Omarama, I said, “You fly,” and he gently took the controls and proceeded to circle the glider in a smooth thermal. Like the expert he still was, he climbed the glider high to look out across his beloved Mackenzie Country to Lake Pukaki, Irishman Creek and to Mount Cook shining in the distance. We cruised around in silence for an hour or so, then, as the sun set, we did a couple of loops and landed gently home. As I levered his frail body from the cockpit, he stretched up and took my hand in his still vicelike grip and with a twinkle in his eye and that mischievous grin of his, he said “Thank you. That really was a jolly good flight.”

Dick, now it’s our turn to salute you one final time, to thank you for an inspirational life that you lived to the full.

Dreams are definitely worth following. You were indeed a lucky man.

To learn more about Dick’s gliding history, one should read his fascinating book The Leading Edge, well-written by Dick and his wife Anna. To purchase contact Anna Wilson by email at wilson.georgeson@gmail or phone 03 322 8190.

Dick, now it's our turn to salute you one final time, to thank you for an inspirational life that you lived to the full.

SEAGULLS

BY ROBIN BRITTON (with help from Julian, Steve, Dave D and Dave H – PGC team of the day)

Skimming along the Raglan Coast....

“…I like to glide on my wings and stare; I like to ride on the pillowy air…”

Photo D Harding

J.K. Baxter said it all.

P

iako Gliding Club ‘holidays’ in Raglan each year, when the Walsh flying school moves into Matamata. When I went off to Raglan to do my club duties on Friday 17th Jan, it was particularly windy – gusting 20-30 knots S – SW. So started a day of flights from Raglan to Port Waikato and return, with Steve, Julian, Jack, Dave, Tim and I all having turns in PK - Piako’s PW6. WOW, what an experience. It was a magical day that truly was just like Auckland’s video Black Sands. Usually at 1000ft agl I am getting ready to land, but here we bunged off at 1,000ft after a bumpy tow and skimmed the sand dunes and cliffs all the way along to Port Waikato, approx 90km out and return – 20 mins to get there – 40 mins to get back. I never realised the geography could change so rapidly from black sands to white chalky cliffs to amazing rocky outcrops and stormy seas. A magical experience which truly reflected the fun of gliding, the amazing experience of being in another location and flying in a pressure wave. Unforgettable! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ma2 XTix8XNA – have a look here too.

May 2014

17

Alpine Lodge Club Class

NATIONALS 2014

BY MARK MCCULLOCH, WITH COLLABORATION

BY WARREN DICKINSON

T

his year, the Nelson Lakes Gliding Club hosted the Club Class Nationals. Fibreglass was a new word when the club held its last competition. Mike Strathern had been keen as mustard to host a competition so, once again, he rattled the idea to club members and this time it grabbed traction. The scene was set, permission rubber stamped, and he took charge.

Nine competitors showed up in a range of club class gliders, and there were three wannabe competitors flying hors concours in non-club class gliders. Only three of these pilots had local experience. Nelson Lakes is a big mountainous area with multiple lift sources and unexpected traps. There are valleys with land-outs made for happy glide ratios, while other valleys have no land-out options. Would all this favour the locals or would it be glider handicap versus glide ratio? Either way, there would be a new Club Class Champion, and this made for an interesting week, with many unknowns. To add to the buzz, there were jillions of roaming bumble bees who willingly helped us rig and de-rig each day.

PRACTICE DAY By mid afternoon, a blustery southwest wind with thermals and wave allowed the competitors a practice flight and a short recon around the hills. Club members and ground crew also got the chance to shake off the rust, with the sudden arrival of tow planes roaring around. In the air, Jerry O’Neill gave Alex McCaw and the rest of the pilots a radio tour of the local land out spots. Billy Walker found a number of issues with his retrofitted Libelle. Notably, his IAS indicated 20 knots for the whole flight. A careful inspection back on the ground found a spider

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May 2014

hiding in his pitot tube. After a quick and calculated blast from the oxygen bottle, Marc Edgar (safety officer) found himself splattered with spider debris, dust, grit, and what looked to be an old sock. Billy’s tubes seemed to work well for the rest of the competition.

SUNDAY – REST DAY 1 Weatherman Nick White called for clearing skies with a southwest, unstable flow, but he did not count on Murphy’s Law. Although a task was set, squall after squall from the southwest forced the day to be called off. Billy took the opportunity to get his radio working and found a window between rain showers for a short test flight.

MONDAY DAY 1 First competition day and Mike was more excited than a box of puppies. Unfortunately, the unstable, cool southwest wind persisted and forced Mike to re-set a local bowtie AAT task around St Arnaud. Re-tasking turned out to be touch and go, because the club’s only power source for extra things like printers is a small generator, which nearly stalled every time from the effort to print a task page. Eventually, all competitors were launched using the three tugs and on their way around a course to Lake Constance, north to Mt Owen, south to a circle around Murchison, east to Beebys, and home. The only re-light of the competition occurred when Billy landed back after finding something important was taped up. It was a day of ups and downs as competitors found wave near Lake Constance and climbed to over 10,000’ but then glided out of it further along, to struggle with variable lift on the ridges. Somehow Warren

Photo John McCaw

Photo John McCaw

NATIONALS

Dane Dickinson

Dickinson found wave behind Mt Murchison to climb high for the final turn at Beebys. Besides winning the day, hors concours in his LS8, he had a good chuckle looking down on Dane Dickinson struggling in the weeds at Beebys. Dane and Mark Wilson, in their Libelles, were able to scratch away to come in second and third for the day. They were the only three competitors to make it around the course, and this gave Wellington the podium for the day. Remarkably, Alex McCaw had the only land-out of the competition, a few paddocks east of the airfield. Quite possibly, the thought of spending the night deep in a valley on a remote paddock, was enough to prevent other land-outs.

TUESDAY DAY 2 Racing Task 284 km Shingle Peak - Boyle - Mt Owen A nice big triangle covering most of the task area. Dane Dickinson reports on the day: Starting off under 6000’, Cu’s just above the tops, we flew eastwards, ridge after ridge towards Molesworth. Reaching Shingle Peak, things started getting interesting, with a bad air mass pushing up the Wairau River.

At this stage, Nick Oakley (LB) and Terry Jones (TK) had gotten ahead so I pulled back and let them take the turn first. It was a pleasure to watch LB - young and foolhardy - lead the way down the completely unlandable valley. Although we were at 5000’, the ground was pushing 4000’, so there was little room for error. My map showed some landing strip on the other side of the ridge I was half-way up, but other than that, we were pretty remote. After about 10 minutes of dithering, I found the exit strategy in a solid 5 kt thermal to 8500’. Now we were on the way!

The leg south to Boyle was one of the most enjoyable stretches of gliding I’ve ever had. A partially marked convergence line enabled LB, TK and me, in HM, to cruise to Boyle without much difficulty. We enjoyed good climbs when needed and covered some of the most remote and awesome parts of the country. Reaching the Lewis Pass area, convection levels dropped back down to around 7000’, so it became more convenient to gently run the ridges. North bound towards Murchison, there was an exciting moment crossing a ridge without much to spare. Successfully avoiding the long-route, the landscape developed with lush bush and forest, and the western faces in the long Maruia Valley really started humming in the afternoon sunshine. A couple of thermals and a long glide to Mt Murchison, then a brief top-up before red-lining into the Mt Owen convergence and diving home completed one of the most satisfying flights of my career. The task could not have been set more perfectly; soaring any further east, south, or north was not possible, and we covered the majority of the upper South Island. I will never forget the flight! TK and LB were able to squeak over the line a few minutes ahead of the old Libelle, but her resilient handicap assured the result in any case.

Overall results at the end of the day were Dane first, Mark second and Nick moved into third.

WEDNESDAY DAY 3 Weatherman Nick White proclaimed a boomer day at least half a dozen times during briefing in the fantastic Alpine Lodge, the base for the event. His prediction was enough to set a 250km AAT task into the blue. Having chased Dane around the day before, Nick Oakley knew the handicaps meant he had to push

May 2014

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Photo John McCaw

NATIONALS

Photo John McCaw

Daisy Strange on radio, Roy Edwards helping

Photographer caught. John McCaw taking pictures as Karen Morgan takes the single Astir for a ride.

the stick forward when he could. The second turn point at Lake Tennyson caused havoc, as half the competition, including Mark and Alex, did not make it over ‘The Wall’. Actually, this may have saved some pilots, for on the other side of The Wall, in the Tennyson Valley, there are no real land-outs. Billy claimed to have nearly lost his new winglets through the gap in David Saddle. Interestingly, DoC reported that the alpine crickets at David Saddle had stopped chirping for a week. Although second for the day, Dane was leading overall by 300 points, second was Nick, and Billy a close third.

THURSDAY DAY 4

Photo John McCaw

The day of Mark’s revenge, by a whisker (0.1km/hr), over Dane.

Another blue, stay-on-top day with a light southwest wind called for a long AAT with skinny glides. The task went east to Mt Tapuaenuku, southwest to Faerie Queene, north to Mt Patriarch and then home. For some pilots, getting away from Lake Station proved to be the most difficult part of the task. However, the lift seemed to increase towards the blue hole of Tapuaenuku, and Mark took advantage of this by pushing deep into the circle at Tapi, showing determination to come back from

Mark Wilson

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Competitiors and helpers outside the Alpine Lodge, Nelson Lakes

May 2014

Photo Mark McCulloch

NATIONALS

FRIDAY – REST DAY 2 Although another front wandered through with rain and southwest wind, most of the competitors seemed happy for the break. It had been a tough four days of racing over strange tiger country, and none of the tasks had been easy, having been set right at the limit for the day’s conditions. The day brought out mountain bikes and a few recon trips up the Wairau Valley to inspect landout options. Turns out some of those ‘good’ landout options had bushes growing on them, and trailer retrieves were

Nick Oakley and Daisy Strange

Photo John McCaw

Photo John McCaw

Photo John McCaw

his disappointment of the previous day. On returning from Tapi, back into the main ranges, pilots found more reliable ridge lift.

Even the Tasman Bay convergence gave most gliders a burst of energy for the final glide home from Mt Patriarch. Behind Mark and Dane for the day were Nick, Alex and Billy within a couple km/hr of each other, and the top three placings remained the same. Warren, Terry, Chris and Jerry got around again and collected points. Julian Elder found his mountain legs and went a lot further into hills than before.

Tow pilot David Marriott

May 2014

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Photo John McCaw

Alex McCaw

SATURDAY DAY 5

Photo Alex McCaw

The competition seemed far from settled on the last day. Dane was in front by a well-earned 400 points, but with a bad day, he could be pipped by the youngsters, Nick and Alex, who were hot on his tail. Weatherman Nick forecasted the mother of all days, and Mike set a 313km racing task. Again, Murphy found some high cirrus, which parked over the sandbox and stopped the convection from brewing proper thermals. After a few ‘sniffers’ reported marginal lift, a new task was designed around the ridges. It started on Mt Robert, went southwest to Baldy, north to Bull Paddock and to Lake Constance for the final glide

home. This was a great, sure-to-get-home racing task, and it proved to be the fastest one of the competition. With the ridge working well, most pilots found the 40 km final glide from Lake Constance the topping on a fine week of soaring. Alex won the day with 127 kph, the fasted handicapped speed for the week.

Just behind him and second for the day, was fast Jerry O’Neill, while Terry Jones was second as hors concours for the day. Billy and Nick got low around Bull Paddock and could not improve on their competition standings. Frank Saxton found his racing legs and had a great run too. Melissa Jenkins chased Billy around most of the task, ending the week on a high.

In the end, Nick held on to second, while Alex’s late charge moved him into third, just past Billy and Mark. Dane held onto first in the fastest Libelle around some tough tasks in an area

Lake Constance, final turnpoint on the last day

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May 2014

Photo Alex McCaw

not possible through some of the river cuts. It was a good thing that none of the competitors tested these options.

Tiger country

Photo John McCaw

Marc Edgar

2nd place: Nick Oakley; crew Daisy Strange

Contest Director Mike Strathern congratulates winner Dane Dickinson.

Photo John McCaw

Photo John McCaw

There was massive support from the Canterbury & Marlborough Gliding Clubs right from the start to the end. Cheers to Kevin Bethwaite for sorting the great airspace out for the week, to Tim Bromhead for his help in setting up the scoring system.

Soaring Track worked a treat. Big thanks to the sponsors: The Alpine Lodge for their base, support, fine beer pouring and final prizes, Golder Associates for the day prizes and the Canterbury Community Trust. Thanks to all the tug pilots, you guys did a great job, and to Ken Montgomery, behind the scenes toiling over a hot spreadsheet, being the treasurer. Last of all, I’d like to thank all the folks that came for the competition and for the club flying week. And thanks to all the Nelson Lakes Gliding Club members that helped out in any way. We simply must do this again sometime!

Photo John McCaw

he had, like many, not flown before; to become the 2014 Club Class Champion. Terry, Warren and Jerry were just behind that group. All the pilots should be congratulated for their standard of flying, in what was for most, a new and challenging area.

For the club, it was a new and very positive experience.

Mike did a terrific job organising and running his first competition, and we are now tossing up whether we should cast him in bronze or chip something out of Marble. Roy Edwards’ experience in the background and on the radio/Spots was great during the week. Daisy took to radio operations like duck to water. Marc Edgar (Safety Officer) was very quiet during the week, due to the great, safe flying by everyone both in the comp and club. Jerry O’Neill and Chris Richards should take a big bow for their task setting and Nick White for his weather.

3rd place: Alex McCaw

May 2014

23

Ups and downs over

THE HIMALAYAS

BY TOMASZ KAWA TRANSLATED BY MARTA NAJFELD

Tomasz Kawa

In the last issue of SoaringNZ, we published the story of Sebastian Kawa and his team’s frustrating first attempts to fly in the Himalayas.

Returning to the area in February, the frustrations resumed, but so did the chance to fly among the highest mountains in the world. Sebastian’s father Tomasz once again shares their story.

T

here are not many places left on earth capable of giving you the feeling of exploring something totally unknown. Flying a glider in the Himalayas seemed ridiculous enough to stop pilots from even contemplating the attempt. Sebastian Kawa’s announcement of his plans caused many concerned comments. The ruthlessness of the Himalayas has been painfully confirmed in numbers of tragic mountain climbing and historic aviation accidents, yet despite all the possible dangers, both of our expeditions were safe and successful, providing discoveries we were all hoping for.

The expedition was planned for November and December, aiming for the optimal flying conditions. There are chances for thermal activity in lower parts of the mountains in autumn,

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little cloud down low and high winds above to provide mountain waves. Unfortunately, officialdom mostly stopped us flying.

Our last meeting with Nepal’s officials and the ambassador for Poland in India, as well as all the efforts of our Nepalese friends, seemed to have solved all the problems, with permission to fly over the whole country. This is why we decided to come back in February. It is slowly getting warmer by then and there are chances for thermal activity, while the jet stream is still present high up. This was our chance to continue our expedition and explore flying in the Himalayas even more.

HOW I BECAME A TERRORIST Sebastian departed for Pokhara loaded like a camel with additional equipment. I was supposed to join him a few days later, still ahead of the rest of the team. Suddenly I got a call from one of Sebastian’s friends asking about his wellbeing and he finally admitting that there had been a plane crash in Pokhara.

It felt like someone hit me with a bat, causing my body and mind to freeze. I tried to call Sebastian several times but all I was getting was the answering machine. It was hours before we finally got the confirmation that Sebastian was on another plane.

I was then asked to deliver an additional oxygen bottle. I

Thermals and the airflow from India create clouds totally hiding the green Himalayas and the foothills of the rocky giants.

takes in the view. Annapurna in defensive mode.

J. Pienkowska from TVN24 (Marta’s comment: TVN24 is a TV channel in Poland) had a good ride.

was very aware that such a bottle doesn’t look like a Christmas decoration on the x-ray image and made sure the bottle was properly checked-in and marked before departing Warsaw. I was pretty sure that people in warm weather countries are more relaxed and wasn’t expecting over-diligent airport officers to be an issue. I was therefore very surprised in Qatar when I was asked by two sad looking officers to go for a long walk along airport terminals before boarding my flight to Kathmandu.

Instead of an aeroplane, I ended up at the airport police station.

It took them a long while to send another (not overly-intelligent looking) guy to talk to me. I was trying to explain that this was an empty checked bottle, but no one wanted to talk to the terrorist. My checked-in bag was placed on the back of a fire truck, with all possible flashing lights going like during a fire brigade parade. The leader of the parade requested the bag to be moved into the building, where an audience of passengers was already assembling. Amazing logic! The truck driver brought the bag in but refused to open it, when asked by the sergeant who was standing a safe distance away. No one, including the anti-terrorist squad, wanted to approach me or the bag. I was finally asked to open the bag and take the bottle out. I opened the valve and sucked on whatever was in the empty oxygen bottle, to prove that there were no toxic gases or

Team photo

anything inside. The sergeant finally approached me, took the bottle in his hands, grabbed the valve, not really knowing what he was doing and decided that the bottle was indeed empty, but he was not going to certify it. The decision to take the bottle on board or not was up to the flight crew. More and more officials and passengers were accumulating around us and the plane was waiting. Suddenly, someone asked who would be covering the costs if the case went to court. The bag with the bottle was then quickly taken on board by the fire brigade with police assistance and I was transported to the plane on a VIP bus. We were ready for departure.

HEADWINDS AGAIN Nepal’s airports have very peculiar rules. After landing in Pokhara, Sebastian was able to grab his bag off the carousel and walk out to the apron to rig his glider, without officially clearing customs and immigration. He also managed to purchase two large oxygen bottles for refills and get the ASH25 ready for flying. The next morning welcomed us with beautiful Cu’s. It was fairly windy on the ground, which is usually not the case there. We could observe rotor clouds over the mountain tops and snow being blown off the hills. This created a chance of contacting thermal updrafts and then moving a level up to

May 2014

25

THE HIMALAYAS

Sometimes it doesn’t take much to jump from thermals straight into the land of winds but today the inversion was blocking access.

the dynamic winds, rotors and waves. This was the day to fly back and forth over the mountain tops in Pakistan, all the way to Bhutan. Sebastian quickly ran to the airport building to file a flight plan, but instead he ran into another big surprise! The director, who last time was very friendly and helpful, said we did not have permission to fly. The director had just learned that his position was to be downgraded and he took his frustration out on us. Hours later we managed to get his decision reversed but that frustrated him even more, so he decided to keep making everybody’s life harder.

Before the return of our expedition, there was an election in Nepal. Everything had changed. A few new people appeared and most of our old ‘friends’ had forgotten about our agreements regarding the extension of the flight area. We were at the beginning again and had to start over with fighting bureaucracy.

The first day after our return. Going to the hotel would be waste of time. We have to rig the glider.

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May 2014

We have to reach the rocks before the clouds cover up the green Himalayas. The first inversion is visible at the back, over India.

WE ARE FLYING NO MATTER WHAT The first days had been stolen from us and good weather conditions disappeared. Sebastian started flying with the Estonian Elmer Joandi in very weak lift, testing his meteorological theories and exploring the jungle full of tigers from very low altitudes.

It didn’t get any better when it was my turn. We took off from close to 3000 ft elevation with a tailwind and off an uphill runway. The climb out over built-up and still rising ground required strong faith in the little engine, not designed for such tasks. The first climb was provided by a hill behind town, where a light wind from India was forced to go up. We contacted poor looking clouds about 2000 ft above the field elevation and were able to slowly move along hill tops covered by tropical forest.

These were thermals assisted by winds from India climbing up

THE HIMALAYAS

A few feet of air under the fuselage – let’s keep going

with the terrain. This effect caused the clouds to merge and build a thick, solid layer covering the valley, causing it to look like a dark tunnel. We were still able to find some weak lift off the slopes and arrived at the rocky, snow covered foothills of Annapurna II - extremely exciting. It was time to grab and put on the oxygen masks. Being just at the foothills of these giants, we were already higher than the tops of the Alps.

