USHGA Hang Gliding June 1977

FORMERLY GROUND SKIMMER MAGAZINE

ONE DOLLAR JUNE 1977

THE SECRETS OUTt (BUT IT'S PROTECTED)

PHOENIX B 1

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PROUDLY PRESENTS

HANG GLIDER RESERVE PARACHUTE SYSTEM Think for a moment!

You know you need a reserve system. It's not a luxury item, but a necessity! UP's BACKeUP is the best available, clearly outstripping the competition.

Weight: 4.8 lbs.

Canopy Size and Shape: 24' conical canopy with mods [vents] to insure stable, straight descent. 360 ft. 2 area.

Superior Design: The UP model uses a deployment bag, which prevents both entanglement and accidental deployment, the two great potential hazards of any other hang glider reserve system.

Sink Rate: weight].

16 - 19 FPS [dependent on pilot

The competition will soon copy us, to be sure.

What's new? UP had it "in the bag" from the start!

So ...

think before you buy- buy before you fly.

UP p/lot Scott Weiner displays deployment bag used in the Back•UP.

Contact UP for complete information on the new BACKeUP parachute system.

GET UP... WITH THE PROFESSIONALS! UP, Inc. [Ultralite Products] P.O. Box 582G Temecula Ca., 92390 USA [714] 676-5652

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ASG-21

by ALBATROSS SAILS

One of the best, all-around, FAI Class II Sail Gliders for the 1977 competition season.

J'ltut11 af J..:l'ith ,\ 'it-lu>ls takl'll by /Jim• I- reel o} F/1gl1t H,•uliLII'~.

If you'd like a 20'' span, Albatross bird logo, made of adhesive backed, black vinyl, send $1.00 plus 25q; for postage & handling.

AREN'T YOU READY TO MOVE UP??

Consider moving up to the rugged durability, the penetration, & the ease of handling that this modern, high-performance Sail Glider can provide. A machine that's so light & easy to handle, it's really a joy to fly.

There's more than just the pleasure of flying the ASG-21. There's the SECURITY of flying one. You know that you're hooked into one of the strongest frames built today.

With a crossbar of 1 7 /8" X .058", 6061-T6, & all other spars being 1%" X .035", 2024-T3, the ASG-21 can withstand some of the most severe turbulence you're likely to encounter.

ASG-20

ALBATROSS SAILS P.O. Box 192 Solana Beach, CA 92075 (714) J.55-7000

Just starting?? The ASG-20 is just the thing!

Docile & responsive & easy to learn on.

For n1ore inf or ma lion & a free brochure, contacl your local dealer or wrile the factory direct:

ISSUE NO. 53 EDITOR: Rich Grigsby CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Carol Price EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS: Sharon Grigsby, Phil Warrender ILLUSTRATIONS & LAYOUT: Mork Allison STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS: W. A. Allen, Leroy Grannis, Bettina Gray, Stephen Mccarroll OFFICE STAFF MANAGER: Carol Velderraln Cathy Coleman. Janet Meyer.

Miriam Durkee USHGA OFFICERS PRESIDENT: Vic Powell VICE PRESIDENT: Vern Roundtree SECRETARY: Kay Brake TREASURER: Lloyd Llc!'ler USHGA REGIONAL DIRECTORS REGION 1: Vern Roundtree. Jeff Johnson.

RE.G!ON 2: Wall',' Andelson. Jan Case. RE· GION 3: Lloyd Llcher, Dan Poynter. John Lake, Alex Duncan. REGION 4: Steve Thorne. Lucky Campbell. REGION 5: Dan Levalley. REGION 6: James Cruce. REGION 7: Mike Zlaskas. REGION 8: Tom Peghiny.

REGION 9: Vic Powell. Dennis Pagan. REGI ON 10: Skip Smith. REGION 11: David Broyles. REGION 12: Jim Aronson.

DIRECTORS-At-LARGE: REGION 6: Kay Broke. REGION 8: BIii Allen. Don McCabe.

REGION 10: John Horris. Horry Robb HONORARY DIRECTOR: Hugh Morton. EX OFFICIO 01 RECTOR of USHGA as we are a division of NAAc General Brooke Allen.

The United States Hong Gliding Association. Inc.. Is a division of the National Aeronautic Association (NAAJ which Is the official U.S. representative of the FE)deratlon AeronaullqUEI Internationale (FAI), fhe world governing body for sport aviation.

The NAA. which represents the U.S. of FAI meetings. has delegated to the USHGA supervision of FAl-related hang gilding ocflvllies such as record attempts and competition sanctions.