The sun was already working in the humongous valley, creating updrafts with several levels of condensation because the valley was filled with a mix of air masses with different humidity. The views were just picturesque – clouds above and below. We had to move on because the clouds travelling from lower terrain started melting together and closing up the valley.

At the same time, cold and humid air hitting the air mass travelling from India created a very active convergence and

Bit tight

quickly built up towering clouds. There was no useful wind for ridge soaring and the slopes were creating the opposite – sink areas. We had no choice but to enter a cumulus cloud and gain enough altitude to jump the tops and get out of there, looking for a further escape route through the valley leading to Mount Machapuchare. The Butterfly vario, with in-built turn indicator and artificial horizon, proved to be very useful. On top of that, the ASH25 glider was handling like a Vienna waltz dancer.

The run in this fabulous labyrinth finished in Poon Hill, from where we could access a ridge running south towards Annapurna. A slight breeze enabled us to use ridge lift, as we slowly climbed the black wall. The deep green valleys of the Himalayas that we had just escaped from were already fully filled with clouds that were amazingly shaped by the upper winds. The westerly winds and associated climbs were

Playful winds over Kanghenjunga

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THE HIMALAYAS

Next day. Thermals. We better get going, it’s closing up.

dissipating at around 12000 ft. We stayed there and played with them, at the same time enjoying the views. Suddenly, the winds picked up and the varios pegged.

“God, how easy is that!” We were getting higher and higher with every turn in the violent airstream, approaching the mountain top dressed up in a lenticular cloud cap. Unfortunately, the updraft disappeared as suddenly as it appeared and we ended up trying to find some lift off the very steep slope of Annapurna.

This caused a serious stress test to the glider and finished off with a ride down at 20 kts. We found ourselves on the downdraft side of a rotor created by a ridge that was too high to jump over to contact the updraft side.

The phenomena of a local wind stream with huge turbulence on the edge, close to the rocky slope, can be explained from a collision of south-westerly winds from India with a northerly stream in the upper layers entering the Kali Gandaki valley. The turbulence even damaged the regulator on our back-up oxygen bottle. All following attempts to reach the top were similar.

Every now and then, there were usable rotors but, judging on the cloud structure, we ended up missing wave entry by about 1000 ft each time. Entry into the wave would allow us to use the laminar flows to travel over the Himalayas safe and fast. In such a situation, an engine, like in the Stemme, would be incredible value, allowing penetration through the ‘dead’ layers.

At some stage, the winds below 18,000 ft died off completely and it was time to head back home. Mathematical analysis performed by Elmer showed that there was a stratospheric wave over the Himalayas that day, starting at approximately 33,000 ft and reaching up to an incredible 90,000 ft. This shows that there is a chance of success for the Perlan Project.

The next night, snow covered even the green slopes of the Himalayas. The jet stream that used to rule over the main ridge travelled to the south-east. Low altitude winds were almost nonexistent but thermal updrafts were working well. We decided to fly directly to Annapurna. Even the Kali Gandaki valley was quiet and the sun had just started operating on the eastern side. We started our hunt for updrafts, very carefully exploring the foothills. It was so fascinating and exciting that, despite having very little height, we entered a ‘point of no return’. The vicinity of a vertical wall all the way up to 15,000 ft and a very sharp image of what was underneath made us feel like tippy toeing, although the altimeter was showing good climbs. The scale of the Himalayas clearly shows how tiny and irrelevant a human being and his flying toy really are.

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This is it! 5700m and nice views out of the window.

People often ask us about fear. Yes, we are scared. Lack of fear is a disease. Fear is the base of the self-defence instinct that stimulates, motivates and enables survival in dangerous and dramatic situations. It is easier to cope with fear in the air when we have influence on the situation. I struggle to cope with fear when I’m on the ground not knowing what is happening to a person close to me, or a person that I am supposed to be supervising. Another aspect is the motivation to face challenges that are dangerous and seem irrational. This is also a part of human nature that, next to the competitive spirit, allowed humans to reach the position we now have in the world.

Back to our flight … Catching every little wisp and breeze, we reached the height of a second inversion, from where we could clearly observe the underlying inversion layer that was successfully blocking the lower updrafts. We couldn’t get enough of the fantasy-like rock formations covered with snow and cracked ice, creating magic black and white labyrinths. No wonder there are not many people trying to climb these mountains and so many of those who tried stayed there forever.

With increased heating, the clouds started closing up on us. It was time to get out of there and find some sun. We followed the westerly ridges towards Tibet, penetrating the Kali Gandaki valley all the way passed Jomson. All thermals were effectively killed by the inversion at 15,000 ft. Mountains are always full of surprises. A few higher hills penetrating into the valley, together with some fresh breeze, created lift that took us all the way above the clouds. We thought we would easily reach the higher peaks from there. Unfortunately, the winds had already moved towards Mt Everest and we still didn’t have permission to fly over there.

The views were mind blowing. Within a few minutes we reached the stripped-off mountains of Mustang, the kingdom of Buddhism. This is the place where cumulus clouds can sometimes form above the Himalayas’ tops. Looking to the north – endless Tibet with steel-grey mountains shaped like dunes and single cumulus clouds that seem to be reaching well into the stratosphere. The Dhaulagiri Mountain was obstructed with snow clouds. Our calculations were showing that there was a chance of wave forming behind that mountain, in the convergence area above the world’s deepest valley. Unfortunately, this prognosis wasn’t right and there was no sign of lift. All we had left was a magic ride down the ridges covered with perfectly white clouds, hiding the earth’s impurity and its problems.

THE HIMALAYAS

First step towards Annapurna in a convergence line. The valley's already closed up.

THE SUPPORT HAS ARRIVED Our friends, who were participating in organisation and financing of the trip, were arriving: Krzysztof Trzesniowski, Tomek Chudoment, Tadeusz Kmiec and Slawek Piela. The back seat of the ASH25 behind Sebastian was never empty. Strong thermal updrafts during the flight with Krzysztof Trzesniowski enabled the pair to break through the first inversion layer over the green Himalayas. Unfortunately, there was again no wind on Annapurna’s slopes and the second inversion layer was cutting off the thermals at 15,000 ft. The guys explored quite a large area of the western mountains behind Dhaulagiri, where you

will never see a human being, and certainly not an outlanding field. The next day, clouds covered the tops early in the morning, so the only option was an exciting run in the green tunnels past Kali Gandaki. That was one of the flights where some pseudoexperts might have learnt where the excess of adrenaline could be released from human bodies.

Almost every day was flyable, but the departing director made sure he limited flying times, geographical area and introduced mandatory position reports every 15-20 minutes. It was extremely limiting because the radio signal disappeared as soon as the glider was behind the first hill. We were carrying a transponder, SPOT, DELORME and FLARM but the control tower only had a radio. We ended up communicating with the glider via satellite phone and then transmitting position reports to the tower from the ground.

AN INCIDENT WAS ABOUT TO HAPPEN One of the air traffic control ladies requested Sebastian join circuit for landing. According to the predetermined procedures, Sebastian joined low downwind next to the tower and was continuing his landing circuit. At the same time, the same lady cleared an airliner for take-off from the opposite end of the same runway. The plane started his take-off roll while Sebastian was on final in the opposite direction. He reacted immediately and avoided collision, disregarding the “go-around” command from the tower! The tapes had to be played to prove Sebastian’s

A photo or even a video is not able to reflect the majesty of the mountains.

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THE HIMALAYAS

Nice little slope

point. Even today, we cannot comprehend why we were not allowed to operate from a deserted aerodrome, Tumligtar in the eastern part of Nepal. We would have had worse than basic conditions and access only via air or river (no road) but we wouldn’t have all the difficulties related to operating from a commercial airport.

FURTHER ADVENTURES All our collected experience and knowledge about weather conditions allowed for more adventurous rides. In the previous flights, Sebastian was teased by a snowy pass on Churen Himal which opened onto a long valley leading to the west, with beautifully formed cumulus clouds over the tops far in the distance.

The risk of crashing in a place where no human being has ever been before stayed his hand. One day, the sun was warming up a slope over the pass and a cumulus cloud formed. The temptation won over the self-preservation instinct. The laws of physics worked in his favour and opened the gate to the wild rocks where you will never meet anyone – neither on the ground nor in the air.

Flying in a totally deserted area enforces experimentation, although their manoeuvres were limited by increasing snow fall under the overdeveloped clouds, causing airframe icing. We already knew that the ASH25 behaves quite well in icing conditions but it obviously loses a lot of performance. There were huge thunderstorms forming in the vicinity of Dhaulagiri and Annapurna and I managed to convince Sebastian to turn back.

Harmless looking cumulus clouds quickly converted into snow storms, and cumulonimbus clouds near Pokhara were growing beyond imagination. For a moment, it looked like Sebastian would be forced to divert along the Indian border but as quickly as they grew, they dumped their load, cooled the atmosphere and stopped cloud development over the airport, allowing him

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to make it back.

We were still waiting for a permit to extend the flight area and were using up the time experimenting in the local area.

We discovered that Kali Gandaki valley could experience winds in totally opposite directions at the same time. We flew low – 9,000 ft MSL, which was at times just 1,000 ft AGL. Flying up to Jomson, we were facing headwinds from Tibet, only to have the same thing on the way back, a bit lower and closer to the river.

Our next journey took us took us to Dhorpatan valley, with an elevation of over 9,000 ft MSL. The valley is extremely flat, with the river flooding surrounding paddocks and filled with beautiful vegetation and fruit trees. It is all surrounded by a protective ring of high, sharp rocks.

We performed several rides around the huge Annapurna mountain complex, through the 11,500 ft MSL elevated Manang valley. One day, we practiced a two hour thermal flight with no circling, along the southern edge of the foothill’s clouds. We did fly very low for Himalayan conditions. Initially, the cloud base was reaching 9,000 ft MSL but then gradually reduced to 7,000 and at some stages even 6,000 ft MSL, as the air became saturated with moisture. This forced us to dodge mountain tops hidden in the clouds. In other parts of the world, the cloud base usually rises as the day progresses and thermal conditions develop.

SHOULD WE LAUGH OR CRY? We were constantly pushing the authorities to extend our fly permit zone, as agreed in the past. The Ministry of Internal Affairs denied the permission, justifying their decision with the fact that we were not aware of the position of prohibited flying zones. We asked them to instruct us on the prohibited zones, being sure that they couldn’t be placed over the high mountains where we wanted to fly. The answer, according to paragraph 22, was: “Prohibited zones are not depicted on any

THE HIMALAYAS

We were getting braver as we kept learning the local conditions

charts and cannot be revealed because they are top secret”.

We used all our friendly connections and in the end, again, managed to obtain the required paperwork. Despite all that though, an individual highly decorated with precious jewellery decided not to allow us to extend the flying zone because: “Sebastian is lacking experience” (!!!). But wait, it gets better …

It was decided that from now on Sebastian, who by the way is a medical practitioner, will be accompanied in the glider (!!!) by three local experts: a medical expert, technical expert (who has not seen a glider before) and a safety expert. We were of course supposed to be paying for all these experts. Our friend Elmer invented an easy fix to comply with this requirement but we found it hard to talk the experts into reincarnation.

There was still more to come. Each intended flight had to be reported 15 days in advance. According to that, our first flight would have to take place a week after our departure from Nepal and after the expiry date of the general flight permit. These did not include flights over Mt Everest, of course, since they were designated as separate negotiations. Our limited budget did

Rides in gaps like this one can be very exciting and you can still fly a long way

not allow for ‘negotiation funds’. At this stage, I have to add that any person wanting to climb Mt Everest on foot needs a special permit and is US $25 000 out of pocket just for that, not including variable and informal expenditure for determination of a convenient date. We just couldn’t afford to purchase the cream on top of the cake, which a Mt Everest flight would surely be. In the end, Paris is not just the Eiffel tower and Mt Everest from above looks just like any of the other mountains on top of the world. The research value of our trip is satisfying, even without this add-on.

SUMMARY Against all odds, our low budget expedition had accomplished a historic mission. We were able to observe three seasons and Sebastian completed a very high wave flight over the Himalayas on his first trip. The observations and weather analysis prove that dynamic currents enabling attractive flights are present over the autumn-winter season. Wave flying is relatively safe because of lack of dangerous clouds at such high altitudes.

Good snow for skiing

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THE HIMALAYAS

Thermals. The sun is a pilot’s friend. What we don’t like are the rocks hidden in the clouds.

A “go around” in a glider is quite tricky over here.

The women always dressed as if going to a dance.

It’s been known for long time that a Mum saying:”fly low and slow my son” is not quite right.

These high altitudes also provide extremely long glide ranges if needed. One tool is essential though – a motor glider like the one Klaus Ohlmann was using. An engine enabling reaching big heights and distances, as well as a quick restart, is the way to go. The wave systems are very unpredictable and usually start forming at and above 15,000 ft – 18,000 ft. Even with proper winds blowing at low levels, thick cloud layers in lower parts make the use of these currents very dangerous and sometimes simply impossible. The 41 kW Wankel engine fitted in the ASH25 was doing a great job, but only enabled climbs up to 7,500 ft MSL and was not reliable at all after being cooled down for long periods in extremely high altitudes. However, the whole purpose of our trip was to fly a glider in the Himalayas and the ASH25 was perfect for that.

In autumn and spring, all green parts of the Himalayas are covered with clouds generated by thermal activity and the ascending air arriving from India. These seasons are dry and warm and clouds can form higher than the tops of most mountains. Once the humidity rises, the clouds merge into a single solid layer, covering the foothills with a well-defined edge and providing consistent lift for long straight flights without circling. During both parts of our expedition we only encountered a few days of bad, unflyable weather. The outlanding options are tricky - simply because there are none. The tiny paddocks along the river are all surrounded by stone-fences and therefore totally unsuitable for a glider landing.

We suspect that weather conditions in summer time, during the monsoon period, can be similar to the ones described above, with the difference that the edge of the clouds will form in front of the mountains on the Indian border.

Extraordinary potential lies in the wild stony areas to the

west, extending all the way to Pakistan. The air is drier over there, making thermal and ridge flights at altitudes requiring oxygen a regular occurrence. There is a trick though. The area is ‘for eagles only’ with a fair chance of winning a one way ticket with no hope of any help.

Looking from the Himalaya’s perspective, there is another forbidden fruit that looks very tempting: Tibet.

There is a huge potential in the Himalayas for establishing a challenging but very rewarding gliding operation. It is impossible as long as the current system of castes and nepotism exists in Nepal. The local approach to natural habitat is not really inviting either. Beautiful mountain rivers are converted into stinky sewage where you can easily find partially burned human bodies and the picture perfect Kathmandu valley is full of contaminated slums.

The trend of building very high and extremely poorly engineered hotels in an earthquake area seems very peculiar. We all know that the Himalayas are still growing and moving two inches in a northerly direction every year, creating huge surface tension.

We have met people on our journey who tried their best to make our life hard. Despite that, we will always remember it as a very emotional and incredibly beautiful learning experience. Most of the Nepalese were friendly and open minded. The co-existence and cooperation of pilots from Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Germany, Estonia, Finland, Spain, UK, Nepal and paraglider pilots from all over the world, was very motivating. It is amazing how huge a contrast it all poses to the image created by local politicians and officials.

The adventures, friendships, images of huge, wild, beautiful, snowy and at the same time so colourful mountains, will forever remain in our hearts and minds.

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NZ Agent Roger Sparks 0274 956 560 r.sparks@xtra.co.nz May 2014

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2014 Central Districts

GLIDING COMPETITION

BY JASON KELLY

Waipukurau, Central Hawkes Bay After months of preparation, the time for the 2014 Central Districts Gliding Championships arrived just in time to coincide with the tail end of a tropical cyclone, which saw much of New Zealand under 8/8th cloud.

PRACTICE DAY – SATURDAY 8 FEBRUARY The morning briefing saw Contest Director Neil Faulknor welcome the pilots to the contest. With rain falling steadily, Met man Graham White could only confirm the weather and give some hope that it would improve to be flyable in the next few days. A brief overview of RASP and what it means was then given. With flying abandoned for the day, pilots went their own ways.

Entries to hand were: No. Name 1 Kelly, Jason 2 Sharpe, Brian / Rogers, George 3 Foreman, James 4 Price, Jason 5 O’Donnell, Michael 6 de Lautour, Hugh 7 White, Graham Marcuse, Alain 8 9 Rogers, George 10 Taylor, Ross 11 Terry, Trev 12 Elder, Julian

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DAY ONE – SUNDAY 9 FEBRUARY Yesterday’s briefing turned out to be a good practice for today, as the rain and drizzle continued. Thanks were given to the sponsors of the contest, namely Centralines, HBS Bank, Pask Winery and Trev Terry Marine, with competitors encouraged to support them where possible. After contest director Neil Faulknor covered the formalities of circuits, radio frequencies and basic flying etiquette, Met man Graham White again confirmed the weather and gave some hope it would improve and may be flyable tomorrow and hopefully taskable for the rest of the week after that. A further overview of RASP and what it means was then given. Flying was abandoned for the day with a BBQ held in the evening.

Club Gliding Hawkes Bay & Waipukurau Wellington Gliding Club Gliding Hawkes Bay & Waipukurau Gliding Hawkes Bay & Waipukurau Upper Valley Gliding Club Taupo Gliding Club Gliding Hawkes Bay & Waipukurau Wellington Gliding Club Wellington Gliding Club Auckland Gliding Club Taupo Gliding Club Piako Gliding Club

Glider HB, Grob 103C Twin III SL GR, DG-1000 MF, LS-3a NJ, LS4 HF, Libelle 201B SW, Ventus CT XS, LS8 NK, LS4 JJ, Standard Cirrus PV, Discus B TT, Duo Discus ZT, DG-808b

DAY TWO – MONDAY 10 FEBRUARY The most talked about issue was the BBQ last night, put together by Gliding Hawkes Bay & Waipukurau club president Gerrit van Asch. While the weather had improved a little, with the possibility of some local flying later in the afternoon, the day was again cancelled. However, the weather later in the week held some promise. Pilots staying around were invited to use the BBQ left-overs for lunch.

DAY THREE – TUESDAY 11 FEBRUARY With the rain having ceased and the sun appearing, the airfield was alive, with gliders being rigged out of trailers and pilots with smiles on their faces. This, combined with one of the competition sponsors, SBS Bank, arriving with flags and prizes, delayed morning briefing a little. Once briefing was underway, Met man Graham White suggested the forecast may dampen spirits.

While some thermals were forecast, so was high cloud and overdevelopment. Conditions were predicted to be untaskable but flyable, so a free flying day was declared. The sky was soon filled with gliders, with all pilots flying. The sky cycled, with some areas working well, then poorly, then reasonably, then well again.

Good climbs were found in places, as were areas of heavy sink, with cloudbase topping at less than 4,000ft. All gliders returned to the airfield and while conditions exceeded those forecast, the ‘no task’ was a good call for the day.

DAY FOUR – WEDNESDAY 12 FEBRUARY The forecast was for reasonable conditions but with overdevelopment in areas. An AAT task was set to make good use of the

convergences around. The speeds were good for the winners, at over 100km/h but it was not an easy day, even though it was a short task. As it was, everyone thought we had made the best use of the day possible. There was a bit of difficulty in places and 6-7 knot climbs in others (and that’s off the averager).

Everyone was really happy to be flying a contest day at last.

Results are on Soaring Spot.

Another club organised BBQ followed in the evening, which all enjoyed.

DAY FIVE – THURSDAY 13 FEBRUARY After a good contest day yesterday, the prognosis was for some wave today. Well, there was some wave but the sky was changing every 5 minutes, so we had to declare it a no contest day.

Most pilots launched for some local flying. Hugh de Lautour got to 9,500ft twice and James Foreman headed up to Napier to make up for a lousy day yesterday. Team Wellington got into wave in the DG-1000 and was there for some time, with a total flight of just under three hours. We hoped for better conditions tomorrow, but at least we could fly and there was no rain!

DAY SIX – FRIDAY 14 FEBRUARY Strong winds on the ground today kept everyone tied down on the pickets. While “hurrying up and waiting” to see if conditions improved, various aviation related videos were shown to keep the pilots amused. Flying was abandoned for the day around 1:30pm.