HANG GLIDING magazine Is published tor hong gilding sport enfl'luslos~ to eteote fVrther lnleresl In the spor1. by a means of open communleolfon and to advance hong gliding methodS ond sorely. Contributions ore welcome. Anyone Is In· lliled to conlribute ortlcles. photos. ond lllustro· tlons concerning hong glldlng ac«vltles. ti !he molerlol Is to be returned. o stomped. selfaddressed relum envelope must be enclosed.

HANG GLIDING magazine resetves the right lo edit contributions where necessary. The Assoclo· lion and pubtloolion do not assume responslblllty for 1he material or opinions of contrlbulors.

HANG GLIDING magazine Is published monthly by the United Stoles Hong Gliding A.$soclotlon.

Inc whose moillog address Is P.O. Box 66306, Los Angeles. Calif. 90066 ond whose olflces ore looo1ed at l1312V, Venice Blvd .. Los Angeles. Coll!.

90066; telephooe (21:)) 390-3065. Second-class postage Is PQld or Los Angeles. Coll!. HANG GLIDING rnogozlne Is ptlnled by S1nc1o1r Printing & Utho. Alhambra, Coll! Subscription Is available only as part of membe<shlp In the USHGA. o member-controlled eduoallonol ond solentlllc orgonlzotlon dedicated to e)(ploring oil tocefs of "1!ollght flight Me~lp Is open IO o,wooe In· tetesloo In this reo1mo(f11gi1. Dues tor lull ~ I p ore S15 per yea (S16 for foreign odd<esses); ciJes tbr Ass9Cf01e ITl&IT\bel$hlp ore SlO per year. of whloh S7 cr:e designated tor slbsalptlon to HANG GLIDING mogozlne. Changes o( oddress Should be sent sbl weel<s In odvonc». lncludng name. USHGA membership nl.mber. P!evfous and new oddtess. ond o molflng label from o recent 1$SU9.

Total paid clrculatlon for the April Issue was 9500

JUNE 1977

HAIIIG GllDIIIIG CONTENTS FEATURES

18 NEW ENGLAND FAA/USHGA MEETING ON POWERED HANG GLIDERS-PART II Transcripts edited by BIii Allen

22 THE ALMOST NORTH POLE HANG GLIDING EXPEDITION

by Boris Popov Where only the south wind blows.

26 HOW TO FLY TURBULENCE

by Chrts Price

Pilots named "Do It Rlghr' and "Do if Wrong" reveal their flying secrets and follies respectively.

28 EASTERN BREEZES-CLINCH MOUNTAIN FLYING FESTIVAL

by Don Johnson

A cross-country flyer's paradise opens up In the Southeast.

30 TRIMMING TECHNIQUES

by Dennis Pagen

The art of fine tuning your glider explained In detail.

34 FORTY-FOUR MILES

by Tony De Rosa

Tony's pernonal account of a remarkable X-C thermal flight.

37 STRUCTURAL TESTING

by Jim W9lker

Taking It to fhe limits and beyond.

40 SAFETY AND INSTRUCTION

by Mike Meler

A conscientious lnstrucfor discusses attitudes. teaching methods and equipment.

44 SAIL GLIDER PERFORMANCEPROBLEMS AND POTENTIALS

by Bob Ormiston

Drag reduction discussed as the next Important step In improving performance

48 1976 ACCIDENT SUMMARY

by R. V. WIiis

DEPARTMENTS

4 4 10 12 12 15 60 65 67

ULTRALIGHT CONVERSATION INDEX TO ADVERTISERS ULTR ALIGHT NEWS AERO-INNOVATIONS CONSUMER INFORMATION CALENDAR CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING STOLEN WINGS FLYING BULL bv 0111 Allen

COVER: Mike Arrambide. 76 Moster·s Cha~lon, launches Elpper's new OJmulus 10 Into the smooth winds of Torrey. Elpper's President. Steve Wilson looks on after assisting launch.

This month's cover was donated by Efpper. Photo by Sfephen McCarroll.

CONSUMER ADVISORY: Hong Gliding Magazine and USHGA. Inc.• do not endorse or toke any responsiblllty for the products advertised or mentioned editorially within these pages. Unless speclflcally expla ined. performance figures quoted In advertising ore only estimates. Persons considering the purchase of a gilder ore urged to study HGMA standards.

Copyright© United States Hang Gliding Association. Inc. 1977. All rights reserved to Hang Gliding Magazine and lndlvlduol contributors.

qLTKALIQMT CONVEKJATION

helpcd-m his endeavor by your acc,dent reports and letters which in turn may save another pilot who had indeed learned from the mistakes of others.