The airfield then emptied as everyone went off to find some form of entertainment before the dinner held at the local Leopard Hotel.

This was well attended, with great food with plenty of ballast added for the predicted strong thermals tomorrow.

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DAY SEVEN – SATURDAY 15 FEBRUARY The weather played ball today, with a RASP forecast for high cloud base and good thermal strengths. It didn’t turn out quite as good as the RASP predicted but thermal and convergence distribution was accurate.

An AAT task was set with 110km minimum and 366km maximum. The northern turn point allowed for some use of the high country, while the southern turn point was out towards the south coast, with a good amount of friendly terrain in between.

The pilots were given some pointers at briefing about the possible location of convergences and the advice to stay on the hills and off the flat Ruataniwha plains.

The convergences weren’t in the best places for high speeds but by following them later in the day, pilots were able to complete the task. Jason Price and Alaine Marcuse, both in LS4s, were 1st and 2nd for the day in the club class and Graham White and Trev Terry 1st and 2nd in the open class.

Overall, the Open Class was won by Graham White with Trev Terry 2nd. We missed the presence of Tony van Dyk who couldn’t fly but hope he’ll be back next season, eager to make amends. Ross Taylor came third, flying Discus PV in his first trip to Hawkes Bay. Club class was won by Alaine Marcuse from Wellington, with Jason Price 2nd and Team Wellington in the 18m DG 1000 3rd. Martin Cook and George Rogers flew the DG with different pilots from the Wellington club and made that glider go pretty well. We couldn’t get a trace off Michael O’Donnell’s GPS, otherwise he would have scored more points.

Vaughan Ruddick and Ross Anderson turned up for the last day and elected to soar the Kaimanawhas and rather than do the task in Manawatu’s DG 1000, they were rewarded with a pleasant trip over to Turangi and return, a Trev Terry in TT contest finish

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trip Peter Lyons and Graham White have done many times, but which is not suitable for a regionals task.

Gliding Hawkes Bay & Waipukurau club captain Mike Richardson, who has been flying for just over a year, set off before midday in the clubs PW5 and achieved his five hour duration and Silver height gain of 1,000m.

Overall, we had four flying days but only two days in the contest, due to the unseasonable weather. However, those two days were good and everyone left with a smile on their face, including Hugh de Lautour who had to miss the last day to go fly his other toy, an Air NZ 747-400 - some have it tough.

Thanks to the sponsors Centralines, HBS Bank, Pask Winery, Trev Terry Marine, the support crew on the ground (contest director Neil Faulknor, rope and wing runners, grid master etc) – without all that effort the contest can’t function. Thanks also to Met man, task setter and scorer Graham White.

The winner of the Trev Terry Marine Yamaha water vehicle free for the day prize was local pilot James Forman.

Scores and task details are available at http://www.soaringspot. com/cd2014/results/open/total/day2.html We hope to see everyone back next year and some new faces as well.

November 2013

GLIDEFAST COURSE

BY BILL MACE

Bob Gray, David Todd, David Hirst, Lisa Trotter, Peter Trotter, David Moody, Maurice Weaver, Steven Care, Brett Hunter, Bill Mace, Tim Bromhead.

With world competitions to be held in Australia in the next few years, the Matamata Soaring Centre (MSC) decided to engage the Australian National Coaches for a Glidefast Course at Matamata. While they were here, we would look into their coaching system and explore the possibility of setting up something similar in NZ.

P

eter and Lisa Trotter, the head Australian Coaches, agreed to come over and conduct the course for us. They limited the number of attendees to a maximum of ten. In order to filter the numbers, we opened it only to pilots that had competed at National level. Fortunately, we only had nine applicants.

The course included a specific session on sports psychology, however all participants were to complete a brief questionnaire by email a couple of weeks prior to the course, so the psychological aspect started before the course began.

At the introductory session, each pilot was asked to speak about their experience to date, where they saw themselves in the sport now and their future goals. Participants were challenged to tailor what they got from the course to their particular skill level and expectations.

Morning sessions started beyond the flying basics and delved into: » Understanding ourselves better, giving us some insight into our own attributes and how these may be harnessed. » The need to have good preparation, starting before a competition and right up to each flight, eliminating distractions. » The need to have the right mental attitude and physical fitness. » Having clear tactics. » The use of positive self talk.

Each day, pilots were to concentrate on a specific aspect of their flying, such as refining efficiency, final glides, height bands, block flying and speed to fly, with the aim of increasing performance in that area; this was evaluated at debriefing. A heavy emphasis was placed on post flight analysis, particularly in comparison to others flying that day.

Auckland and Tauranga Clubs allowed the Trotters the use of their Duo Discuses so we each could fly with them for a day’s task. The MSC provided meals, accommodation and airfares.

Having been on all the advanced courses put on by the MSC, I wondered if there was going to be much difference in this course.

I had benefitted from all the previous courses, due to the different experience of the course directors and the different approach and slant on increasing performance. This course didn’t disappoint.

Since the course, Lisa Trotter has gone home and broken 31 world and Australian national records in one 1000 km flight (see page 40). It was one of her aims to do a really long flight. This is proof that she is a top pilot who follows her own advice. We were lucky to have the benefit of Lisa and Peter Trotter’s coaching experience.

The 2014 Matamata Soaring Centre Cross Country Course will be a little different. It will be aimed at the early stage Cross Country Pilot and will run 24-28 November. Put the date in your diary.

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WARBIRDS OV

Gavin Wills and Darren Smith dual towed behind Glide Omarama's Fatman, flown by Donald McCaw and then did a beautiful syncronised aerobatic display. Guest commentator Richie McCaw made sure the crowd properly appreciated the artistry behind the silent flight.

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VER WANAKA

Photos John McCaw

May 2014

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A RECORD number of

RECORDS

BY LISA TROTTER

It sounds impossible, thirty one records achieved in just one flight, but it happened.

On 20 December 2013, Lisa Trotter, flying from Tocumwal, in the south of New South Wales, flew a thousand kilometres in ten hours and did just that.

About the 1000 km flight Over many years I have wanted to achieve a 1000 km flight. An essential prerequisite to reach this goal is to actually be there, ready, when such a flight is possible. I have watched 1000 km days come and go, while I was either at work or competition flying. I knew that I had to set aside some time to do some good planning if I was ever going to get there. So, my husband Peter and I decided to spend two weeks at Tocumwal at the time of year when the days are at their longest. We stayed in a tent in Ingo and Judy Renner’s back yard, spending our evenings flight planning and our days flying as far and fast as we could.

I particularly wanted to do a declared triangle 1000 km flight.

The challenge is significantly greater than a non-declared or nontriangle flight because of the varied weather systems you must cover to achieve that sort of distance. No matter how good the day is, there will be a large part of either one or two legs that is not part of the ‘good day’ that must be traversed. Much of our flight planning was about trying to fit task geometry to favourable wind directions and the strongest thermal conditions within the constraints of landable terrain. Most days, there was either a part of the day or a part of the task area where conditions were such that they would compromise the 1000km task goal.

On the day of my record flight, all looked good in terms of where the strong thermal conditions were. The best of the weather across New South Wales and Victoria was neatly located over landable terrain. It looked like a 1000 km day except for ... the wind. When I got to the launch point, there

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Tocumwal – Galong – Tottenham – Tocumwal First Leg: Tocumwal to Galong (over Wagga and past Harden) Second Leg: Galong to Tottenham (over Young, Grenfell, Trundle and Tullamore) Third Leg: Tottenham to Tocumwal (past Condobolin and Griffith then over Jerilderie and Finley)

was a 15 to 20 kt north westerly blowing, which would make the first part of the flight tough going and maybe impossible. It was really my last chance, since the weather was not looking good for the next few days. So, I decided to give it a go. No-one else attempted a 1000 km flight on that day!

The flight was done in our LS8 15m VH-PNL on 20 December 2013. It took a full 10 hours. The first leg was in a north east direction to Galong and then north north west to a point just north of Tottenham, which is 80km west of Narromine.

I started at 10:37am (or 9:37am Qld time) into conditions that were far from ideal for a 1000 km flight. A 15-20 kt north westerly was blowing and convection was only going to 2,500 feet AGL initially. I spent an hour plugging along down low and then was able to get some reasonable height to 6,000 feet. It wasn’t until three hours into the flight that the cumulus clouds appeared. At this stage my speed was very slow – only about 85kph - and I was almost convinced that the task wasn’t achievable but then I picked up a 6.4kt climb to about 11,000 feet. Still not sure that the task was achievable, I decided to enjoy the day since I had done the hard work and I pushed on to the first turn point. Also, if I could increase my average speed by 15kph plus, I was in with a chance. The worst likely scenario would be to land out 100km or so from home. With Peter crewing for me, this wasn’t a problem.

I had a good run on the last leg under Cu’s going to 12,000 feet. About 190 km out, I took a really big climb to 13,500 feet, then cruised with no lift over a 70 km gap to the edge of the overdevelopment, which spread for 100 km on track to Tocumwal. At the edge of the overdevelopment I thought I would get my last climb of about 5,000 feet, but could only find 0.5 to 1 knot by the time I got there. I spent 30 minutes achieving only 2,300 feet and I couldn’t get the last couple of thousand feet I needed, so I pushed on under the murk. I headed on through zero lift with some areas of light rain. Still holding out for that last climb, I was considering the possibility that I would have to land at either Jerilderie or Finley airport. As I was approaching Jerilderie airport at about 5,000 feet I felt a big wump under my wing and hooked into 2kts and climbed to 1100 feet over final glide – whoopee. I had to use lots of self discipline not to push the stick forward and speed home out of excitement. I managed to keep a calm 70kt cruise going to cross the finish with 700 feet to spare at about 8:30pm, twenty minutes before last light.

Despite the hard work at times, it was great fun all the way around and hugely satisfying to get home!

The two main records I wanted to break were the World Feminine 15 metre triangle distance and the Australian National General Standard Class triangle distance which had been held

by Andy Pybus since 1986. I was surprised to find that I ended up picking up 31 records in total. A record for the number of records! Many of these records were Feminine records, some of which were not too hard to beat, but six of the records were General records. The most challenging of all the records was the World Feminine 15 metre triangle distance – superior to all the National General records! Feminine records give women visibility and I am pleased to push the standards of those records high.

I also love the opportunity to be a role model for female pilots. A number of female pilots, including juniors, have told me they plan to take my records from me – I hope they do.

Lisa and her husband Peter Trotter will address delegates at the GNZ AGM – see page 10.

ABOUT LISA TROTTER I have always been interested in aviation. I learnt to fly power aircraft when I was pretty young and then stumbled across gliding. My father and I decided to do a gliding course as a holiday at the Gliding Club of Victoria and it happened to be at the time of year when there was a lot of cross-country flying going on. I saw people studying maps in the morning and coming back at the end of the day with the most amazing stories. Wow, I thought, I want a bit of this action.

More than 25 years later, I really am addicted. It is like a drug. The high lasts for days or weeks, then I have to go back for more. “Why do I do this thing?” is something that I often ask myself. It is a tough sport in lots of ways, especially competition. You can find yourself on an emotional rollercoaster moving from the elation you get from a top flight to the deflation that a flat tyre (pun intended) or an outlanding will bring. The ups well and truly outweigh all of the downs.

I think what really keeps me coming back for more is the great sense of achievement I get from successfully taking on challenges. Also, the experience of cruising over flatlands or mountains and being up with the clouds is a pleasure and I feel it is a great privilege to be able to do this. I also love being part of the gliding community.

THE 31 NEW RECORDS SET BY THIS SINGLE FLIGHT ARE World and Continental Records: 1. World – Triangle distance – Feminine D15 2. Free triangle distance – General D15 3. Free distance using up to 3 turn points – General D15 4. Free triangle distance – Feminine D15 5. Distance using up to 3 turn points – Feminine D15 6. Triangle Distance – Feminine D15 7. Free triangle distance – General DO 8. Distance using up to 3 turn points – Feminine DO Australian Standard Class: 1. Triangle distance 2. Free three turnpoint distance 3. Free triangle distance 4. Three turnpoint distance Australian Feminine Standard Class: 1. Triangle distance 2. Free three turnpoint distance 3.

Free triangle distance 4. Three turnpoint distance 5. Speed triangle 1000km Australian Feminine 15 Metre Class: 1. Triangle distance 2. Free three turnpoint distance 3. Free triangle distance 4. Three turnpoint distance 5. Speed triangle 1000km Australian Feminine 18 Metre Class: 1. Triangle distance 2. Free three turnpoint distance 3. Free triangle distance 4. Three turnpoint distance 5. Speed triangle 1000km Australian Feminine Open Class: 1. Triangle distance 2. Free triangle distance 3. Three turnpoint distance 4. Speed triangle 1000km

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youth soaring

DEVELOPMENT CAMP

BY DAVID PALMER

Matamata, Easter 2014 The second Matamata YSDC was held during the school holidays that followed on from the Easter Weekend. Once again, the camp was organised by Bill Mace and a team from the Matamata Soaring Centre. 25 year old Timaru pilot David Palmer tells us about the camp.

A

rriving in Auckland to travel to the Easter Youthglide camp in Matamata, I was concerned that YouthGlide may have dropped its standards slightly: I was picked up from the airport by Cody Calder, a power pilot whom YouthGlide had allowed to attend in spite of what his prior choice of aviation pursuit said about his character. In his favour though was the fact that he was a tow pilot, implying some degree of class, and over the week he proved himself to be a glider pilot at heart at least. He impressively went from his third ever glider flight to flying solo and completing his A Certificate after only four days’ gliding.

After a fortnight of rain, the next day dawned fine and as the blue sky began to fill with streets, flying began. Steve Care and I took the Duo Discus, YL, for a thermal flight with a quick play on the just-working ridge which lasted a bit over an hour.

After a Grob 103, the Duo was a joy to fly and the mere skerrick of altitude we lost gliding back from the ridge was eye opening.

With the good weather continuing the next day, it was decided to get the winch out. I had never winched before and was keen to give it a try, but as it turned out, I was not prepared for my sphincter-clenching first ride on the winch. Having

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The students on the course and most of the crew who helped make the week a success.

got over the rush of the first launch, the learning began and I was pleased with how quickly I picked it up. By the end of the afternoon I was reasonably proficient, flying the launches independently.

Once I got to grips with winching, it made a great base for checking off some of the circuit-based B Certificate exercises, and a day of landings with brakes jammed in every imaginable position, simulated out-landings and an exhilarating run to the PW6’s generous Vne off the top of the winch ensued. A lost winch strop after a weak-link break on this day also gave us a powerful illustration of why neither gliders nor Pawnees are employed as spy planes. After a fruitless ground search, an enthusiastic tow pilot let the Pawnee’s fertiliser-spreading roots come to the fore with a series of low passes which still failed to find the strop. As the stakes became progressively higher with the AvGas bill from the search beginning to eclipse the value of the strop itself, an even more far-fetched plan was hatched, to launch a glider with a passenger taking photographs of the ground which would be examined to look for the missing cable.

Unfortunately, the glider chosen was the culprit for breaking the first weak link. True to form, it broke another weak link on the launch and the strop from that launch was also lost. Fortuitously, it was recovered on a morning walk the next day, but the original missing strop remains at large.

Three days into the camp, a day of rain intervened to halt flying for the day. All was not lost though, as a set of prepared briefings were on hand so that at least some training progress, if not flying, could be had. Thankfully, the front passed overnight and flying resumed the next day where I had two enjoyable

YSDC

Russell Thorne helping Gabe Paff familiarise himself with the Cockpit of the OX.

flights, one of an hour on the ridge with some exercises in glider-handling on the way home and a brief flight, refreshing spinning and spiral dives.

After a delicious end-of-course dinner, I had a chance to reflect on the week’s camp. I had the opportunity to make great new friends in gliding, had progressed my flying significantly – gaining experience in multiple new glider types, new situations and in an environment very different to what I was used to flying in in Timaru—and had gained a greater theoretical appreciation of multiple aspects of our sport after the extensive array of lectures we had been given through the week. I had also had the pleasure of watching my fellow pilots develop similarly, the highlight of which was Cody going solo on the last day.

The progress that all on the camp made was a credit both to them and to the quality of the instruction.

For the fantastic week that I had, I along with my fellow YouthGlide pilots am extremely grateful to all the instructors who gave up their time to come, the volunteers from the club who made sure that everything ran smoothly, Jan and Joan for their spectacular cooking and to Bill Mace for his organisation and running of the camp. Without any of these people, the camp could not have been the success that it was. Thanks must also go to the Piako, Tauranga and Auckland Gliding Clubs for the use of their gliders, all of which were supplied free or at discounted rates, as well as to the Matamata Soaring Centre and Matamata Piako District Council who provided free accommodation.

Cody the tow pilot does his checks on his last flight as a pre solo glider pilot. An hour later he was drenched by all those he has offended by going solo.

Russell and Jared Massey prepare for a winch launch.

Sam Tullett under the watchful eye of Steven Care, prepares to launch. This would be one of three long ridge and thermal flights Sam would have this week.

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YSDC

SAM TULLET

I

NATHAN GRAVES

T

he Youth Soaring Development Camp in Matamata was an amazing experience. I came to the camp with the intention to develop my gliding knowledge and indulge my gliding passion. We were given the opportunity to fly different gliders, which were new to me and a lot of the others.

We were able to fly Piako’s Puchacz, Duo Discus and PW6, Auckland’s Puchatek and Tauranga’s Puchacz. I found flying these different club’s gliders absolutely amazing. On the first day of the camp I flew Auckland’s Puchatek. It was a great flight and I started to get a feel for my new surroundings. I managed to get ten flights over the week. My most memorable flight was in Tauranga’s Puchacz GEO. We managed to get twelve knots lift off the ridge. It was truly an awesome experience, never in my gliding career had I ever flown on a ridge.

The Youth Soaring Development Camp was truly a life changing experience. I came to the camp with a blank B certificate and by the end of the week I have nearly finished it. I met new people and had an incredible experience, I was able to experience gliding in a different area of New Zealand. I highly recommend this camp to any youth in the gliding clubs around the country.

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arrived at Matamata on Monday 21st April and spent an hour and a half of the afternoon on the ridge with Dennis Crequer, in Piako’s PW6. The next day marked the beginning of the course and it was a pleasure to begin to get to know the other pilots I would spend the week with: David Palmer, Cody Calder, Gabe Paff, Nathan Graves, Brad Scrivener, Jared Massey and Carter Apas. Cody, as it turned out, towed me on my first solo a few months ago and here he was, learning to fly gliders himself. We were introduced to our instructors: Bill Mace, Steve Care, Russell Thorne and Maurice Weaver. I was also re-introduced to Jan Mace and Joan Wine, who were to feed us for the coming week.

After some briefing, we were straight into the flying. Bill Mace took me up for another hour and a half on the ridge, following David and Steve in Steve’s Duo Discus. Cody was the only other one of us to get on the ridge that day, before the wind ceased.

On Wednesday, we brought out the winch as well as the tow plane. I was towed up to 2500 ft in Steve’s Duo and was lucky to have another hour and a half, this time just locally. The rest of the day was made up of winch flights and circuits.

Thursday wasn’t much of a day as it began to rain soon after we set up. We had lots of fun inside listening to lectures.

Friday was spent winching for most, but the few that got to the ridge had some good flights. Gabe will be delighted that I remember he had the longest flight of the week, in Piako’s Puchacz, with their CFI, Julian Mason.

Saturday was the last day of the camp and gave Gabe the farthest flight from the field, to Paeroa with Steve in the Duo, which he loved telling us about. I was lucky enough to have another good flight with Steve after that, and while we were on the ridge, Cody flew his first solo in the PW6.

GNZ awards & certificates

FEBRUARY 2014 – MARCH 2014

EDOUARD DEVENOGES GNZ Awards Officer

60TH DIAMOND ANNIVERSARY

gnzawards@xtra.co.nz 40 Eversham Road, Mt Maunganui 3116.

QGP No Pilot’s Name 3238 Peter Alexander 3239 Jack Ryken 3240 Cecily Begley 3241 Daniel Begley 3242 Jevon McSkimming 3243 Michael Cooper 3244 Igor Eugui 3245 Peter White 3246 John Tanner 3247 Peter Cree

Club Glide Omarama Taupo GC Auckland GC Auckland GC Wellington GC Tauranga GC Glide Omarama Glide Omarama Glide Omarama Auckland GC

Date 3 2 2014 7 2 2014 20 2 2014 20 2 2014 28 2 2014 3 3 2014 4 3 2014 5 3 2014 11 3 2014 17 3 2014

Celebration weekend 13–15 June 2014 The highlight of this weekend will be a dinner on Saturday 14 June 2014, at the Classic Flyers Aviation Museum, Tauranga.

Guest speaker Mr Glenn Martin (Martin Jet Pack)

SILVER HEIGHT GAIN Glider

Hugh F. de Lautour Taupo GC 13 2 2014 Ventus CT SILVER DURATION

Roy D. Innes

Hugh F. de Lautour

Auckland GC Taupo GC

6 1 2014 6 3 2014

ASW 20L Ventus CT

GOLD DURATION

Roy D. Innes

Hugh F. de Lautour

Auckland GC Taupo GC

6 1 2014 6 3 2014

ASW 20L Ventus CT

GOLD DISTANCE

Roy D. Innes

Campbell W. McIver

Auckland GC Auckland GC

6 1 2014 6 1 2014

ASW 20L ASW 15

DIAMOND GOAL 332 Paul Knight 333 Steven T. Evans

Auckland GC Omarama GC

2 3 2014 Discus 2ct 14 3 2014 LS6c

DIAMOND DISTANCE 149 Steven T. Evans

Omarama GC

12 2 2014 LS6c

THREE DIAMONDS 123 Paul Knight

Auckland GC

14 3 2014

AIR NZ CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

Pilots Name Glider Northern Division

Steve Foreman LS4

Ian O’Keefe Grob 102

Gary Patten Grob 102

Craig Hunter Open Cirrus

THE TAURANGA GLIDING CLUB

Mr David Jensen will be the MC for the evening All GNZ Members, family and friends and anyone interested in Aviation is welcome to attend.

Tickets for the evening are $60 per head and this includes dinner with wine and great entertainment.

If you are interested in attending our 60th anniversary celebrations, or for further information, please contact Sandy Griffin via email nzbuick@hotmail.com or phone 0275 955 191.

We can also organise billet or hotel accommodation.

A PASSION FOR FLIGHT New Zealand Aviation before the Great War Volume Three: The Joe Hammond story and military beginnings 1910-1914

Distance Points 1055.12km 542.54km 332.71km 196.98km

1086.03pts 533.12pts 369.23pts 183.68pts

Photo John McCaw

Southern Division

No Claims so far

Club Class Nationals 2014

A Passion For Flight is a definitive and entertaining account of New Zealand aviation’s formative years and concludes with this volume covering the story of aviator extraordinary Joe Hammond, and military aviation activity in New Zealand and by New Zealanders abroad, from 1910 to August 1914.

Published by Volplane Press Ph 03 343 5408; Fax 03 343 5409 Email errol.martyn@xtra.co.nz

May 2014

45

Vintage Kiwi

RALLY

BY V.K. SCRIBE

Taupo, 24-31 January 2014

After last year’s very successful Taupo Rally, it was decided to return again this year.

O

nce again, there was a very good turn out of aircraft, with members staying for the full seven days. Gliders represented were a number of KA6s, Standard Libelles, one Open H301 Libelle, a BG12/16, a Slingsby Dart 15 metre, a Slingsby Dart 17R, a SH Discus, and of course, a Schleicher KA8. Next year, there has been a promise of yet another KA8 attending and a Silent, self-launcher. Several more members arrived later in the week, to check out the action.

We flew four days out of the seven. The thermal conditions were, at times, trying however. Although cloud base was at a good height, the thermals did not always develop well enough to give an easy or consistent climb. However, we all persevered and were rewarded with some good flights.

This year, it was decided to have some turn points set up, so our aircraft could ‘stretch their legs a little’ as the days allowed.

The team certainly gave them all a good going over during the flying week. Such was the appetite, that two more turn points were added later in the week, which took us over some of the ‘bigger country’ around Taupo. Every morning, we would hold a briefing fronted by the Taupo C.F.I Bill Kendall or their Club

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May 2014

Manager Tom Anderson, and also listen attentively to Malcolm Wright, our in-house and highly technical weatherman, who would give us a wonderful presentation of what to expect. He only got fired twice, but got reinstated three times, indicating his performance was in the plus category most of the time.

Well-done Malcolm.

On the Monday morning after briefing, a Fokker DV11 and a Fokker Triplane full-sized replica arrived en-route from the Tauranga Air show, before continuing on their long journey south to Masterton, their home base. What fabulous aircraft they were. Authentic in every detail, except for their self-starting motors. After refueling and a group photograph, they were on their way. Fabulous.

Last year, everyone enjoyed the mid-week Lake Taupo cruises, so this year, Tom Anderson organised it again. Highlight of the evening cruise was the playing of a Pocket Trumpet

by Kevin Clark [Open Libelle OS]. The melodies were such that it dragged in some other boats that were also out on the lake, who came across to enjoy the music on the water. It really was a great night.

The camp evenings were filled with either impromptu safety presentations, classic archived gliding films from the 1950s – 1970s, or just good old gliding gossip.

Taupo can be a windy place during the night at times,

Calling for Expressions of Interest REstoRE thE

Hawker Tempest and keep it in New Zealand

with both the lake breezes and the land cooling down. Winds surprisingly gusting to 30knots one evening had a number out late, and once again in the early hours, checking and re-securing our pride and joys. No damage – all good, but a number of rather tired pilots arrived at briefing the following morning.

Two tents got bowled by the winds.

V.K. member Greg Douglas [Slingsby Dart 17R] enjoyed a very happy belated birthday dinner at a Taupo Restaurant, with most of the camp attending. Why cook, when it can be cooked for you, seemed to be the thought. I believe we were the last people to leave the premises that night.

Our Club host organised a BBQ dinner on the last night, followed by a mini karaoke session, but the highlight of the night had to be an impromptu jazz session, not by the Dave Clark Five, but by the Kevin Clark One. Playing the piano with one hand and playing his Pocket Trumpet with the other, he gave a spectacular display of Jazz/Blues duets, to finish what was a another great night but also another very successful Vintage Kiwi Rally at Taupo. Our thanks to our host club, The Taupo Gliding Club, for allowing us once again to hold our V.K. rally on their patch. They have proved again to be good friends and great hosts to this organisation.

The Hawker Tempest MW376, owned by Eric Hertz and under restoration at the time of his death, is now being put on the market. Eric’s dream was to restore it to flying condition, to honour the New Zealanders who flew with 486 (NZ) Squadron in the Typhoon and Tempest aircraft.

There are only 11 Tempests in existence and this would be the only one flying in the world.

To express interest in joining a syndicate to buy the aircraft, restore it and keep it in New Zealand, contact Paul McSweeny of Pioneer Aero.

E: paul@pioneeraero.co.nz Business Address: 458 Corsair Lane, Ardmore Airport, Papakura, Auckland.

P: +64 09 296 8913 F: +64 09 296 8943 Family members of previous 486 (NZ) Squadron members are also invited to get in touch.

May 2014

47

An interesting

SOARING FLIGHT

BY ROSS GADDES

Southern King Country – Cloud Streets towards Tauramanui

I

t may be the first day of autumn, but the recent dry weather and associated high cloud bases tempted me to set Sat 1st March aside to do some gliding. The fact that Doug Henry and David Moody had made an alcohol fuelled Friday night pact to take the Duo and do the same thing, motivated me even more. After getting XN ready, with charged batteries and about 80 litres of ballast, I launched behind CEB, piloted by Dion and started climbing over the quarry. The climbs were solid and strong to 3500’ initially and then I got another climb to the local airspace ceiling for the day of 4500’. A call to DX revealed they were already near Tahuna, so I put my foot down so we could enjoy the same air at some stage. The clouds were all good and I was soon travelling over Mercer airstrip and towards the Western Twin Forest. As happens often, I was torn between travelling South and West towards Raglan (which I enjoy) or the normal run down the Kaimais or Cambridge Hills. There were reliable clouds to 5000’ or more, which was okay, especially when they were all working and quite close together. However, David and Doug reported a blue area south of Morrinsville.

Despite reports from various gliders that the ridge was working, I decided to turn west about 10 km north of Morrinsville. This involved changing to Christchurch control and getting a clearance through controlled airspace. The controllers were great and approved my initial request of not above 5500’, without hassle.

I squawked my code and easily climbed to my allowed height as I headed towards Mt. Pirongia. I was carefully skirting the Hamilton Control airspace line on my flight computer, as the energy line was very close to Hamilton Control. No problem

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May 2014

really, as I was well over the 2500’ ceiling. It was fun and felt almost naughty, crossing over the heavily populated Te Rapa area of Hamilton, so I took a picture just for fun. The 15+ knot SW wind was pushing the clouds further east than is the norm when we travel down this way. Usually, our track is west of Huntly and along the Hakarimata Hills which run just west of Ngaruwhahia and southwards between Hamilton and Raglan. This time, the hills were already blue and the good clouds were well into controlled airspace, so there was no choice really. Apart from the odd question, just to make sure I was still on channel, the ATC were great and extending my height approval to 6500’ was no issue either, as the cloud base increased further south.

In the lee of Pirongia, a wave or convergence had an obvious effect on the thermal pattern, which took a bit of time to work out. Fooled by broken climbs, I eventually found a solid climb west of Kakapuku. I have always been intrigued by the way Mt. Pirongia (big), Kakapuku (smaller), and Te Kawa (small) all line up like Dad, Mum and baby hills near Te Awamutu. The volcanic shape of Te Kawa is similar to the hills around Auckland that were active not so long ago.

Anyhow – the land out options are much nicer than those further west but I was soon heading to the rougher landscape west of Otorohanga town. The lift was now getting solid and I was topping out at about 6500’. I have to admit that travelling a few miles east of Te Kuiti, I was slowing down due to indecision about whether to try for a triangle or an out and return, or even just go as far south as I could and land at Taupo. Not really being decisive, I kept moving south past Eight Mile Junction, which

The reason I write this article (apart from the fact I enjoy re-living the experience) is not because I have done anything spectacular.

This flight was slow and actually not as far as I should have travelled, but I hope it helps pilots to see that you don’t have to be a Terry Delore or John Coutts to

have interesting soaring adventures.

Lake Rotokauri West towards Raglan

Looking Sth over Hamilton Central

Looking West to Kawhia Harbour

is southwest of Te Kuiti where the road from Tauramanui meets the New Plymouth highway. Plenty of landing spots initially but the road to Tauramanui looked rougher. Never mind – base was high and while the flat spots seemed isolated, the paddocks looked landable. I pushed on south and dreamed of the possibility of getting to National Park or even Mt Ruapehu. A look at my watch and an ever increasing blue sky pushing in from the west, convinced me that a triangle to Mangakino might be a better option, with a return home via the Kaimais, which should have worked in the 15 knot south-westerly. I turned east but only for a few kilometres, as the way east seemed to be lacking clouds.

So, I changed my mind again. I turned northwards, after climbing under some pretty scruffy country near the Waimiha School, which is west of the Pureora turn point. That was far enough and the way home was always going to present a challenge. Clouds were still going well and the tops still high, so I took a picture of Bennydale before climbing and heading back past Te Kuiti. Again, I sought approval to 6500’ with Chrischurch Control and made my way northwards past Otorohanga. Unfortunately, the sea breeze was really having an effect. I was starting to consider my options as I climbed as high as possible under the last real cloud for a hell of a long way. On the northern horizon I could see some build ups but that could have been north of Drury for all I could tell. But again a surprise, the lee side of Mt Pirongia had a wave effect that was no good for a climb but gave me a great glide past Pirongia township and towards the Raglan Road, where it passes through the Hakarimata Hills. Still, it was the longest glide so far, starting at 5500’ and ending at about

2300’. Just when I was eyeing up the airfield at Te Kowhai as a nice pickup place, a save (Yeehaa!) Nice to know thermals can still get going even in a decent sea breeze, if something is able to interrupt the wind. The hills set off a choppy thermal and the world looked much better from 3500’ where it all broke up. Gradually moving north, this happened again and again, all the time getting a little closer to the only cloud developments that were still miles to the north. The first scruffy clouds produced only chopped up bits of lift but they were still better than the lonely option of the paddocks that lay along the Waikato River and near the main State Highway. At 1700’ and with a skinny glide into Mercer Airstrip, I headed east from the river after trying badly to climb in choppy thermals over the prison and then drifting over the Hampton Downs race track.

On the way to Mercer – bang – a decent climb. Again the world was looking much better and the way home was assured as I hit the clouds I’d seen from about 100 km away. I soon had more than I needed, so I easily made my way back home after five hours for a cold beer and a stretch. This was great fun and the best flight this season for me. I’m still a little disappointed that I didn’t go to Mt Ruapehu but it would have caused a hassle (but possibly a good hassle). Thanks to Malcolm Wright who now owns XN. He has been great by allowing me to fly his Discus while he works overseas. It is a brilliant little glider.

May 2014

49

VINTAGE & CLASSIC

RESTORING

double foxtrot – painting and finishing

Fuselage silve

BY ANDY BENTON April 13 ready to start Smaller items

Over the last three issues we’ve read of the efforts involved in completely refurbishing the Ka6 FF. The end is in sight. Andy explains what is involved in the final push and wraps up the project.

O

ne of the many cool things about vintage gliders is that they don’t have to be white, and there are some amazing colour schemes out there. From the outset, my glider was going to be different and easy to see – but it did take a long time to decide on the colours!

The other major consideration is, what do you paint it with?

The fabric application course lecturers really stressed that for the paint job to last, it had to be done according to the book, with either coloured dope or aviation polyurethane. Slopping house paint on your beautiful covering, just to save a few dollars, is a bad plan.

Coloured dope is relatively cheap, easy to apply, and easy to repair. It is not as sexy looking or as hard wearing as polyurethane. Aviation polyurethane is not the same as that used in the automotive industry, being thinner and heaps more flexible.

However, it is not cheap, and like any polyurethane, you should leave the application to the professionals as it is carcinogenic and more difficult to apply.

I elected to go with aviation polyurethane, simply because it is flexible, hard wearing and practically every glider is painted with it these days. The required surface treatment for

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May 2014

polyurethane is two coats of nitrate dope, three coats of butyrate dope, and three coats of silver dope.

I now needed to spray on the dopes. This could be done in my garage, which I lined with plastic sheeting and put inspection lights around the walls. I was very fortunate to be able to borrow Mike Strathern’s spray painting equipment, which had a compressor and a header tank, resulting in the dopes being applied at a consistent pressure.

I didn’t have an extraction fan or external air source, so I went and got a really good mask and vapour filters. This was quite expensive (about $500) but it was really worth it, as you only get one set of lungs. The other biggie was chemical resistant gloves.

Latex gloves were okay for nitrate dope, but the butyrate dope just went straight through. The chemical gloves did the trick.

Spray painting the dopes was quite straight forward, with about one cross-coat possible per day. The nitrate dope is tinted green, to make it easy to see where it has been applied, and the butyrate dope is tinted tan for the same reason. As the different layers of dope go on, they really seal the fabric and it gets a lovely sheen to it. The silver dope is to stop UV damage to the fabric, and you basically apply coats of that until no light shines through the covering. The structure looks really neat when it becomes silver.

There were two traps with the dopes. Firstly, if there is any sort of humidity, it gets a ‘blush’, which would be a real problem if you were spraying coloured dope as the topcoat. It is fine if you are painting polyurethane topcoat.

Secondly, as the dope layers added up, it got ‘pin-holes’ in the

VINTAGE & CLASSIC

er

May 13 – fuselage in tan butyrate dope

Yellow!

Mike weighing GFF - 19 September 2013

Juneau white ranthane

in silver

Wing in silver dope

areas where the covering was over the wood sheeting, but had not been directly glued on. I wasn’t totally successful getting rid of those. I’m really happy with the result, but if you look closely you will certainly see imperfections!

I was worried about wrecking the whole job if I tried to paint it myself (as the whole restoration job will be judged on the quality of the topcoat), so I chose to pay the professionals to put on the top-coat, as they would do a better job in a fraction of the time.

I was put in touch with Brook Heslop (Brooks Auto-Painters, 9 Fittal Street Richmond, 03 544 9933), who had painted parts of the Avro Anson. Brook has a 10m truck spray booth and runs a very professional outfit. They were great to work with, though I allowed myself to get a bit rushed, resulting in a less elaborate paint scheme than I had intended and some later touch-up work was required from the long-suffering Mike Strathern! Next time, I will take a bit more time to get it right at this step (I’ll have to hide this article from the wife...).

The colours are Juneau white, and Ag cat yellow. Ironically, the yellow was the palest on the colour chart – it will certainly be easy to see, but it was a bit of a shock when I walked into the spray booth.

This was the coolest step, doing the masking and then coming back in the morning to find such progress.

I painted the inside of the cockpit a dull green ‘Resene bitter’, and re-sprayed the instrument panel black. Mike did a great job making sure the instruments worked, and removing a lot of excess tubing for the addition of a single flask, which looks really neat.

19 September 2013 rig and weigh

In September 2013, Mike and I did the weigh and balance.

The newly restored Foxtrot weighs 10 kg less than it did previously – which highlights the dead weight of all those layers of paint which were scraped off. The cockpit loading is now 100 kg, which is great for a K6.

Unfortunately, in October 2013 I started a job in Australia.

The K6 remains in Nelson and I am having to oversee trailer alterations from afar, including fitting additional lights and override brakes, which is a pre-requisite for importing it. This has rather messed up my planned summer of gliding, but I am really happy that the restoration is finished, and the glider looks beautiful and is all ready to go.

Excluding training courses and export-related trailer alterations, the total restoration took around 600 hours over 18 months (way longer than naively anticipated) and it was a little over budget. However, covering the entire airframe in ceconite, and paying a commercial outfit to paint it white and then yellow, did contribute to that. If you were to cover the open structure only, go for a single colour and paint it yourself, then I think you could do the whole job for under $5K. You would still need an understanding wife and friendly local engineer.

I really enjoyed the experience and reckon it was a pretty good first attempt. I now have an unusual little glider, which is in top condition, and should give years of flying pleasure.

I still need to put some trim stripes down the fuselage, nice lettering etc. I am keen to do some flights on OLC, and then make an open cockpit for it!

May 2014

51

Spinning from turns at low levels can have fatal effects, not just in gliding but in all areas of aviation. The following article first appeared in the American Soaring magazine and is reprinted with permission.

INADVERTENT

LOW-TURN SPINS

BY SERGIO COLACEVICH

A

few years ago ( in July, 1996), I wrote an article for Soaring Magazine about low-altitude spins, why they happen and what can be done to prevent them. I am repeating this effort now, submitting more descriptive material.

The topic of low-altitude spins is recurring, mysterious, and fatal. I read of accidents happening everywhere in the world — and to pilots of every degree of experience — with the same general description and outcome: the aircraft makes a turn at low altitude, when it stalls and spins. I also have had two personal experiences with the matter.

The first episode happened in 1987, in Georgetown, Texas.

I was landing my SHK Austria, a 17-meter ship. This glider is docile and easy to fly. I had about 80 hours in it and I felt comfortable with it. It was a normal day and I flew a normal landing pattern but, for reasons that I do not remember, I was at a somewhat lower altitude than normal. I was not worried at all with my situation, knowing that I could reach the runway with altitude to spare. I concentrated my attention on some movements near the edge of the runway, where gliders were being pushed, people were looking for the tow rope, etc. Half-way through my final turn, I was distracted by a strange noise, most of it coming from the open side window. Checking for the source of the disturbance, much to my surprise, I noticed that the yaw string was all the way off one side. The airspeed was normal. I corrected the attitude of the glider and had a normal landing.