Kendall Hopkins Hillsborough, Californid

Certifying Parachutes Harshly Worded Accusations Dear Editor, Lately it i, almost impossible to p,ck up dny

issue of Hang Gliding or Glider Rider without running across letters to the respective editor, with harshly worded accusation, against other pilots, companies, theories, or the sport in gen-

f:ral. What happened to the mellow sport of a few years back?

I should like to add res, myself to Miley Paul Hollman's recent Letter to the Editor. {H.G. Apr.

77). In his first paragraph he states that he had witnessed the tragic accident of lee Sterios. He then goes on to state that the ASG-18 was his kite, and he had many hours flying this piece of equipment. Additionally, h,;- is obviously a

highly qualified pilot and an articulate individual. He is apparently knowledgeable about both materials and technology. In summation, he is a highly riual1fied witness. With these credentials, why didn't Mr. Hollman sit down and write a comprehensive Jccident report and send ,t to Mr. R. V. Wills, who when would have had an excellent account by a qualified witness of thi, highly controversial accident. Had Mr.I lollman take11 that course of action it wpuld have re,ulted in a far greater benefit to the sport of hang glidirig thJn the beriefit g,1111ed by his letter coridemning Mr. Wills arid Glider Rider.

Actually, mariy of Mr. Hollmari's views are well taken. I agree with him about that inappropriate statement at the end of the accident report (HG, Dec. 76) about kites built from kits and the lack of proper tuning and tcsti ng. At this point i11 time, with the facts available, the statement was definite conjecture and not in keeping with Mr. Wills' excellent reporting in the past.

A brief word about accidents in general. In any form of man's flight, be it sailplaning. sky diving, flyirig on a commercial airline, cropdusting, etc. accidents a,e goirig to happen.

These are tragic accidents with inJury, or permanent disability, or loss uf life. The sport of hang gliding 1s no different, only the odds.

There will be acciderits, there will he deaths.

This is a fact that must be faced. We can, however, improve the odds through educ<1tion, technology, and awarenes,. Accident reporting and review must be a part of this awareness.

Mr. Wills and those who help him, have done an outstanding job in this area over the years. A thankless job at best, prone to negative reaction, st;eond guessing and ridicule by those who wish to close their eyes to ha rig gliding accidents. We learn, or hopefully should learn, from the mistakes of others, tragic though those mistakes often arc. We cannot close our eyes to these mistakes and accidents, we must learn from them. lntelligerit, in depth, factual accident reports are the foundation upon which accident investigations arc built. Unfortunately, we have no professional accident investigators we can send to the scene, no estab1ished boards of inriuiry, no testin-g laboratories, no accident review boards, only one man doing a job to the best of his ability,

4

Dear Editor, Our parachute (the Mark II vcr,ion) is currently going through TSO certification. As ;·ou are probably aware of, T.5.0. {Technical StandJrd Order) is the certification of the FAA that the product meets rigid specificatio11s and testing requirements. We, at Windhaven, are taking the responsibility of making sure people who buy our product receive the safety and quc1lity that a T.S.O.'ed emergency pdrachute affords.

Since no one person invented the parachute, nor came up with the idea, and parachutes have been associated with aircraft for years, we make no claim about being first nor claim certain individuals copied our design.

However, we do claim to have the strongest, best dC'signed hang g'lider eme,)a;ellLY parachute on the market. We recommend that others try and meet the FAA testing requirements the Wmdhaven system has gone through and show more responsibility to the consumer imtead of using the timeJnd print to bad mouth the product of others and create confusion among the consumers.

We, at Windhaven, hope that no matter what make parachute pi lots buy, soon everyone will have a T.S.O.'cd emergency parachute system for their gliders.

Trip Mellinger Windhaven Hang Gliding Schools, Inc.

HGMA Dive Recovery tests Clarified

Dear Editor, Son1e clarification JS needed, regarding the If .G.M.A. Specification and Compliance prof:ram as interpreted by W. Budd in the April issue of Hang Gliding. As stated in the January issue of Hang Cl1dmg to which Mr. Budd refers, the specifications were not pri rited in their entirety.

Three separate sections may be considered applicable to the documentation of stability at low angles of attack: 1.225 STEEP DIVES Gliders must demonstate recovery from a dive in which the keel or more appropriate reference makes an angle of al least 75° with the horizon. (Emphasis mine) 1 176 ADDITIONAL LONGITUDINAL, DIRECTIONAL, AND LATERAL TESTS it is strongly recommended that additional testing of the type which will provide aerodynamic data over an extended range of angles of attack be pursued.