This episode is unique. Nothing like that had happened to me before or since. I had about 300 flying hours at the time. My yaw string is always centred, I never had an unintentional stall, and I am careful in watching the speed when I am near the ground.

Another episode happened about 1991, flying out of Crazy

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Creek, California, with my Standard Libelle. I had about 700 hours in it, and it was the second time I was flying out of that gliderport. The first time had been one year previously. It was a wave day, so I took a very high tow to a faraway place, found nothing and came back to the field in continuous sink. I was low and unable to recognise the terrain, so I inadvertently got into the wrong valley. I continued for a while over flat terrain, landable everywhere, expecting to see the airport in front of me any moment. When I reached an altitude of about 500 feet I finally realised that what I was seeing in front of me was not the hopedfor airport area but just another large flat field. I decided to land on the spot that I was going to overfly at that moment, which was as good a spot as any other.

So I did a 180-degree turn to the right to land upwind. I began the turn at an altitude of about 300 feet above the ground and ended it at about 200 feet. It was during the turn that a strange thing happened. I wanted a speed of 55 knots or more. I had 50, so I pushed the stick forward. I looked outside, then looked at the speed: still 50 knots. I pushed the stick forward, – look out, look at the speed: 50 knots. I pushed the stick forward again, now with more determination; I could see the nose lowering toward the ground. After two or three seconds, another look at the speed: still 50 knots. At this point, the turn was completed, and I had no problems landing straight ahead at the desired speed of 55 knots.

In conclusion, notwithstanding my firm intention to keep a speed of 55 knots, I was unable to do so while in the turn.

Evidently, in the few seconds that I was looking outside, my perceptive system was giving me erroneous information; maybe that I was going too fast; or, that the rate of turn was too slow; or, that my glide angle was too steep. Or a mixture of the above, so

SAFETY

that, without me realising it, my hand was instinctively pulling back on the stick. In this episode, the yaw string was always well-centred. And nothing like that has ever happened to me since.

I do a lot of ridge soaring, and am used to the fact that when near to the terrain, the speed must be monitored every few seconds. So I did so this time, and was able to correct an erroneous trend that was developing. It is possible that if I delayed checking the speed it would have decayed to dangerous limits.

In 2001, I read an article in Sailplane and Gliding, the British soaring magazine, written by Ron Davidson. In the article, he described a peculiar experience he had one day, similar to my own. During a landing at his home field, he was in a somewhat shallow final turn when his attention was caught by people moving a glider on the runway. He glanced at the speed, and noticed that he needed another five knots. He acted on the stick repeatedly, but it was extraordinarily difficult for him to push the stick forward. He felt like there was a physical impossibility to move the stick, as if it was stuck in that position. Only after a strong effort of concentration was he was finally able to push it and gain the needed speed.

After the first episode of 1987, I recalled reading a letter in Soaring Magazine in 1985, where another pilot, Peder Mortensen from Hudson, Quebec, Canada, was writing about low altitude optical illusions. (Soaring Mail, January, 1985) According to the writer, it seems our perception of speed and attitude is distorted when we are near the ground. We fly for hours at high altitude, without an actual physical reference point, we are at low altitude only for about one minute, and our perceptive system has to adapt very fast to a rapidly changing reference frame.

Spin-ins are known to happen mainly from the turn leading to the final straight part of a flight, when a recovery from a spin is unlikely. But, Peder asks, do more unintentional spins occur in this particular quarter-turn than in any other quarter-turn of a flight? On a typical flight, the pilot makes about 400 quarter-turns per hour. The probability of such a spin actually happening in the two quarter-turns preceding the landing — when one is particularly on guard and keeping the speed up — seems extremely small. Therefore, one may ask if there are some peculiar aspects to this turn which may actually cause a pilot to apply the controls so as to induce a spin. See figure 1.

Both aircraft are turning left, around the axis “O” with a speed of 50 knots and angle of bank of 30 degrees, resulting in a turning radius of 400 feet. Glider B is relatively high above the ground, and to the pilot, point C as well as point D and the whole ground appear from behind the low wing and will disappear beneath the right wing.

Figure 1- Mechanics of the turn

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53

Photo Jill McCaw

SAFETY

Glider A is at an altitude of 200 feet and with that angle of bank the wing points at the centre of his circle, point D. To the pilot, the wing tip or some scratch on the canopy near the line of sight will appear stationary at point D, around which the aircraft is pivoting. For an aircraft below the pivoting altitude (not shown), details on the ground appear forward of both wings and disappear beneath them.

As a pilot descends in the turn towards and below point A, the visual impression is of the landscape slowing down and reversing, giving the impression that the rate of turn is decreasing. The more the aircraft is descending, the more the impression of not turning quickly enough. The pilot may then apply inside rudder to re-establish a more ‘normal’ visual. The consequences of applying inside rudder are 1) a lowering of the inside wing, which can be corrected with outside stick, and 2) an increase in pitch, which can be corrected by pulling back on the stick.

Last time your instructor asked you to demonstrate spin entry in a turn, you did just that: stick back, inside rudder and opposite aileron.

I would like to emphasise that the mathematics of the phenomenon is a good basis for studying the problem, but is only useful to give a reference frame. We are here in the presence of a perceptive process: the danger altitude may be the one calculated mathematically, it may actually be much lower than that,

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or may be much higher than that. It may differ greatly from individual to individual, and also for the same individual on different days or different situations. One may never experience it, but probably that is just because he/she never was in the appropriate set of circumstances.

I related Peder’s reasoning to my own experience. I concluded that I concentrated my attention outside the aircraft; somehow this altered my perception and led me to place the aircraft in a wrong attitude. Please note, this does not happen at altitude, when I circle looking outside for long intervals: in that case, when I look again inside the cockpit, I find that the speed is normal and the yaw string is centred. So, I can see that there is a difference between turning at altitude and turning near the ground.

Peder Mortensen expresses the reflection that we do hundreds of thousands of turns in our flights, and nobody spins unintentionally when at altitude. Yet we hear about many stall and spin accidents near the ground, just when we are particularly alert. There must be something peculiar about this particular turn, something related to our processing of the visual information we gather from outside. I reached the same conclusion.

After my article was published (1996) I got mixed feedback from my pilot friends. For example, one pilot said that he knew about that illusion; it is because one goes closer to the ground and the effect of the velocity is more evident, and one thinks he is

SAFETY

Altitude At Which the Stall/Spin Occurred 40.0% 35.0% 30.0% 25.0% 20.0% 15.0% 10.0% 5.0% 0.0%

< 250 agl

250–500 agl

501–1,000 agl

> 1,000 agl

unknown

Figure 2: The statistics

going too fast. I understood that since he knew that, then he did not need to consider all that was written in the article. Another pilot said that he knew what the illusion was: he was also a power pilot, and he knew about the “Eights on Pylons” exercise.

He knew the answer to the problem, and he did not need to hear more. Another pilot said, “but I do not look at my wingtip when I land!” and so he was okay and had nothing to worry about, and could dismiss the whole thing. An officer of the Soaring Safety Foundation I was corresponding with wrote, “There are some studies that indicate that subtle visual perception of the variety you suggest does not become apparent until quite close to the ground, say under 50 feet in small aircraft, so maybe your theory lacks validity.” From these answers, I reached the conclusion that the message was not appropriately submitted and therefore, was not adequately received: people concentrated on the explanation, did not find it satisfactory and therefore, could not believe that such thing could happen to them or could happen at all.

Considering this feedback, this is what I say now: forget the explanation. Throw away all the theory above and look only at the facts. The facts are that nobody spins at altitude, but we hear of many instances of spins in that last turn low over the ground – just that one, the most dangerous. Please look at the visual examples shown below. They are four videos from You Tube (the only ones I found).

Search for these titles on You Tube. The first is: “How not to land a glider”.* It shows a Standard Jantar winch launch in Magdeburg, Germany in the year 2000. The cable broke at 80 meters (260’), and the pilot tried to land with a 12-knot tailwind (see the windsock). Look at the first part of the movie. Everything is going fine until at second 4.5 of the video sequence, then the glider increases the rate of descent, then rotates and points to the ground. The pilot survived with minor abrasions.

The second, “Shoreham Airshow 2010 Glider Crash”,* shot during an air show in Shoreham, England in 2010. In the video, the pilot — an aerobatic champion — takes off for an exhibition, finds that there is too much slack in the rope in turbulent atmosphere, so he pulls off and comes back downwind. The glider banks a couple of times to the left, probably to assess the position with respect to the runway, then slows the speed - note the gain in altitude – then decidedly turns left and points down, but cannot gain back the lost speed in time to avoid quick loss of height. Some misuse of air brakes is visible (during the glide, perhaps to check function, just before turning, and just before

ground impact as shown in other pictures). The pilot suffered three fractured vertebrae and was expected to recover fully.

The third, “Globemaster crash, Elmendorf”* shows a C-17 Globemaster in Alaska, in 2010 while practicing manoeuvres for an upcoming air show. In the summary of the Air Force investigation, it is reported that, “After the initial climb-out and left turn, the pilot executed an aggressive right turn. As the aircraft banked, the stall warning system activated to alert the crew of an impending stall. Instead of implementing stall recovery procedures, the pilot continued the turn as planned, and the aircraft entered a stall from which recovery was not possible.

Although the pilot eventually attempted to recover the aircraft, he employed incorrect procedures” and “the pilot violated multiple flight manual procedures, placing the aircraft outside established flight parameters at an attitude and altitude from which recovery was not possible.” In fact aggressive manoeuvring can be noticed during take-off and turning, and loss of altitude beginning from second 52 of the video sequence. A crew of four was lost in the accident.

The fourth, “Mishap B-52”* shows a B-52 at Fairchild Air Force base in the state of Washington in 1994, while practicing manoeuvres for an upcoming air show. The video lasts ten minutes, but the accident sequence is visible from 9:20. The aircraft in a left turn seems to slightly lower its altitude then gain some, which probably slows the airspeed until in a bank past 90 degrees, then, lift is lost and the aircraft precipitates to the ground.

The accident investigation reported that the aircraft was instructed by the tower to execute a go-around. Maintaining an altitude of about 250 feet above ground, the B-52 began the 360° left turn around the tower. Located just behind the tower was an area of restricted airspace, reportedly a nuclear weapons storage facility. To avoid flying through it, the pilot flew the aircraft in an extremely tight, steeply banked turn while maintaining the low, 250-foot altitude. Eight seconds before impact, the aircraft’s IAS had deteriorated to 145 knots and the aircraft’s bank increased past 60°. The stall speed for the aircraft was at that moment 147 knots. However, the bank was increased up to 90°. At this time, full right aileron was applied, with right rudder, and nose-up elevator. Nonetheless, the aircraft descended rapidly, hit the ground and exploded killing the four crew members. The report noted that “even though the airspeed indicator was available to all four aircrew members, the aircraft’s airspeed was allowed to continue to decrease” suggesting collective lapse.

Today, the Fairchild crash is used in both military and civilian aviation environments as a training aid to show the importance of enforcing safety regulations. These measures, however, failed to prevent – sixteen years later – the occurrence in almost identical circumstances of the accident in the Alaska airbase described above. More details on the accident can be gathered on Wikipedia at “wikipedia fairchild crash”. In this site, the focus is on the action of the pilot, who at this point was probably using visual information overriding the flight instruments’ indications.

Note from the above how the issue of spins on a descending low-turn is a problem as well as in general aviation where exactly

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SAFETY

... this phenomenon is a killer... the same accident patterns are reported. A 2001 Air Safety Foundation (ASF) study of 465 fatal stall/spin accidents that occurred from 1991 through 2000 showed that at least 80 percent (and probably more) of the accidents started from an altitude of less than 1000 feet AGL, the usual traffic pattern altitude.

The study found that only 7.1 percent of the aircraft involved in the stall/spin accidents definitely started the stall/spin from an altitude of greater than 1,000 feet agl. About 13 percent of the aircraft were reported at an ‘unknown’ altitude at the beginning of the accident.

Adding emphasis to the study above, another study done earlier by the FAA Small Aircraft Directorate, which included some 1,700 stall/spin accidents dating from 1973, concluded that 93 percent of such accidents started at or below pattern altitude (pattern altitude at many airports in the 1970s was often 800 feet agl). With reference to Figure 1, say that a small power plane approach speed is about 60 knots: the pivotal altitude in this case would be about 300 feet, a scenario still similar to the 50 knots and 200 feet assumed for a glider. Power planes with higher speeds will have proportional increases in pivot altitude, with a scale effect that will not change the general visual impression for the pilot.

The seven events described above — the four accidents plus my two testimonials and one testimonial from Ron Davidson of an impending accident — all have two things in common: they happen in a descending low turn, and the low turn is attempted in out-of-the-ordinary circumstance. Please look back at them, and see that the pilot always was under some form of stress or excitement or distraction. Note also in the videos the abruptness of the catastrophe. From the moment in which the aircraft seems to lose altitude, it hits the ground in less than four seconds.

I have reported some theories, and I have reported actual accidents. Please realise that there is a reason why these accidents happen on the final turn at low altitude above the ground.

One can make his/her own explanation, or not make any explanation at all. But, be convinced that these peculiar accidents actually happen, and not to inexperienced pilots: one was an aerobatic champion, others were military pilots with a rigid set of procedures, accompanied by second pilot and observers.

My view is that this phenomenon is a killer. Over and over again, in all these years after I wrote my first article, I read reports of accidents with the same pattern; the pilot is in a low turn, concentrates in the landing area, the aircraft unexpectedly enters a spin. That pilot never spun at altitude (who does?) but did spin this time.

I say that to classify these events in the category of pilot errors — as it is often done in the accident reports — is misleading. It seems to imply that the pilot did not do a good job, while an alert or good pilot would not fall into that trap. The reader may reach the conclusion that this will not happen to him or her, because he/she is a conscientious pilot who follows the rules.

However, it is not a question of following the rules: the problem is that the pilot is induced in error without realising it. Under stress or prolonged concentration outside the cockpit, attention may be taken away from the attitude of the aircraft and control is lost. It is a matter of seconds, probably four seconds or less. And it can happen to anybody.

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I read reports of accidents with the same pattern; the pilot is in a low turn, concentrates in the landing area, the aircraft unexpectedly enters a spin ... to classify these events in the category of pilot errors ... is misleading.

Fortunately, a very effective remedy exists to this state of affairs: 1) Check the speed frequently, at no more than say, four-second intervals, and 2) Keep the yaw string centred.

Unfortunately, these two suggestions have a defect: they are such common recommendations that we think we are already observing them. And we do, but they are easily forgotten in the actual situation, because of worries related to the upcoming landing.

So, as a working tool, at the time I suggested to adopt the singsong: “Close to ground, check the speed, check the speed, check the speed,” – now look at the speed. I think it is still a good suggestion. It commands to check the speed approximately every four seconds. It is similar to the practice of saying aloud “200 feet” on take-off. Repeating rhythmically the mnemonic has several advantages: it timely reminds us of an important check; the act of singing or talking has a calming effect; and it gives the serenity to know that we are doing the important thing, and that the flight will end well. In alternative, just count to 1, 2, 3, 4, or use any other method you find suitable. And keep present that four seconds is a maximum, every 2-3 seconds better fits many situations.

Remember that we rarely hear of people that fall into a spin while flying straight ahead, or while turning at altitude. But many spin when turning while close to the ground. Monitoring speed and attitude, as we normally do, is not enough. We must be much more observant in this phase of flight than we normally are.

It would be really desirable to have a study targeting this phenomenon. It may not be easy to conduct, since it is a problem of perception, and so depending on many different factors related to the actual flying situation, but mostly to the pilot disposition, both physical and psychological. However, this kind of perception study has been done in the past. While waiting for a specific study, perhaps the Condor program may be used to shed some light on this subject, if we can introduce the simulation of the worry factor and the distraction factor.

In closing, I would like to emphasise the concept that the most important factor in descending low turns is timely watching the speed. Maintaining the correct speed is so essential: when close to the ground, be it on a ridge or while landing, speed is the most important thing to keep in check. I say it is better to enter a line of trees at flying speed, than to stall in front of them.

When close to the ground, just check your speed would you?

Every four seconds, max. Dear friends and soaring pilots, go and have wonderful flights. *Web Links maybe subject to video availability.

airworthiness MARTYN COOK National Airworthiness Officer

Don’t Get Hooked Up! The tow hook and release mechanism is a key part of every winch or aero-tow launch, as are tow rings and weak links. We may take these for granted, but a malfunction could seriously ruin your flying day!

In times past, tow rings were made from ¼ inch diameter steel rod, and tow hook mechanisms were adjusted accordingly. Then, in more recent history, tow rings were specified with 7.0 mm rod, which is the size currently specified in the MOAP. Every gliding operator should be launching with 7.0 mm rings sourced from an approved supplier (meaning, not made by your local garage).

One operator recently discovered an older glider with a belly hook that didn’t take kindly to having a 7.0 mm ring attached. The glider had always been aero-towed off the nose hook, and the belly hook had not been used for a long

time. After a couple of premature releases (fortunately not hazardous), the operator investigated more closely. It turned out that this belly hook worked fine with rings made from ¼ inch material, but didn’t close fully on the 7.0 mm size.

This is why we have standards. Any glider in New Zealand can be towed safely by any tow rope, provided all the components conform to the standard.

Imagine if all glider tow releases were adjusted differently, and operators could use any old set of tow rings?

It would be a recipe for trouble.

Tow releases can be tricky in their detail, despite being a simple over-centre latch with a spring-loaded return to the closed position (and another springloaded back-release for belly hooks). This is why tow hooks are sent back to the manufacturer after 2,000 launches for overhaul and checking. But things can still go wrong. The most likely failure

youth glide nz news ENYA MCPHERSON

Youth Glide New Zealand has really been in action this month, with the Youth Glide Camp at Matamata from the 21st-26th April. This was held at the Matamata Soaring Centre, with the Piako, Auckland and Tauranga Gliding Clubs helping out. There were eight student pilots: Bradley Scrivener, Carter Apas-cree, Cody Calder, David Palmer, Gabe Paff, Jared Massey, Nathan Graves and Sam Tullett, with people coming from as far north as Whangarei and as far south as Timaru.

The camp had pretty good weather, and for the five days of flying the longest flight went to Gabe Paff, with instructor Julian Mason, with 2 hours 47 minutes on his first ever ridge flight, which was also his first aerotow. Gabe flies with the Whangarei gliding club from Puhipuhi, where there isn’t much of a ridge or any kind of tow plane in sight.

Huge congratulations to Cody Calder for completing his A certificate and first solo flight in a glider! He is a Youth Glide member from Piako club who has over two

hundred powered hours and is a tow pilot for the club. Great to see you have a passion for both powered and non-powered flight.

There was certainly a lot of fun to be had at the camp. A huge thank you to Bill and Jan Mace for organising it and Jan and Joan for your fantastic cooking!

The camp included some beneficial theory to break up the flying and to fill in when the weather was average; thank you again to Bill Mace, Steve Care and other instructors, including Philip Dunlop from Auckland, who came down during the weekend to present a lesson. All the students took a lot from these lessons and they were very much appreciated.

The worst moment goes to Campbell McIvor for towing GGO down from Drury, rigging it and then realising it was due for an annual inspection. He derigged it and simply towed her back on home.

The second worst moment goes to the anonymous student whose radio call one morning was ‘Golf Yankee Liam’ (I think he meant Lima). Overall, the camp

point is a break in one half of the return spring. There is still a springy feel at the release knob, but only half the force, and this could be missed on your Daily Inspection if you were not looking out for it.

Finally, don’t forget the tug hook - these are easily overlooked. They should be tested under conditions simulating an upset. This means the pilot activates the release from the cockpit while a tow rope is attached and under tension at maximum rated load. Perhaps the position or action of the release lever is awkward for the pilot? Or it requires more force than the pilot can apply? Or the lever is not strong enough? Or the geometry is wrong?

Or the Bowden cable is not restrained properly at the ends and it straightens out without releasing the tow ring?

Applying the full rated load of the tow rope (at least 1,000kgf) and then releasing it suddenly could be tricky to apply in practice. An acceptable alternative would be to apply a load of (say) 50 kgf to the cable where it attaches to the tow hook, then see if the release mechanism still works smoothly from the cockpit. Something for your tug’s next 50-hour inspection?

ran smoothly and Youth Glide has had another successful camp. Thank you to all those involved, especially Bill and Jan Mace, to Paul Castle, for keeping the books up to date, the Matamata Soaring Centre, Piako District Council and to the instructors who gave up their time to teach youth around New Zealand how to soar safely and smoothly.

On another note, the National Aviation Course run through the New Zealand Cadet Forces, Air Training Corps had their national course run the following week.

From the 27th April – 3rd May, sixteen ab-initio students aged from 14-18 years old, four gliders and five instructors from around the country took part in some intensive training. They had lessons every night and all worked through their A certificates progressively. A huge congratulations to the four young men who soloed at the course: Calum Stone, Jake Bevan, Simon Collet and Donald Walter. An incredible achievement, one you’ll never forget.

Keep your memberships coming in. ONLY $30 a year to become a flying member and only $20 to become an associate member and help out Youth Glide New Zealand. We need you!

Pass on to all club members, as the more support we get the better Youth Glide New Zealand will become!

May 2014

57

Preflight inspection of

YOUR PARACHUTE

BY DAVE MCIVER

You DI your glider. Make sure you do the same with your parachute.

Following on from the article in the last issue of SoaringNZ and a number of questions that arose from an after dinner talk at the Auckland Gliding Club, this article focuses in detail on how to â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;pre-flightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; an emergency parachute.

I

f you own a parachute, you should be aware of the repack date and ensure it has been inspected and repacked by an appropriately qualified person within the previous 12 months. Civil aviation regulations covering repacking of emergency parachute assemblies are covered under Part 91.707. Further details can be found at http://www.caa.govt.nz/rules/Part_091_Brief. htm.

If you are using a borrowed or a club rig, check the repack date by referring to the packing card (Fig 1 & 2).

It should be signed and dated by the technician that repacked it. The packing card will be located somewhere on the assembly, normally in a small pocket that has been sewn into the container to accommodate it.

The following checklist should form the basis of your inspection, and can be modified as necessary to suit your own situation or model of parachute.

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1. Perform a visual inspection of the harness container, webbing and associated hardware. Check for any nicks, cuts, abrasions or fraying to the webbing.

Check for any damage to the parachute container.

This could include tears, fraying, discolouration, chemical damage etc. and will be obvious to the naked eye. Verify the hardware (buckles, leg strap clips etc.) are in good condition, free of corrosion and any other obvious damage (Figs 3, 4, 5, 6) 2. Grasp the swaged end of the ripcord cable where it passes through the ripcord handle and move it back and forth to ensure it passes freely through the flexible housing (Fig 7). You should be checking for any foreign matter that has become lodged between the ripcord and housing and which may make the ripcord excessively difficult to pull.

3. Peel back the protective Velcro covers/tuck tabs and ensure the pin ends of the ripcord are free and unobstructed (Fig 8). Ensure the ripcord moves freely back and forth within the housing as per the previous step.

4. Ensure the seal is intact. This is placed around the lower pin (in a 2-pin ripcord assembly, as

SAFETY

Fig 1

Fig 2

Fig 3

Fig 4

Fig 8

Fig 5

Fig 6

Fig 7

Fig 9

Fig 10

Fig 10a

Fig 11

Fig 12

pictured Fig 9) and should not be broken or show any obvious signs of tampering.

5. Replace the Velcro covering/tuck tabs to ensure the ripcord pins are protected (i.e. a reversal of Step 3).

6. Before putting the rig on, ensure the ripcord is firmly seated in its retaining pocket (Fig 10). It should NOT be free and floating on the end of the ripcord (Fig 10a).

7. Loosen the straps before putting the rig on, then ensure leg strap buckles are properly closed and both leg and chest straps are tightened firmly (Fig 11, Fig 12).

The process described above should take no more than 2-3 minutes max. and should be performed before EVERY flight

when you intend to wear an emergency parachute. Parachutes should be stored carefully in a cool dry place. A simple & cheap hanger/hook assembly can be constructed to store club parachutes, as depicted in Fig 4.

Look after your parachute. Your life may depend on it!!

May 2014

59

Jerry’s

MOUNTAIN FLYING COURSE

Photo Jill McCaw

BY GERARD ROBERTSON

Lake Pukaki and Mt Cook village from high in the wave. On the way to the Two Thumbs.

Jerry’s Cross Country courses have become a must-do event on the South Island gliding calendar. Running the week before the South Island Regionals, in November, they attract a fair collection of South Island pilots. Last year, Aucklander Gerard Robertson decided to go south and have a go at mountain flying himself.

I

wrote this on the bus back to Christchurch, having finished this course the day before. We managed to fly every day.

Some of Jerry’s favourite phrases were still running through my mind and, for the advance preparation of those who may have the good fortune to attend the course in the future, I repeat them here: > Don’t dick around: make sure every flight has a purpose > There must have been a convergence; I don’t know where it came from > Dominate the ridge: put a wing over each side > Thermal at 50 kts and 45 degrees of bank: don’t argue, just do it.

Lest you think I’m taking the mickey out of Jerry, wait until he shows you his flight trace in SeeYou, when he sets a task to Cromwell and up the Dobson Valley before returning to Omarama. We sat there, somewhat stunned, as Jerry explained how he had used his favourite phenomena of convergences to travel just over 300 km, thermalling only half a dozen times. The

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rest of the flight simply showed a straight track above the tops of ridges. Jerry also admitted that he’d only taken one of those climbs as (unnecessary) insurance.

An immediate feature of the course was that several people had already done it: some more than once. This is because the mountain flying environment is so very different to that which we North Island (and visiting Australian) ‘flatland fliers’ are used to, that it takes more than one visit to Omarama to be able to safely traverse the mountains.

For me, along with two or three others, this was my first visit to fly solo in Omarama. This immediately, in a very nice way, split the flying done by course attendees into two groups: those with sufficient experience went off to do the task which Jerry set each day, while we others flew locally. This local flying gave me practice in getting high on Horrible, then pushing out into the valley or running across to Mt Benmore, with its upper and lower ridges known as ‘Big’ and ‘Little’ Ben respectively. At the same time, as we got quite high (up to 8,000’ QNH), there was a good view of the basin, allowing the chance to pick out the local features and get a little more familiar with the overall environment.

Bear in mind that the altitude in QNH requires you to set your altimeter to 1,380’ prior to take off and to remember to subtract that number from your altimeter reading as you fly, lest you wonder why the ground seems so much closer than it ought to be.

Tellingly for this Aucklander, the Omarama philosophy of ‘3-2-1’ gives an easy guide to how different mountain flying is, by specifying that:

> at 3,000’, move to a landable area > at 2,000’, pick your field > at 1,000’, set up your approach to land.

Given that, around the field at Drury, the usual airspace limit is 3,500’ (though it may be opened to 4,500’ depending on the wind and hence direction of operation at Auckland International Airport), this seemed extreme at first. However, any scepticism was cured by seeing an extended burst of 10 kts down on the vario during a mild wave day.

Bob Henderson repeated to me his father-in-law’s recollection that at one moment he was at 16,000’ and, two minutes later, on finals. Bob also encouraged me to run the ridges with a healthy speed margin.

Jerry’s take on speed near the ground is to thermal at 50 kts and 45 degrees, adding on 5 kts for your spouse or partner, plus another 5 kts for any children you may have. We have three so – although I perhaps flew faster than necessary close to ridges – having too much speed seemed a more viable longterm approach than flying more slowly. My take is that, while cowards may die a thousand deaths, only the last one counts, and the trick is to postpone that one for as long as possible.

This division of flying skills was no barrier to the course running smoothly, with both groups telling stories of their day’s flying at the bar at day’s end. This social aspect, with strangers who are also glider pilots, was one of the boons of the week.

Having arrived with only a bicycle, I was lucky to be taken out by the Taranaki boys to look at fields. Those Taranaki guys: real experts. They’ve only to look at a large fenced area to be able to immediately identify it as a field.

While I didn’t go out and fly big distances, I’m quite happy with the way the week went. Jerry is an absolute font of knowledge in mountain flying, and a great example of the best of the gliding movement’s culture of sharing knowledge.

On a typical day, I’d let the grown-ups who were going off to do the task grid first; more out of a desire to have a leisurely lunch and not launch till about three, than from consideration.

It always helps to have sniffers to see what the sky is doing. At Omarama, you have only to look at Mt Horrible: if there’s still a gaggle of gliders circling, have another cup of tea. If there’s only one, it means that the others have already bolted and you need to get a move on.

So, strapped into your glider, oxygen supply within reach (already turned on at the bottle and the little box told at what altitude to start providing it) and toilet arrangements sorted, you’re off. Apart from the “All clear above and behind?” check, communication with the tug is by radio, identifying yourself

Photo Jill McCaw

Photo Jill McCaw

Up close to the ice at Mt Aspriring

Twizel and Lake Tekapo from the top of the Benmore range

by both aircraft and name, so that it’s clear who’s going to be charged for the tow.

Onto Horrible at either 2,000’ or 2,500’, usually into a good thermal and up you go. The view certainly does improve with altitude and, quite quickly, you can find yourself at 6 to 8,000’ (don’t forget to subtract that 1,380’ to get your height above local ground level). From that exalted altitude, you can set off on one of three courses: > Northerly, to get onto little Ben, with the goal of getting onto big Ben and running that much longer ridge to the north, or > Southerly, hopping across to the Ewe Range, onto the St Bathan’s range at the entrance to the Lindis Pass and then onto Magic Mountain, or > straight out into the valley to see what may be coming off the Cloud Hills (the small range in the middle of the valley), to see if you can get across to the far side.

I took all of these approaches on different days, including the last day where I got high on Horrible (not a mind-altering substance) and then pushed out into the basin to see if I could contact the wave. If I’d stuck with circling in the rotor thermal, I probably would have, but my sailing background encouraged me to cruise up and down feeling the lines of lift.

My northerly circuit one day saw me get sufficiently high to decide to ‘dominate the ridge’ on Magic Mountain. Sadly, I must report that – just as with people – domination is not always well-received and I had to skulk back towards Little Ben for a ridge rescue.

I rented a glider, rather than drive down from Auckland with one in tow. This is probably a fortunate move, as the number of ferry spaces available was curtailed by the propeller and shaft falling out of one of the ferries. I can confirm that an LS-8 (15m) is an achievable jump from the Club Astir and, just as I’d been told, it flies like a K-6 (albeit a modern, expensive, high performance K-6).

Having spent too many years in tertiary education, I have the habit of note-taking. I plan to write up the notes, circulate them around the others on the course for correction and then make them available. This will in no way supplant the need to do, or benefits available from, Jerry’s course: it is intended to impart some basic knowledge so that Jerry can focus on sharing his outstanding mountain-flying skills.

Jerry, the course thanks you. Your aim of keeping us safe in the mountains, while sharing some of the most spectacular terrain in the world, is a truly noble one.

May 2014

61

So you have landed out...

NOW WHAT?!

BY DANIEL SAZHIN

What happens after you land out? Are you prepared? This story originally appeared in Soaring Café. The author and the Café editors were happy to let us print it in SoaringNZ. It was written for American pilots and while not everything is the same, it is still good advice.

W

hen I started cross-country soaring three years ago, I paid a lot of attention to the many publications that give tips and instructions about how to land out safely in a field. They talk about appropriate patterns, noting slope, surface, obstacles and wind, when to stop soaring and start landing, among many other important things. Equipped with this important information, I set out on many cross-country flights, some successful and sixteen others ending in fields.

Twelve of those happened in the last year! It quickly became apparent that this city boy was pretty much clueless to what happened AFTER the landing. Since then, I have figured out a thing or two and would like to share some of the things I have learned over the course of landing out in six different States.

SO WHAT HAPPENS AFTER YOU LAND OUT? You’re in a field and have stopped, usually after a long frustrating grind. The dust has settled and it is now time for you to

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participate in the fabled adventure of a field retrieve. It is time to get you and your glider back home. However, there is an ordered list of priorities that should be followed as closely as possible once you have stopped moving.

1. Establish communication with your crew.

2. Secure the glider.

3. Establish communication with farmer/landowner 4. Prepare glider for de rig 5. Position yourself near the point of entry for the field 6. Take the glider apart!

1. ESTABLISH COMMUNICATION WITH YOUR CREW If you had an accident or a very rough landing, stay in the glider and call 111. Otherwise, exit the glider, observe if any gliders are landing behind you and make room if necessary. Then, using a cellphone, satellite tracker or any other means of getting access, contact whoever will be coming to get you. Have your co-ordinates at the ready, in the same format as the GPS that your crew is using to come find you. If there are any things that they need to do prior to coming out to get you, such as picking up certain tools, wing-stands, etc., now is the time to tell them.

However, it is always best to have prepared your trailer and vehicle to be immediately retrieve-ready prior to flying, with all the tools ready to go, and the trailer hooked up. Being organised will make it easier for your crew and will also decrease the likelihood of issues later on.

LANDOUT 2. SECURE THE GLIDER If it is windy, put your spoilers out and lock them with your seat belt. For a lighter glider that has a risk of the wings bopping up and down in the wind, take out the seat cushions and put them underneath the wingtips to protect them. This is especially relevant if you landed in something like corn stubble that is rather stiff and will scratch your paint if your wing scrapes against the hard, dry stalks.

If there is livestock in the field, they may be interested in your aircraft. I have heard that leaving your radio on with the squelch off, so that there is a loud and unpleasant sound coming from the glider, has been known to keep livestock away from aircraft. It’s best not to land in a field with livestock in the first place. You may have to stay with your glider to protect it from cows.

3. ESTABLISH COMMUNICATION WITH FARMER/LANDOWNER Once the glider is secured, it is time to go for a hike looking for the landowner. Be sure to take with you a cellphone, hat, GPS, and WATER. It is likely to be hot and you’re probably dehydrated and fatigued after a long and tough flight. If you’re in a particularly humid place, it may be a good idea to have some bug-spray to use, since without it you’ll look like you have the chicken pox by the time the retrieve is over.

The next step is to follow any tracks or paths out of the field to the nearest habitation. Keep as much distance from dogs and livestock as possible, for they can be dangerous. If there is a vehicle outside, there is likely to be someone inside. It doesn’t matter if this is the person who owns the field or someone else, because it is probable that whoever is inside may be able to help you get in contact with the owner.

Introducing yourself to the farmer/landownerAlways be very polite, as you are trespassing on their property uninvited until the situation is remedied. Not only is it rude to be nasty to the farmer, but it will also negatively impact any other glider pilot who may have to land in that same field sometime

in the future, so please be courteous and respectful. (Some NZ clubs have landout protocols in place. Find out what your club expects you to do when meeting with the landowner. –Ed) I always start off the conversation with, “Sorry to bother you but I have landed a glider in the field over there. Everything is okay.”

In the rather unlikely event that the farmer/landowner is hostile to your presence, you can gently press that it was not an intentional event since the wind stopped and it was an emergency.

This is no time to lecture the farmer about the specifics of the physics that keep a glider in the air, so keep it simple. If problems escalate any further, it may be necessary to contact 111 to assist, though this is almost unheard of. Bear in mind that these folks most likely have no idea what a glider is and what trouble and misfortune they are going to have to go through due to your unplanned and uninvited arrival. If you can allay these concerns immediately, you will most likely not have any trouble.

If you have landed in a crop, it may require an insurance claim. (This is not usually a problem in NZ. Again, find out what measures your club has in place to keep farmers happy.) Under most situations, even if there is a crop in the field, you probably did not damage it substantially. This is mostly an issue in fullygrown corn/maize, which is not a desirable landing option in the first place. It would be best to call your insurance carrier as soon as possible and take photos of the damage you caused.

Information neededOnce you have introduced yourself, be sure to find out: > A) The address: Relay this to your crew ASAP as this will aid them in finding you. Your simple GPS co-ordinate tells them where your glider is, but NOT how to get to the appropriate place to enter the field. > B) The best and safest access point: You need to know where your crew can drive your trailer in order to access the field. Even if it is obvious to you where this place may be, be sure to still ask the farmer and keep him involved in the ‘decisionmaking’ process. Remember, it is his property.

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LANDOUT If the field is soft or if you landed in crop, you may require the farmer’s assistance to move the glider. AVOID MOVING THE GLIDER WITHOUT YOUR CREW’S HELP! Remember, you are in unfamiliar terrain with a person who is unfamiliar with ground-handling gliders. This is a perfect setup for a mishap. Also, bear in mind that your IQ has dropped at least 20 points due to the dehydration and fatigue you have experienced getting up to this point. Only, only, ONLY move the glider without your crew’s help as a last resort. If you do have to do this, think things through as far ahead as you can and take it very SLOWLY. Remember, it is not worth saving 20 minutes on your retrieve by damaging your glider in the process. It is always best to drive the trailer to the glider and disassemble in the middle of the field. The second best solution is to push the glider out of the field by hand. To pull the glider out with a tractor and a rope is often asking for trouble.

If a farmer/landowner cannot be contacted, then relay the co-ordinates of a scouted access point to your crew. This is why it is handy to bring along your GPS when you’re going for the walk to the farmhouse. If there is a locked gate, you’re in trouble.

The best, but most demanding way to solve this problem is to have a few more of your friends help you carry the wings and fuselage over the fence. It is advisable to put a carpet over the fence to avoid scratching the glider. The other option, which should be avoided if at all possible, is to cut the chain or lock in order to open the gate. For this contingency, you should keep a hacksaw or a grinder and a spare lock in your retrieve kit. If you’re worried, you could contact the police prior to doing this.

The best thing to do is to cut the chain, rather than the lock.

Once you’re ready to leave, all you need to do is simply attach your lock to the two nearest chain-links from where you cut, thereby making your lock a new chain-link in the whole chain.

Be sure to leave the key inserted in the lock. (And make sure to find the contact details of the landowner and let them know what you’ve done.- Ed)

4. PREPARING FOR DE RIGGING After you made contact with the farmer, come back to the glider. If it is necessary to move the glider, then it should be

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moved as close as possible to the access point. Prepare it as much as you can. Your crew will greatly appreciate if you can do all the steps you can, such as: taking cushions out, disconnecting the controls and batteries, removing piss bags and water bottles, etc. Remember to organize this stuff into a neat pile since it will be hard to locate things when it gets dark.

5. GO TO ACCESS POINT Your crew is showing up on the road, not by air, so it does not help them find you if you’re by the glider when they drive up.

The best scenario is to sit in the shade, drink up (water) and relax. If you wander away, be sure to co-ordinate with your crew so that you are at the access point when they show up. Once you rendezvous, drive up to the glider with as much care given as possible to avoid damaging the farmer’s field/crop.

6. TAKE THE GLIDER APART Now comes the most crucial task: de rigging! But remember, you are fatigued and worn-out. Take things extra slowly to avoid mistakes. If the wings need to be put down in the field during the process and there is stubble or crop, be sure to ‘slide’ the leading edge gently into the stalks. If you put the wing straight down on top of stiff stubble, it is likely to scratch the paint, or potentially pierce the fabric. Be sure to keep track of your tools!

It is important to keep them all in the same place since it will be hard to find them later if they are spread out. Before leaving the field do a thorough walk-around of the trailer, checking the security of the glider and double check that all rubbish and tools have been picked up out of the field.

If the glider you flew is a club glider or one that is kept outside and it is your intention to assemble it the same day, remember that you are now doubly tired and that any help you will have is most likely going to be at least partially inebriated.

Use caution accordingly and take things slowly.

In the end, if you follow these steps as closely as possible and apply common sense where it is needed, you should be able to get the glider back to the airport safely in one... I mean four pieces! Good luck on your cross-country endeavours and the inevitable future land-outs.