1.31 a) ... Compliance with the following sections may be shown by wind tunnel testing (or equivalent), if such testing and the resulting data is shown to be at least as precise and accurate as actual flight testing ... (Sections include longitudinal stability) In addition it must be stressed that the H.G.M.A. Specifications should be considered minimum standards. Any evaluation of a particular design's airworthiness should certainly include but not be limited to these standards.

Man uf actu rers are encouraged to document.the

INDEX TO ADVERTISERS Aero-Hydro Propulsion Systems .

Albatross Sails APO Flight Systems.

Bennett Delta Wing Chuck's Glider Supplies Crystal Air Sports Duncan License Plate Frames Eco-Naut1cs Inc Eipper

·".2 .15 ... IFC/33/58 .55 .16/64 4 .21 .BC 14/62/IBC

E_lectra Ayer Corporation Everglades Krtes .

Every Man·s IJream

39 .... 66

Flight Bag Mail Order Co. Flight Realities .

Glider Aider .

Go-Graphics.

Hall Wind Mete,.

Hang Glider Shop Hang G!der Weekly Iowa Glider Co. Kite Enterprises .

Kitty Hawk Kites Leading Edge Air Foils.

M Company Manta Products.

Marquiss Art Studios Mehil Enterprises.

Morton Enterprises .

.65 . ....... 11 . ... 63

Pacific Gull Playground In The Sky .

Poynter Books .

..... 53 .61 . .. 49

. .10 .68 15 ... 65

. .15 8 ..... 6 . .65

.. 68 .8/41/51

.. 60 . .... 12

.12

Robert Sage Memorial Hang Giding Meet.

Sa1lrite Kits Seagull Aircraft.

Sky light Flight .

Sky Sports.

Soarmaster Inc ..

Steve Snyder Enterprises Sunb1n:I Ultraight Gliders.

. .. 32 ... 64 11117 . .62 .·.9 .21

5 . .45/61

The Great Outdoors Trading Co. The Hang GMer·s Bible.

The Happy Hanger.

Tom Morey & Company Inc.

.24 .24 . ... 15 .57

Tut Skiers & Kite Fliers. Inc. Ultralight Flying Machines .

Ultralite Products .

Wills Wing Inc.

. .. 13/20

Windhaven Emergency Parachutes Wings for Man.

...... 66 . .. 68

'

. .59 . .25 ..... 1

..

... 1., lnquitill •el-.--.--.;;

High Quality Chrome Plated

LICENSE PLATE FRAMES $3.50ea. plus 50Cpostage per frame Beute

Duncan, Box 122, San Gabriel, Cal. 91776

(c011tinued on page 7!

JUNE 1977

Introducing AL TIMASTER III The Altimaster III by SSE Inc., is a follow on to the very popular sport parachuting and hang gliding altimeter the Altimaster II. The heart of the altimeter is a precision Swiss watch type mechanism. The gear train is supported by precision jewel bearings to minimize friction.

There are a total of 10 such jewel bearings used in the Altimaster III. The barometric pressure sensor, or aneroid, is

temperature compensated to give an accurate reading over a wide temperature range.

The Altimaster III was designed to be small and light enough to mount on the back of a glove or some other place that the larger Altimaster II would not fit.

NOW AVAILABLE FROM SSE INC. FOR

5

59. 95

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Designs are on backs of all shirts, except ladies styles.

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Colors 100% cotton

white columbia blue sky blue lime green red coconut yellow orange

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50% cotton/ opal blue 50% polyester peach powder blue tan cream

Design name

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Sizes small medium large x-large Ladies sizes small medium large x-large

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100% cotton SO% cotton/ 50% polyester

$3.00 Kitty Hawk Kites visor. Select color.

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SEND TO: Kitty Hawk Kites P.O . Box 386 Nags Head. N.C. 27959

strength, stability and controllability of their gliders to the fullest extent allowed by the existing state of the art.

Before any specification~ become effective the comumer that means you, pilots --- must express more than casu<1I interest in the many important characteristics that exist in addition to L/D and minimum sink rate like a documented v~lue of positive ultimate load factor; or negative load factor; or roll rate; or longitudinal stability, or.

Sincerely, Gary Valle, President Hang Glider Manufacturers Assn.

Injustice to Dealers Dear Editor, I am writing in regards to the article by Chris Price in the March '77 issue of Hang Gliding entitled "You'd better shop around." I feel the article does a great injustice to the small dealer attempting to build up a new business. I agree completely with the idea of test flying a glider before you buy. However, to say you should test fly a glider from one dealer and then go to a larger dealer to buy seems to be completely unethical. I (as many other ,mall dealer;) am struggling to bu rid a business and promote hang gliding (which is difficult in Michigan with so few flying sites.) Naturally, I can not do the volume of a dealer in a state like Tennessee.