OBITUARY

WYNN CRAVEN 29 August 1922 – 8 December 2013, aged 91 years COMPLIED BY BRIAN KELLY FROM MEMORY AND INFORMATION FROM WYNN’S SON JOHN CRAVEN AND FRIEND DOUG HONNOR

From his early days in Auckland, Wynn had a strong interest in aviation and spent many hours building quality model aircraft.

It was a natural extension to this that saw him join the local gliding club. As he had a useful shed at his home and with his experience of building model aircraft, he was involved with the building of the T31 glider kit that the Auckland Gliding club purchased.

The first page of his original gliding log book from 1940 shows his initial training was in a No. 1 Waco and consisted of ‘slides’ and ‘hops’. This progressed to short flights, with a logbook note of 90 flights in primary gliders of about 1 minute each. He was prevented from further flying due to army service but returned to gliding in 1952, in a Slingsby T31B. His first solo flight is recorded in January 1953, in an Eon Baby. Flights were still recorded in minutes and seconds rather than the hours and minutes used now.

After being promoted by his company to service the agricultural industry in the South Island, Wynn moved to Christchurch.

He was able to continue his flying interest with the Canterbury Gliding Club. It was here that he achieved his five hour endurance flight for his Silver badge in November 1960, in an Eagle with registration GBD. He served on the NZ Gliding Council and was the founding editor of the national gliding magazine, the Gliding Kiwi. Wynn, in a note dated 27 July 2002, recalled how this came about: “I was on the NZ Gliding Council and in 1955, at a meeting in Christchurch, I stood up on my feet and declared: Here we have gliding clubs springing up all over New Zealand. We don’t know what they are doing and they don’t know much, if anything, about us, the ruling body. What we need is a newsletter or regular publication of some sort to keep us all informed.

“Well, that edict brought a prompt response. A fellow stood up, pointing to me, saying, ‘Don’t you travel all over the South Island in the course of your occupation?’ To which I nodded, whereupon he pointed again and declared, ‘Well, you’re IT.’ And thus was established The NZ Gliding Bulletin, the quarterly publication, which seven months later, with the help of Ralph Gore, had a name change to The Gliding Kiwi. That issue carried the editorial comments, ‘We hope you like our new name. What could be better than to adopt our national bird the kiwi, notorious for having no wings and to remedy this apparent omission of nature.’

“I had no thought of being involved myself, but clearly I had obviously stuck my neck out and therefore accepted the job as another gliding challenge, although I felt dismayed at my lack of experience.”

In the early 1960s, Wynn was promoted again and became manager of what was then Barclay Motors in Hastings. This

was one of the largest car and machinery dealers at the time.

Naturally, Wynn noticed the local Hawkes Bay Gliding Club and promptly joined us. He served on the club committee, had a stint as president and then was back on the committee, as well as being CFI for a period. He was a dedicated glider instructor and tow pilot. Also naturally, for some years, he was the club newsletter editor. In more recent years, he was the club’s patron.

The mid 1970s saw the club have its enthusiasm stoked

by Wynn. This resulted in the club using an old ATC winch, powered by a flat-head V8. Due to work by Peter Lyons and the generosity of the Glazebrook farming family, we were permitted to develop a strip over 2km long at Roys Hill. Wynn, being the most current winch pilot, volunteered to trial the first launch. He, along with Doug Honnor, using 12g fencing wire, saw the club’s Rhonlerche GBQ launched to initial heights of around 900ft in the preliminary assessment trials. This brought great enthusiasm.

Later, with a club built winch and as pilots became current, with the wind down the strip, launch heights of over 2,000ft were achieved. Sadly, after a number of years, due to a number of reasons, including time spent on wire breaks, being out of the public eye and the lack of viable teams to run winching, winching was abandoned by the club.

Wynn was also a keen yachtsman and participated in the trailer yacht race class, which was a very popular family yacht class. Yachting has similarities to gliding, using the energy of nature to keep craft moving and/or aloft for hours, which saw synergies with fellow glider pilots.

In his archives, Wynn had movies of early gliding in New Zealand, which he put together in a video he held. Our club holds an historical copy of this.

The charisma of the man could be seen in his activities after his retirement. He could be seen regularly helping with the RSA, in the role of visiting and providing support and comfort, and the Masonic Club, in their welfare programs.

Thank you Wynn. You have been an inspiration.

Wynn Craven and Reg Truman the early days.

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Operation

HIGH LATITUDE II

BY ENYA MCPHERSON

On the 11th of April, twenty eight cadets and seven staff from 3 SQN Auckland City joined 20 SQN cadets at a gliding camp named Operation High Latitude II at Whangarei Gliding Club in Puhipuhi.

W

e arrived from Auckland about 9pm on Friday night and pitched our tents - our accommodation for the weekend. Flying on Saturday started at about 8am and continued through till about 5pm. It was perfect weather - a hot, full-on and successful day. Everyone got at least two flights during the weekend. We certainly deserved a swim down at the waterhole to cool off.

Auckland Gliding Club joined in with the gliding antics, bringing up their ASK21 from Drury, to join Whangarei’s gliding fleet of a K13 and Janus. A Cessna 172 flew up from Whenuapai, in which most cadets got a flight, which included a reccie of the Whangarei region and coastline. Cadet Stanaway from 3 squadron said, “The contrast between land and water was absolutely stunning.”

The aim of our camp was to provide an aviation experience to the cadets at an unfamiliar airfield in unfamiliar aircraft.

Each cadet got two or three flights and I can safely say that for many of them, their passion for aviation has increased significantly. Cadet Stevens from No.3 Squadron says, “These flights were the best I have ever had.” He had full control at the top of the winch, until the instructor took over to land. He enjoyed every moment.

A huge thank you to Whangarei and Auckland Gliding Clubs for providing this opportunity to our cadets, for furthering their aviation knowledge and gliding ability and most of all developing their passion for this wonderful sport. Including 23 flights on Sunday, we managed a total of 70 glider launches throughout the weekend.

Thank you to all of those who helped out over the weekend and again, to Whangarei and Auckland gliding clubs for your hospitality and instruction.

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May 2014

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GLIDING NEW ZEALAND CLUB NEWS

CLUB DIRECTORY

Link for club info www.gliding.co.nz/Clubs/Clubs.htm Auckland Aviation Sports Club Club Website www.ascgliding.org Club Contact Peter Thorpe pbthorpe@xtra.co.nz Ph 09 413 8384 Base RNZAF Base Auckland (Whenuapai) 021 146 4288 Flying Weekends, Public Holidays

Norfolk Aviation Sports Club Club Website http://www.geocities.com/norfolkgliding/ Club Contact Kevin Wisnewski wizzbang@xtra.co.nz Ph (06) 756 8289 Base Norfolk Rd Flying Weekends and by appointment

Auckland Gliding Club Club Website www.glidingauckland.co.nz Club Ph (09) 294 8881, 0276 942 942 Club Contact Ed Gray info@glidingauckland.co.nz Base Appleby Rd, Drury Flying Weekends, Wednesdays, Public Holidays

Omarama Gliding Club Club Website http://www.omarama.com Club Contact Yvonne Loader loaders@clear.net.nz Ph (03) 358 3251 Base Omarama Flying 7 days a week by arrangement

Canterbury Gliding Club Club Website www.glidingcanterbury.co.nz Club Contact Kevin Bethwaite kevin.bethwaite@airways.co.nz Ph (03) 318 4758 Base Swamp Road, Springfield Flying Weekends, Public Holidays

Otago/Southland (YouthGlide Omarama) Club Website www.youthglideomarama.org.nz Club Contact Tom Shields tom.shields@century21.co.nz Ph (03) 473 1721 Base Omarama and Dunedin Flying By arrangement

Central Otago Flying Club (Inc) Club Website www.cofc.co.nz Club Contact Phil Sumser phil.sumser@xtra.co.nz Base Alexandra Airport Flying Sundays, and by arrangement

Piako Gliding Club Club Website www.glidingmatamata.co.nz Club Contact Steve Care s.care@xtra.co.nz Ph (07) 843 7654 or 027 349 1180 Base Matamata Airfield, Ph (07) 888 5972 Flying Weekends, Wednesdays and Public Holidays

Glide Omarama.com Website www.GlideOmarama.com Contact Gavin Wills gtmwills@xtra.co.nz Base Omarama Airfield Flying October through April 7 days per week Gliding Hawkes Bay and Waipukurau Club Website www.glidinghbw.co.nz Club Contact E-mail: info@glidinghbw.co.nz, Ph 027 2877 522 Base Hastings Airfield (Bridge Pa) and Waipukurau Airfield (December & February) Flying Sundays and other days by arrangement Gliding Hutt Valley (Upper Valley Gliding Club) Club Contact Wayne Fisk wayne_fisk@xtra.co.nz Ph (04) 567-3069 Base Kaitoke Airfield, (04) 526 7336 Flying Weekends, Public Hols., Mid week by arrangement Gliding Manawatu Club Website www.glidingmanawatu.org.nz Club Contact Ron Sanders Resanders@xtra.co.nz Base Feilding Aerodrome Flying Weekends, Public holidays Gliding Wairarapa Club Website http://www.glidingwairarapa.co.nz/ Club Contact Diana Braithwaite Ph (06) 308 9101 Base Papawai Airfield, 5 km east of Greytown Ph (06) 308 8452 or 025 445 701 Flying Weekends, or by arrangement Hauraki Aero Club Club Website www.flyhac.co.nz Club Contact Ron Bergersen d.rbergersen@xtra.co.nz Ph (027) 277 4238 Base Thames Airfield Flying Weekends and Public Holidays Kaikohe Gliding Club Club Contact Peter Fiske, (09) 407 8454 Email Keith Falla keith@falla.co.nz Base Kaikohe Airfield, Mangakahia Road, Kaikohe Flying Sundays, Thursdays and Public Holidays Marlborough Gliding Club Club Website http://glide_marl.tripod.com Club Contact bmog@paradise.net.nz Base Omaka Airfield, Blenheim Flying Sundays and other days by arrangement Nelson Lakes Gliding Club Club Website www.glidingnelson.co.nz Club Contact Frank Saxton franksaxton@gmail.com Ph (03) 546 6098 Base Lake Station Airfield, St.Arnaud Ph (03) 521 1870 Flying Weekends and Public Holidays

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May 2014

Rotorua Gliding Club Club Website http://www.rotoruaglidingclub.blogspot.co.nz/ Club Contact Mike Foley roseandmikefoley@clear.net.nz Ph (07) 347 2927 Base Rotorua Airport Flying Sundays South Canterbury Gliding Club Club Website www.glidingsouthcanterbury.co.nz Club Contact John Eggers johneggers@xtra.co.nz 33 Barnes St Timaru Base Levels Timaru & Omarama Wardell Field Flying Weekends, Public Holidays & by arrangement Taranaki Gliding Club Club Website www.glidingtaranaki.com Club Contact Peter Williams peter.williams@xtra.co.nz Ph (06) 278 4292 Base Stratford Flying Weekends and Public Holidays Taupo Gliding Club Club Website www.taupoglidingclub.co.nz Club Contact Tom Anderson Tomolo@xtra.co.nz PO Box 296, Taupo 2730 Ph (07) 378 5506 M 0274 939 272 Base Centennial Park, Taupo Flying 7 days a week Tauranga Gliding Club Club Website www.glidingtauranga.co.nz Club President Alan Belworthy a.belworthy@xtra.co.nz Ph 0274 960 748 Base Tauranga Airport Flying Weekends and Public Holidays, Wednesday afternoons and other times on request Wellington Gliding Club Club Website http://www.soar.co.nz Club President Philip Milne milnelaw@gmail.com Ph 021 803 37 Base Paraparaumu Airport Bookings Ph 04 297 1341 (clubhouse) Ph 027 618 9845 (operations) Flying Weekends and Public Holidays 7 days a week December through to March Whangarei District Gliding Club Club Website www.igrin.co.nz/~peter/gliding.htm Club Contact Paul Rockell rockelkaym@xtra.co.nz Base Rockelkaym Ridge, Gibbs Road, Puhi Puhi Flying Weekends and Public Holidays

Guidelines for the compilation and contents of club news articles are now available on the new SoaringNZ website.

Visit www.mccawmedia.co.nz for all you need to know.

The club news is your chance to share with the rest of the country and abroad, some of what makes your club the best gliding club in the world. Club scribes, please watch the deadlines (but we'll make allowances for special circumstances so contact the editor before you panic) and likewise, the word count is supposed to be 300 words to allow everyone to have a say. If you need more words than that, you probably should write a real article about that special event.

Deadline for club news for the next issue 10 August 2014.

AUCKLAND AVIATION SPORTS CLUB This summer has not been as kind to us as last year was, and we have not seen anything like the big cross-country flights we managed a year ago. Still, we have managed some good flights and club activities. We did well from the RNZAF Base Auckland Sportsperson of the Year dinner, with three of our members, Steve Wallace, Ian O’Keefe and Steve Foreman collecting merit awards for their respective efforts.

Air Force flying activities during weekends have sharpened up our work in controlled airspace, as the tower now comes on watch for each movement. The controllers have been excellent and do their best to keep us flying, as well as meet the needs of the airfield owners. Sometimes these activities are simply not conducive to having us around as well. Forewarning of a weekend of military parachute operations saw us decide to go somewhere else. The Auckland Club at Drury were kind enough to invite us to share their weekend and this seemed too good an offer to refuse, especially since they put on a very nice dinner on Saturday night. We aero towed our twin to Drury and trailered the rest. An hour or so of rigging, a quick briefing and we joined in the fun.

Our wee tow plane seemed a little forlorn on the far side of the grid as it started to form.

A couple of tows of our twin and things soon got moving and we joined in with the Pawnee to clear the grid. We did well towing to the south, including towing the ASK21 with the same tow time as our twin.

We had a great time with the Drury Club, with many of our members getting great flights on Saturday. Gary Patten got his winch and ASK21 rating. Many thanks to

Auckland Aviation Sports Club: Pugsy handover.

Auckland Aviation Sports Club: Launch at Drury.

the Drury folks for the hospitality and most enjoyable weekend.

Steve Foreman relinquished the Pugsy landout trophy to Jonathan Pote, then ensured he would not get it back for a while by having an undercarriage collapse on the landing roll. Progressive wear and damage over the years was the cause and KP has been out of action for some time waiting for new parts. Not long now Steve and you can have the Pugsy back.

GL

AUCKLAND I have to start this with sad news. On the 19th of January, Trent Miller died, shortly after launching in his ASW20 – Delta Foxtrot.

Our hearts and condolences go out to Trent’s wife, family and friends – he was a genuinely nice guy. This was a terrible day for all of us.

It’s now late summer and well into autumn, and our club has had a very busy season. Back in mid-December we hosted some visiting Hungarian friends who have been able to assist us with mid-week operations. The three guests – Csaba, Milan & Veronica are now well known to our members and many of us have become close friends over the last four months.

Not only have they created much needed activity and utilisation, they are excellent instructional, cross country and competition pilots. It has been a pleasure having them around and we will miss them.

AGC support of the Multi-Class Nationals was great, with thirteen members partaking in the event in varying amounts.

We congratulate Steve Wallace and Brett Hunter, winners of their respective classes.

During the same period we normally have our Xmas camp which, while not as popular as some years, was still very much enjoyed by those who attended. Congratulations to Kelly Rankin, who soloed at Matamata in between the busy competition goings on.

Thanks to Seamus Breen, for helping by representing AGC outside of the competition activities.

Returning to our own field, we soon had a couple more pilots complete Diamond Goal – we congratulate Campbell McIver in GT and Paul Knight in VM. We trialled a microlight tow plane, thanks to Doug King, the importer of the Foxbat 100HP model.

Ian Williams is researching the future developments using these aircraft which are lighter but less expensive to operate.

The Drury Comps were run over two weekends, a four day and a two day period. We only managed four days and two of those were difficult and challenging.

However the attendance of 17 entrants again showed the Drury Comp to be hugely successful. The last day of flying down our West coast provided a perfect introduction to South Auckland flying.

We farewell David Hirst (CFI), who moves down to the Wairarapa – bugger! – What an asset David has been and will still be to whoever is lucky enough to get him into their gliding scene. Welcome and thanks to Jonathon Cross, who has taken the CFI job on with enthusiasm and competence.

Our Cloud based recording system has revealed some awesome data. Thanks to Neil Harker for devising the ‘Go Glide’ system. For example, in the last 12 months we have flown 186 days out of a possible 365, we had 7334 aircraft movements on

our field and around half were aerotow, while the rest, of course, were winch launches.

These and other accurate statistics are invaluable for a variety of reasons.

The remaining summer and autumn days have been really busy with BBQ’s and events. The visit from Auckland Aviation Sports Club was excellent, with good sunny cross-country flights being achieved, as well as lots of fun flying locally. I hope they had fun, as we really enjoyed our North Auckland cousins coming down for a great weekend.

Also, congratulations for an excellent flight

by Doug Henry, who flew to eight Mile Junction and then west to Wharepapa South, circumnavigating the large Hamilton Airspace. We also have hosted around 30 plus Captain Musick Air Scouts and Cubs, who camped on the field. It was a busy but successful weekend.

So, it’s not quite over yet but it is good to have had lots of activity and good weather this season, so far.

RG

CANTERBURY Changeable weekend weather over the last few months has frustrated much of our activity, but many members are making good flights when thing do improve. Most of the activity has been carried out alongside work to improve the site, plus normal maintenance like mowing grass. (Your editor now has a ride-on mower rating.)

Pete Royle and Lex McPhail have been improving the webcams, of which there are now three. The main one shows the hangar and looks north, the next north east and the third south east, all sited near or on the house. Eventually, the website will give more information such as wind and temperatures.

Pete has installed a solar panel on the control caravan roof, which supplies the power required to run the radio, computer and recharge the phone. This has saved having to lug a huge battery to the hangar for recharging each day. Another big job was carried out with a working bee to dispose of the club house, which had been blown off its stands and wrecked by hurricane force winds earlier in the summer.

Warwick Bethwaite has begun making

May 2014

69

CLUB NEWS

Gliding Hawkes Bay and Waipukurau: L: Convergence heading north towards Hastings. M: Lake Poukaw from thermals. R: Foxbat microlight.

another shed bird-proof, so members don’t have to keep cleaning the winch and fuel tanker of droppings.

On a recent Saturday, the junior members gathered to demonstrate their skills at cutting toilet paper and spot landing. Older members also took part and all enjoyed a lovely sunny day with a bit of soaring thrown in.

Members were shocked and saddened at the tragic accident to tow-pilot Martin Lowen. The last few days also saw the passing of our Patron and dear friend Dick Georgeson. Our sincere sympathies and thoughts are with their families.

Stewart

GLIDING HAWKES BAY AND WAIPUKURAU The club has operated from both its Hastings and Waipukurau sites during the summer, with a number of soaring flights between the two sites. Unfortunately, overall the weather has not been very co-operative, with flying days limited by unsuitable weather.

On the flyable days, there has been some great flying weather, with Club Captain Mike Richardson claiming both his five hour endurance flight and Silver height gain in the same thermal flight from Waipukurau.

Club secretary Jason Kelly has used wave in further attempts at his 50 km and gold height gains.

Our Youth Trial flight program has started, with a number of students from William Colenso College in Napier receiving subsidised trial flights in early March. Other youth initiatives are still in progress as the club continues to grapple with membership numbers.

The club also now has a Facebook presence, in addition to its own webpage, thanks to Mike Richardson.

Club President Gerrit van Asch has temporarily stepped aside due to health issues. Vice-president Graham White is taking up the reins in the interim.

February’s Central Districts Gliding Championships saw a good number of entrants, with enjoyable flying. Hopefully they will spread the word and we will see even more pilots at next year’s event.

We had a demonstration of the Foxbat microlight as a tow plane, with encouraging results. As the tow plane is the club’s major cost, it is an area the club needs to research and consider fully, to ensure any decision best meets current and forecast needs.

The club tow plane CPD is finally back in the air and the club looks forward to some great autumn soaring.

NELSON LAKES We’ve had a rather good and busy time over the past month or so. First we had the Ab-Initio course in mid-February. It was run

by Jeremy, Jerry and Frank, with many other tireless helpers, including John Robinson from Alexandra. They flew all week without a break. Alex Rutherford and Penny Mackay went solo, and Alex is now in the single Astir NH and has already had an hour solo flight in it. Robin Whalley and Nick Saxton aren’t too far away from solo.

Then, hot on the heels of that week came the Flying week and Club Class Nationals. It

Nelson Lakes: Frank

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May 2014

was a marvellous week and fantastic to host such a great crowd in our neck of the woods.

We had over 26 gliders, which is some sort of record. It all went very smoothly, with three handy tugs on the field and the flying week guys getting some great flights in, as well as the comp. guys. There were some big yarns in the Alpine Lodge at night, over pizza and beer. Marc prowled the ridges in his Skylark 2 BX. Karen Morgan had a bit of a soft spot for BX from the good old Taupo days and took it for a spin. Karen and Terry Jones now have a new glider for their quiver.

Nick finished his QGP at Omarama, so he returned with that and he has started to stretch out in YK. Ken turned up and took CX into the wild blue yonder to Tapi and back. Pete, April, Landon, George and Kerry all had good flights over the week. Massive thanks go to Mike Strathern for running the week and also to all the club members that helped out. It was a great thing for the club to do and we are so much better off for it, so thanks everyone who came and made it such a good time.

After that week, some returned home with what appeared to be a gliding hangover.

We have had some good club days since, with good turn outs. Jonathan Westenra has

CLUB NEWS

Nelson Lakes: TH on St Arnaud Range

joined the club and went solo in six flights.

He does fly for Air NZ though but still, a very fine effort. His son Jack and a couple of mates, Ethan and Hayden, alongside April’s son Ben, have started what looks to be the early days of Youth Glide Nelson, under the steady hand of Mike Strathern. It’s great to see some young scallywags up there. The club is in fine fettle, the gliders are all tip top but the days have suddenly got shorter, so we will slowly start to settle into the winter regime.

Flight Sergeant Sink

Nelson Lakes:

TARANAKI The winch had been working well for us on a regular basis but that stopped last Sunday, March 30th. The gearbox began to make some noise, then a lot more and then no noise at all. It had stopped completely. At the moment it is being repaired and hopefully it will be back in business for April 5th and 6th, when we fly members of the NP and Inglewood ATC squadrons - about 40 cadets in all.

The microlight tow ratings have come through for Tim Hardwick-Smith and Jim Finer and their little blue plane has been doing some good work. Perhaps the best was on March 2nd, which turned out to be a boomer, with cross-country flights in all directions.

Taranaki Anniversary Day was notable, in that Tim, trundling around the area in his Discus (as is his want), noticed a fire in a pine-tree plantation. The authorities were eventually persuaded to come and they were involved the rest of the day and all that night.

A front-page picture of a beaming Tim and the Astir appeared in the paper the next day.

Thanks to Justin Wonderlick and to Powerco, for the donation of equipment needed to set up a weather webcam at the airfield. Some good long fights on the 23rd rounded off the month of good soaring flights.

The value of a tow plane for putting pilots and their glider where they needed to be is now not lost on pilots.

PJM

Taranaki: Jordan Sunnex of Stratford ATC squadron with instructor Peter Williams just before take off.

Taranaki: Tim Hardwick-Smith – fire spotter.

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CLUB NEWS

Taupo: New rails

Taupo: Graham came to visit

Taupo: Vintage Beauty

TAUPO

in. Three young men broke into three of the hangars. Luckily, no damage was caused to any of the aircraft. They were caught the same day and the stolen gear returned, however, we now have to improve our security.

With only one disappointing aspect, the last couple of months have been enjoyable and we look forward to making the most of the flying conditions before winter sets in.

Until next time.

Trace

It is hard to believe that summer has been and gone and winter is just around the corner. Over the last couple of months we have been enjoying the conditions and there have been some good flights.

Vintage Kiwi came back to Taupo again to spend a week with us, and everyone had a great time, not only flying but catching up and socialising. There was also a visit to the field by some other beautiful vintage aircraft during that week.

Trev Terry and Hugh de Lautour went to Waipukurau for the Central Districts Championships. Although task setting was difficult, some good days were had.

Denis and Sid have now returned to their home countries after spending another summer with us and we hope to see them here again next year.

Our new solo pilots are progressing well towards obtaining their QGP rating and enjoying their flying. We also had Graham White come over from Hawkes Bay to visit and enjoy some different scenery.

A major new improvement was completed at the club with a working bee.

A few members laid new tracks in front of the single seater hangar. This has now eliminated the problem that we had with the trolleys running off the rails when the gliders were moved in and out.

The 5th and 6th of April will once again see the club being used as a check point for this year’s Oxfam walk. We wish all participants the very best for their 100km task and expect that they will enjoy TGC hospitality.

On a disappointing note, we had a break

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May 2014

TAURANGA The Tauranga Club has had a productive few months since the last magazine report.

Some good cross-country flights were achieved from Tauranga field; the Waikato and Coromandel offering some good excursions for those keen to have a crack at it.

Tauranga:

We ran our twilight flying programme again in Feb/March to boost some of our students along – the conditions usually being great for some after works flights. Some of the club members also used the time for aerobatic flights or just to enjoy some flight in the fading light of the day. Hopefully the locals weren’t too harassed by the tow plane doing the extra hours overhead.

A well organised (and catered) working bee was done a few weeks ago to give the aircraft and hangar some love. Long overdue and the results reflected the effort.

We’re fortunate to have some fantastic assets. Keeping them in good condition takes time, but it is all worth it.

Our next focus is on the club's 60th anniversary bash, happening on the weekend of June 20-22nd.

Our prize giving dinner at Classic Flyers is going to be included, with guest speaker Glenn Martin

CLUB NEWS

Taupo: Looking at Mt Tauhara

of the Martin Jetpack Company. The BBQ will be hot and there’ll be plenty of flying on offer for past and current members…good weather would be rather handy!

WELLINGTON The summer is coming to an end and we have had a great one, although the weather gods took some time to figure that

glider pilots could do without too much of the cloud cover or strong easterlies. The summer crew on flying days were often at full capacity, and the busiest day of the summer was actually a weekday.

The club’s full cockpit simulator was thrashed so much that the server finally spat the dummy, much to the consternation of everyone who was lined up to ‘fly’. After

a full rebuild, it is back in action and plays a huge role in showing students and trial flighters what can be done.

Another interesting development is that we have hooked up an old android phone to the cockpit, and run the free ‘Tophat’ flight computer software. Being able to pause the simulator and go through what the flight computer is showing is priceless.

There appears to be an increasing number of Samsung Galaxy notes appearing in cockpits around the club.

The club also had a great weekend away at Papawai, Greytown, and the break without the Paraparaumu ‘Colditz’ wire and rules showed the fun side of gliding operations.

Ross

Wellington: 'Colditz'.

Wellington: Kapiti Island and ASW 20 from Paikak lookout.

Wellington: rear view of DG1000 from Paikak lookout.

Wellington: DG at Paikak lookout note the Paraparaumu high vis vest for safety.

May 2014

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F OR S A L E • WA N T E D • S E R V IC E S • E V E N T S

We take our classifieds list from the GNZ website and from ads detailed with us personally. To update your ad, please go online or advise Hadley Bognuda, our webmaster. Ads notified to me will appear on this page but we are unable to make changes for you on the web page. Please contact the webmaster if your item sells.

GLIDERS ASK 13 • Seriously for sale. Can be delivered with fresh annual inspection.

King KY97A com, Borgelt B40 electric vario with rear seat repeater. New winch hook and tailplane fittings installed at last annuals. Make me an offer and fly away from Matamata. This glider will be sold!! Further details, please contact Alan, 0274 960 748 or a.belworthy@xtra.co.nz Libelle 201b, GIU • #579 out of 601 made. 2358 hours 1688 launches (20 August) O2, Transponder, 6 channel Tait radio, Borgelt B40 vario, Chute, Trailer. Good original finish. Annuals currently underway. $20K. Phone Paul 021 331 838

Glider DG 300 Elan • GOZ Full panel. Road trailer. $45,000 or near offer.

Apply to Errol Shirtliff. Phone 03 526 8724 or email shirtliff@xtra.co.nz Standard Cirrus GJK, serial number 484G • Has three varios including a Borgelt B40. King aviation radio, Terra Transponder, colibri flight logger, oxygen, parachute and tow out gear. Trailer is well set up, glider goes into trailer in a raise/lower cradle that can be done single handed. Gel coat in very good condition, glider condition in general is good. Good club class glider that is cheap to run and has no parts register fees to pay each year. $24,000 ono. Phone Kerry on 03 526 8584 or 027 334 4176.

DG200 GLZ • 15 meter with wingtip extensions to 17m making 45.5:1 LD. Gel coat in good condition. Flies very well with new annual. Brand new Becker radio, EDS Oxygen (no transponder or parachute). Good solid trailer and ground handling equipment. Reconditioned tost hook and new rudder bearings this last annual. Priced to sell $24,000. Owner retiring from gliding. Contact Robert Wallace email robo@actrix.co.nz

Cobra 15, ZK-GJE • In good condition with a refurbished trailer. Easy to fly and fully aerobatic with a 38:1 glide ratio, comparable with a Libelle or Standard Cirrus. Includes tow out gear, Borgelt B40 vario and a parachute.

Price now dropped to $9,995! Contact Russell Jones on 09 575 9788 or email:prismconsult@gmail.com

ASW15B, ZK-GKB, #15425 • Very good condition, blue tinted canopy, basic instruments including electric vario, transponder and Becker AR 4201 radio. Two tow hooks – belly and nose, twin batteries. Excellent trailer with new galvanised chassis, will be sold with new ARA, and current trailer WOF and Regn Price – All reasonable offers will be considered Contact kloch@xtra.co.nz, 0274 953 674

ASH 25, ZK-GXZ • Placed 1st and 2nd in Open Class at last two Omarama New Zealand nationals (with a little bit of help from the pilot) 1,700 hours.

Serial no: 25016, the lightest Ash to come out of the factory. Instruments: Glide computer Ilec SM10B, Becker radio, O2 EDS, 25.6 winglets, transponder, 4 water ballast bags, 1 parachute. Trailer: Aluminium Top Cobra Tandem wheel, tows extremely well. Cobra lifting tail dolly. NZ$150,000.

Hangar space also available in Omarama to fit the ASH (35m) - right next to the airstrip. Contact: Garry Wakefield, phone +64 3 357 8995, or email garry@investment.co.nz

DG 800b Self Launch • ZK GUP, Built 1998, Solo 2625 engine, airframe 810 hrs, Eng 105 hrs, Cambridge GPS NAV & PNA running SeeYou. LD 50:1 + with 18m winglets. All Ads complied. Service History available, NZ Sailplanes (Mike Strathern). 15m & 18m tips. Cobra trailer. Mountain High oxygen. One man rigging equipment, tail dolly, wing walker. Disc Brake conversion kit available but not yet fitted. Can arrange shipping to Australia if required. NZD $158,000. Contact Kerry Greig 021 857 066 or email kerrygreig@hotmail.com

Ka6-CR L/D max • 31:1 at 80 kph /43 kt. GLR annuals and new paper work completed on 20/12/2012. Basic instruments and excellent road trailer. $6,850 or near offer. Call Simon Lillico Phone 04 4797 123 or email slillico@gmail.com ASW15, ZK-GGO • S/N 15069. Microair radio and transponder. Cambridge 302 DDV and 303 nav screen. $15,000 ono. ph 0274972723, g_gaddes@ xtra.co.nz.

Sagitta, ZK-GDO • All wood & rags, built for performance not for comfort!

Keeps up with anything wood, plus PW’s and Astirs on a good day. For the vintage enthusiast - $5,000 with current rego and annuals. Come on then, you know you want one, and I need to finance a Duo share ;-) Email robert@smits.co.nz ASH 25m, ZK-GYJ • $160,000 ONO. Extension wing tips, 26m Cobra alloy trailer, self-rigging gear and all tow out equipment inc 2 wing wheels. All weather wing and tail covers, engine time 54hrs airframe 1350 hrs 15 ltr. wing fuel tank. Two parachutes, MH duel oxy system, standard instruments plus SN10 computer/vario 2 15amph batteries + 2 engine batteries.

Leather upholstery, tinted canopies, always hangared at Omarama. Contact david.mairi@xtra.co.nz 03 409 8380 Sailplane Slingsby T41 Skylark 2b. GBX. Fresh annuals as of 30th September, basic instruments and Mode C transponder. Ready for the season and ready to go. Road trailer wof and reg’d. Offers. Contact Marc Edgar 027 206 2672 or 03 542 2027 for details.

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May 2014

Ventus CT – TX, TT • approx 1700hrs, Engine 38hrs, flies like a dream, very straight glider, new Trig transponder fitted, new parachute, Dittel Radio, Borgelt vario, trailer tows well, recently overhauled, price $110,000 negotiable, phone Conal on 021 183 9359, email conal@rcsed.ac.uk Speed Astir 2B – ZK-GUB • Flapped 15m; 40:1; approx 2000hrs; Oxygen (A8A); Microair radio; transponder; 2 varios; good trailer; gelcoat in good condition; slim-pack parachute; excellent first glider and competitive club-class machine; hanagared Omarama; reluctantly selling after 20yrs; reasonable offers; email Paul Barrett at paullinda@xtra.co.nz or phone 03 318 1331 (evenings) ASW 20CL: ZK-GRA 1984 • Serial Number: 20772, 15M & Optional 16.6m Tip Extentions, Tinted Canopy with Tilt-up Panel, Disc brake & Tailwheel, Blow Turbulators, Factory Ballast Bags, Transponder & oxygen system, Cambridge 302 DDV & 303 Nav, Full ‘Tow-out’ Gear, Annuals due Nov 2013, (also have ASW 20 Winglets for this glider available, price negotiable) 1600 Hours, asking $59,000. Trailer locally built, Clam-type (composite top) in tidy overall condition. Richard Downer richard.downer@xtra.co.nz Ph: 0064 6 364 5767

HANGARS Two adjacent 18m hangar spaces in the Omarama Hangar • $30,000 each or near offer. Contact Mike Hamilton Phone: (03) 962 1530 email: mike.hamilton@hamjet.co.nz.

GNZ members are eligible for one free non-commercial classified advertisement per issue.

Deadline for receipt of advertising for our September issue is 20 August 2014.

Hangar space, 15m, east hangar at Omarama • Asking $1500/m or reasonable offer. Contact Linda vindaloulou@gmail.com, 03 348 7009 or 021 071 8402 Hangar Space 15 m at Omarama • We need the cash for new toys so here’s the deal, $1500 per metre. First in gets a bargain. Call Paul on 021 1622396 or Nigel on 027 2741624 or email pchisnall@xtra.co.nz Hangar spaces for sale in Omarama • 20m and or 15m next to the runway. $1,800pm ONO. Both in the most eastern hangar. Contact: Garry Wakefield, phone +64 3 357 8995, or email garry@investment.co.nz 20 Metre space in latest and greatest private lock-up hangar on Omarama Airfield • Secure (complete lock-up), convenient (nearest space to Kahu Cafe). Water. power, painted floor. Great neighbours. Absolutely one of the best slots at Omarama. Contact: david.p.laing@gmail.com, 0274 340 074 Hangar Space – right to occupy, for sale • A space in the Canterbury Gliding Club’s new Springfield hangar. This state of the art hangar is in a prime position on the field, giving easy access to the main vector. Springfield has been developed as the long term home of the CGC and provides access to some of the best soaring in NZ and is active all year round.

The purchaser will need to maintain membership of the club, one of the strongest and most progressive in NZ. Contact John 021 2234 911.

connector, temperature probe, Garmin GPS and PS5a to Oudie connection. $950. Contact Nick – Nick7k@Outlook.com.

Nelson Lakes GC land out books • covering airstrips north of Hanmer, $30 ea. Contact Nick – Nick7k@Outlook.com.

Winch • Disassembled. Powered by 350 Chevy with auto transmission.

Tandem axle. Road registerable. Located in Auckland. The estate of the late Mark Ford invite expressions of interest. Contact Paul Knight @ 09 238 9827 or 027 628 8077 Ilec SN10 & Vario plus Oz Flarm • Perfect for your club single seater or upgrade your existing L Nav to something much better providing accurate wind, final glide, airspace and much more. Reliable and accurate compared with PDA’s and only $1500 for both ( or sell separately ). Plus option to purchase especially adapted ILec USB for $300 to save taking your laptop to the glider for downloading flights or uploading turnpoints. Contact Martyn Cook martyn@actrix.co.nz Chalet partially built • Make an offer etc David Craill raymar@vodafone. co.nz Glider Trailer for sale • New Zealand built enclosed road trailer fitted for ASW20A. Currently at Auckland Gliding Club. $4000. Roy Innes, email roy. innes.nz@gmail.com or phone 021 069 7406.

OTHER FOR SALE

Personalised Plates: SØARING (Fly the High Way) • I will consider any reasonable offer and can be contacted at my e-mail dhcd@nowmail.co.nz

Second hand Accusat MT410 406/121.5 Mhz Personal locator beacon • (Non GPS type) Battery due replacement July 2014. $350 ono Contact Lionel Page, Aviation Sports Club, 021 333 031

Volkslogger 1.0 SN 1A4 Hardware: 3.4 • Plus power cord. $650.00 or near offer. Contact Brian Mogford Ph 03 572 9902 evenings or email: bmog@ clear.net.nz for further details.

Metric Winter ASI and Altimeter • Both in excellent condition. ASI=$300.

Altimeter=$600. Both=$800. Contact Matt Findlay sgt_findlay@hotmail. com

HP iPaq HX4700 with faulty charge socket • Has USB cradle and battery that lasts for approx 1 hour. Has been used previously with XC Soar software. Free to a good home, ideally someone else with an iPaq that needs parts (e.g. battery, screen, cradle, memory card etc), so they can make a working one. The stylus is missing, but the hx4700 is ‘meat stylus’ compatible. Interested parties should e-mail pete@fiberphone.co.nz.

Pawnee Pawnee PA25-235 ZK-RWS S/N 25-2161 • Engine 250HP out of hours (can be ground run), total airframe hours 5558, fuselage stripped, repainted and rebagged September 2010, as is located at Stratford. Offers.

For any further details contact Les Sharp 06 753 4227 lesue@ihug.co.nz.

Cambridge 302 and 303 set. Both instruments are in great condition. GPS Antenne, handbook, and all cables included Price $2300 including postage R.Drake@inbox.com 2 x Redbox Flarm devices • including SD card readers, Antenne and all cables needed to mount. Both devices are IGC certified $1200 including postage. R.Drake@inbox.com Cambridge LNAV and GPS-NAV logger both at the latest upgrade versions • Good condition, unmarked instrument faces. Complete with capacity flask, antennae, all necessary cables. Only changing as I now have the Clear Nav agency. $1200 the lot. Roger Sparks ph. 0274956560 or email r.sparks@ xtra.co.nz

Photo John McCaw

Blood Oxygen reader • A little finger tip one. Take the guess work out of hypoxia. A modern must-have for wave flying. This one is a hard to get Liquid Crystal Display unit which means it is really easy to read in bright sunlight. Runs off two AA batteries. See pictures at http://tinyurl.com/ nx2lwtt Bran new. $80 incl gst and freight. Contact Frank at: franksaxton@gmail.com SN10b • with 2 Raz vario meters, remote control, instrument panel

May 2014

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QUINTUS BETTER BY

design

Sailplane Services Congratulate the winners of the NZ Nationals: Grae Harrison, Champion in Open and 18m Class in his Ventus 2cxT, George Wills, Champion Std Class in Discus 2c and Vaughan Ruddick, Champion Std Class in the LS6.

Please contact us for servicing onsite at our Omarama workshop.

Sailplane Services Ltd email ross@sailplaneservices.co.nz phone 09 294 7324