Therefore, people take up my time, use my demos (and often damage my demos) then go to a bigger dealer to buy. IS THIS RIGHT? Is it the intention of Mr. Price to force small dealers out of business so there will be only a few "super dealers" around? This is what destroys the industry. Before you know it the big dealers can control the market and treat customers as they see fit.

I also feel that the Hang Rating program as well as the business of selling kites is becoming so cutthroat, I can no longer be friends with fellow flyers or dealers. Several years ago when I first started flying, there was a great fr1endsh1p and comradeship between pilots and dealers.

Now everyone 5eems to be out to get the other guy. I find as Region #7 Examiner and Observer, I am under constant pressure to rate flyers higher than their ability. When I refuse, I almost always lose a friend.

As far a, Mr. Price's statement about delivery dates, it is my understanding that manufacturers discourage the public from calling direct as it takes too much time and expense to handle this volume of calls. If the manufacturers want to deal direct with the customers, tlien who needs dealers!" \Ve, as a dealer, try to be the bulter between irate customers and factory. I think everyone knows the problem manufacTurers are having with delivery dates. The industry has grown so fast, customers have to realize there is a waiting period on any custom ordered kite. Mr. Price is insinuating that a customer should not believe his dealer anymore but should go over his head.

I know Chris and respect him as one of the great flyers in the world, but I think his attitude towards dealers leaves much to be desired. I love this sport with all my heart and have spent countless hours promoting flying and the USHGA. It is becoming increasingly difficult for the little guy to find a place for himself in the system.

James LeMieux, Owner Southeast Michigan Hang Gliders

Get It In Writing Dear Editor; Bob Caldwell's letter which was published March 1977 i,sue Hang Gliding raised the question of whether a hang glider is an "aircraft" under standard health, accident and life in,urance policies which normally exclude coverage for accidents occurring in a private aircraft. He referred to a recent U.S. District Court decision which decided a hang glider is an "aircraft" and denied coverage under a life insurance policy containing that exclusion.

We recently filed a lawsuit in a Colorado district court against Aetna Life and Casualty Insurance Company on beh<1lf of the life insurance beneficiary of an Aetna health and accident policy which included death benefits for accidental death. The insured was injured while hang gliding and ultimately died. Aetna paid the medical expenses to date of death but then refused to pay the death benefits claiming that the deceased was flying a private aircraft and, therefore, was not covered by the policy.

Aetna readily admitted that it had twice made payments of medical benefits arising out of the decedent's previous hang gliding accidents but when the claim was submitted to the life insurance ,;ivision of Aetna, its position changed.

Aetna finally made a substantial settlement and more than likely the principal reason was because Aetna had twice paid medical expenses under this pol icy for injuries received by the decedentfo early hang gliding accidents.

Our position was that the insurance company was stopped from denying coverage under the I ife insurance portion of the policy, since it had previously construed the policy to cover hang gliding accidents and wa; bound by that construction on which the decedent had relied.

This suit would h<1ve bee"n much more difficult to resolve had these prior payments not been made.

I would join Mr. Caldwell's admonition that anyone engaged in hang gliding who wants to be covered by health, accident or life insurance should get something in wri!ing from his rnsurance carrier assuring him that the coverage extends to hang gliding. A verbal commitment from a broker or agent is not enough.

Fuller and Evans Attorneys at Law Denver, Colorado

Short Cars, Long Kites Dear Editor, One of the problems with being a hang glider pilot in the state of New Jersey is having to travel at least 3 hours to get some sky.

Well, on a return trip from Pennsylvania on February night, I was pulled over by a Trooper. I had no idea why I was stopped, so I stepped out of my truck with a smile, thinking the nice policeman wanted some information on hang gliding. However, when the lone trooper stepped out of his car he had with him a tape measure. He asked where my light was and I thought he meant flashlight, until he proceeded to measure the 6ft, JY,inches of red flag-bearing Pegasus sticking out past the end of my Scout.

I told him I would gladly put the kite on a friend's van that was following me. He explained that, if I didn't, I was going to jail. Despite all efforts to avoid further action he said he was going to give me a citation for an equipment vlolation. Cost - $20.00. He then explained I needed a 12" by 12" red flag by day

Dragonfly Cross Bar Clarification Notice

ri' I

To better educate the flying community regarding recent cross bar failures on Dragonfly hang gliders, UP head of Design, Research and Development, Roy Haggard, answered questions regarding the accident, and listed pertinent information on existing and subsequent test data on the gliders in the May issue of Hang Gliding Magazine. In an effort to further clarify the data, the editor'; of HangG!idmg Magazine took the UP supplied test data and by using the correct formula, came up with some lo<1d limit figures that were far below the HGMA limits. The editor's efforts were well intentioned but misinformed as they were not made aware that the UP test figures were for cross bars only (not the entire airframe).

Because of the flex wing nature of hang gliders, it is next to impossible to statically test an entire airframe. It can be done by inverting the glider and placing individually weighted sand bags in different section son.the sail but even this method must be based 011 a mathematical hypothesis.

The only way to test cross bars specifically is to isolate the cross bar loads by buildinga test rig that tests the cross bars only. All loads are then put through the side landing wires and cross bar only, and no load is imposed through the other 4 flying wires, keel, leading edges, etc. By isolating the cross bars in this manner, different test cross bars can be quickly compared and evaluated. This isolated cross bar test method was used by UP to evaluate the problem. Obviously since loads were specifically on one section of the airframe, the load limits shown in the article were much lower than the entire airframe capability. The editors of Hang Gliding Magazine were given the impression that these test figures were for full airframe flight simulated loads and did their calculations accordingly. The load limit shown (2.7 g's airframe load are far below the actual Spyder airframe capabilities).

The ;'lctual load arid airframe can only be simulated with a moving test vehicle, something not yet available to the hang gliding industry. (There are at this time 3 known vehicles under development, UP being one of the manufacturers working on this device.) Until a complete flyable glider can be mounted in such a test vehicle, and "flown" to destruction, the actual airframe loads on any glider are still theoretical mathematical estimates.

The mathematical airframe load (as opposed to the cross bar loads shown in t~Jlli!g;.i.1ine) is over 4.5 g's in the dragonfly and over 6.75 g's in the newly modified Spyder. These numbers, however, are purely mathematical estimates - the same as any other manufacturer has at this time.

We at UP feel than once the Spyder is tested it will easily meet HGMA load tests.

Signed, UP Products

(contmued on page 8)

HANG GLIDING

7

and a red light by night for anything sticking out past the vehicle over 4 ft.

I don't know if the laws are the same in every state, but it would be wise for all flyers with short cars and long kites to get a red traveling light for night or at least check with the states you will be traveling through.

John Reh Kondor Kites East, Passaic, NJ

Beefing Up A Kite Dear Editor, How about doing an article on how to beef up a kite and make it stronger? Maybe I' m paranoid, but as my kite (and I) get older, and as I hear of other flyers dropping out of the sky because of kite failu res, I'm beginning to think that a couple of extra pounds of reinforcement in the right places wouldn't hurt my L/D that much. I'm sure there are others who would like this info also, especially since kites are flying higher, farther, hitting more turbulence, and doing more radica l maneuvers.

We have all heard of potential weakspots on kites and have our own ideas on how to strengthen them, but I would like to hear some "Expert" opinions on these matters. There are many of us who feel we have more or less mastered th.eflying end of things over the years, but still are not quite sure about the structural integrity of our machines and the forces of stress and strain put on them.

Mike Dorn Honolulu, Hawaii Sounds /ikea good idea 10 us! As manufacturers complete load tests on their gliders for 1-/CMA certification, carefully docL1mented information will become available. (-See "Structural Testing", page 37 in this issue.) We invite manufacturers to publish their findings in future iswes of Hang

Until such tests are completed, we really don't know what gliders on the market are understressed and what is necessary to strengthen the ones thal are. We can only speculate. When taking into consideration billow, nose angle, the ability of a glider to unload in-flight, etc., each glider is a unique case. One type and size tubing might be adequate 011 some gliders, but not others. Only when manufacturers comply with HGMA specs will the information that you request be available to us.

Your immediate concern is well understood.

Ollr Sl/ggestion to yoll is co contact the manufacturer of your glider. They know best how to strengthen it. Do this before yoll allempt to beef it up yoL1rself. A recent fatality on Kauai was a resL1lt of a pi/01 who thought he was slr:)ngthen ing his glider by modifying the crds bar. He actually weakened it. - Editor

Redefining FAR'S for Aux-Powered Flight Dear Editor, Hang gliding and soaring seem ready to enter a new growth phase. The economy and practicality of small auxiliary power plants may soon make both sports far more accessible. Current FAR's, however, do not appear attuned to this forecast "boom."

Some regulatory logic appe;lfs inverted .

Pilots rated ''Glider-on ly" can launch with their engines at the end of a flexing and breakable 200-foot tow rope. Yet they cannot legally launch by means of a smaller, mofe economical and potentially safer power plant mounted on or within their aircraft.

Hang glider pilots may legally power their aircraft with little more than a 3rd Class Medical Certificate and an engine. There are no provisions for assuring their piloting ski II and knowledge offlightsafety and the FAR's, As Bill Allen recently observed, the FAA could ·get egg on its

....--......--------------------..;..----~~~~ Gliding.

face this way.

I would like to urge organized soaring and hang gliding to press for federal re-de fin it ion of "self-launching glider," "motor-glider" and the ratings required to fly each. Efforts now to eliminate ambiguities and diffecences in rule interpretation will surely pay dividends in what promises to be a bright future for aux-powered flight.

Mark L. Langenfeld Madison, Wiscon sin

Carbon Black Dear Editor, In response to the article "Bag of Tricks" (H.G. 3/77} which proposed using a dispersal of carbon black to make thermals, I would like to cor:tribule my knowledge and ideas on the subject.

In the course of my employment, I have had many occasions to walk through, breathe, and to become generally disgusted by contact with the filthy substance, carbon black. A few miles from my home town operates a carbon refining plant. Large mounds of it are stored open ly around the plant, consequently, the entire countryside (water, air, and land) is polluted by the fine dust. Can you imagine w~at your beautiful glider would look like, not to mention yoursel f, covered by black dust so fine it seems magnetic to most surfaces? . With due respect intended to those seeking to tmprove the sport, I don't believe hedging on Ma Nature with pollutants is an answer. Hang Gliding, to me, is and should be kept a natural cooperation of man and nature.

Russell Lloy,d Fort Worth, TX Have something on your mind? Hang Gliding Magazine welcomes Letters to the Editor. Please address your letters to Hang Gliding Magazine, c/o USHGA, Box 66306, Los Ange les, CA 90066.

This year, somewhere, a hang glider pilot is going to tow up, catch a thermal, and f ly out of sight. It may be you. Be prepared to

FLY THE FLATLANDS! Sunbird, Seagull, ElectraFlyer, what ever you fly, Kite Enterprises has a Tow System for your hang glider.

Kite.Enterprises Tow System Complete with floats $225 with large·floats for heavy gliders $230 Top Release for 2 point bridle sold separately $ 75 Boat Release with carabiner $ 30 Kite Enterprises 2 point pulley bridle $ 30

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8

JUNE 1977

.l 11~ I..JUU\.:.c:l.L Ill

Good Reasons /afettjePerformonceeTroining

A properly tuned double-surfaced The Sky Sports Bobcat Ill is allowflex wing handles high winds best o f ~ • ed by new 1977 FAI Class-I competiall. That is, it flies faster and has bet- ~ tion rules (which still admit the II ter glide ratio at higher speeds than model) to have a double-surfaced sail and wider nose angle (better glide comparable single-surfaced craft.

The advanced airfoil works more effl- ,. \ ratio results). Also we've had another clently, creating the same or more lift "-f year to discover more about design. with less wing area, allowing higher ~ Thus the BC-Ill flies even better than the much acclaimed II. What a way to wing loadings for the same or better minimum sink. (The Ill has a 5% in· get your start In competition: A good· crease In recommended wing loading~ handling, good-performing Bobcat Ill over the II, yet has a 20% Improvewith no sudden surprises to distract your attention from learning to fly ment In minimum sink performance) Higher wing loadings give Increased contest courses. speed, better handling (pitch and roll domination), and better performance Also an excellent way to do your in the top end speed range. Improved apprentice crosscountry flying! In efficiency and less wing area mean 1976 a Bobcat II was flown 31.2 miles (50.2km.) out-and-return In Pennlower drag, thus Increasing glide ratio. sylvanla. That with an estimated glide ratio of 6.0:1. The BC-Ill's one-point Improvement (7.o:1) can carry you Because the double-surface per- --::-1 even further. Setting out on a day mlts flying at higher angles of attack~~ with unknowns like possible turbefore stalling, slower speeds are bulence, changing, weather, and a landln~ place you ve never se~n. possible. Furthermore, almost all If not all hang gliders today stall before wouldn t It be great to have a design reaching their true best minimum with undeflatable positive-pitching sink speeds. The Sky Sports Bobcat wing center section, Sky Sports rugIll can get closer to Its true optimum ged construction, double-surfaced sink speed than comparable singlewide speed range, plus mellow handllng and outstanding parachuting surfaced designs (and at higher wing characteristics? That's w~at we want loadings). The result Is that the BC 111 can soar in slower, mellower condlin our flying. We think It s what you tions as well as high winds. want In yours.

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-~ ~ ® J ) ( l [ } J s ~ ~8~ ~LEARn to*fly·tdoar*Compete*Go Cro11-Country#

esatety. The Bobcat Ill's dynamical· ly Inflated, double-surfaced wing with non-deflatable center section (rib over keel) has a wider angle-of-attack range than comparable singlesurfaced designs. This means you can go to higher angles before stall· Ing, to lower angles before entering a radical dive. Stalls are gentler with the modern airfoil In association with Judicious wingtip washout. The airfoil and Its center rib give the design Inherent recovery from dives. (Maintain your normal body flying position and the Bobcat Ill will Immediately fly Itself out of most situations of dlf· flculty and confusion.) Improved performance at higher wing loadings provides better pilot domination of pitch and roll. ePerformance. It Is a basic truth of aeronautical design that double-surfaced airfoils fly better than their slngl,e -surfaced ancestors . The Wright Brothers flew with skinny wing sections 74 years ago, but look for yourself at today's sailplanes1 small powerplanes, airliners, ana even most rigid wing hang gliders.

Flex wings benefit Just as much.

Sky Sports designers, especially Tom Peghiny and Terry Sweeney, introduced the double-surfaced concept for Improving flex wings In 1975 and have continued development since.

The Sky Sports Bobcat Ill, designed primarily by Terry Sweeney with assistance from other Sky Sports desig ners, has an estimated minimum sink of 250 feet per minute (82.3 meters/minute) at a wing loading of one pound per square foot (4.9 kg./sq. m.) ln the "blllowy" position (2.4° billow, 98.8° nose). It Is believed to have a glide ratio of 7:1 in Its "flat" setting (1.8° billow, 100° nose). erralnlng. The real Icing on the cake is that the Sky Sports Bobcat Ill makes an excellent trainer for beginners. For the first time the newest newcomer can have an AR 4.2 flex wing with the advantages of double surfaces. Schools can breathe easier with pupils on a BC-Ill. Students can start on a craft suitable for their later advanced flying and having features previously available only to Hang-Ill and -IV flyers with Kestrels and Marlins.

Saturday was the first day of officiJI competition. Pilots, flying in heats of 6, completed the l~t round of competition. On Sunday, 20% of the pilots were cut from the ranks, and round 2 was run. By the end of the second round, 5 pilot~ had tied for 1st place with max. scores. These pilots competed in a ·-ird round to determine the top 5 places. (See July issue of Hang Gliding for complete results and story.)

The following is a list of those who qualified for Nationals:

ULTRALIGHT NEWS Region 3 Qualification Meet The first regional qualification meet for the U.S. Nationals was held at Pine Flats, California, May 19-22. Over 100 pilots from Region 3 competed for the 18 spots allotted ior that region. The number of pilots

selected for each class was ba~ed on the proportion of entries in each class: 2 for Standard Class; 15 for Open Class; 1 for Unlimited Class.

The meet, originally ~cheduled for four days, had to be cut to two, due to downwind conditions at launch. Anyone who has ever competed in a meet or run one, knows that Jnything can happen, once a day's flying has been cancelled. Friday, the second day of planned competition was no exception.

By noon, officials called off the meet. By 1:30, however, a seabreeze front moved through the area. Pilots who remained for free-flying were treated lo exceptional soaring conditions. Some 20 pilots ~oared up to 4000' above take-off. Dean Tanji, Chris Price, and Sterling Stoll, turned downwind into the desert, flying 11, 15 and 25 .miles respectively.

STANDARD CLASS

GLIDER

POINTS

' '

ASG 20 Firefly

2000

OPEN CLASS

GU DER

POINTS

',.,. ,.' ' "' "" "

Phoenix 8 Cumulus 10 Heron Phoenix 68 SST 100 C Phoenix 8 Phoenix 8 Jr. Wills Wing X-C Cal Gli<ier MK-4 Wills Wing X-C Wills Wing X-C Wills Wing X-C UP Spyder Wills Wing X-C Phoenix 8 Jr.

J,m Joseph Roy Haggard

Chris Perkins Buddy Martinez Jeff Anderson Mike Zarracina ; Dean Tanj1 Joe Greblo John Brant Rob Keels nave nuclor w. Bob Sayers Bob Wills Mike Meier n. ScoU Weiner Mike Goodfellow ,s ). C. Brown UNUMITED CLASS Brad White

1388

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Mitchell Wing

H-2

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H-6 Sunset (Highly delai1ed full color) H·8 Rocket Man (Highty detailed lull color)

~~-- - __

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_.:~ Beige

by Nadine Malcolm About one hundred fliers attended the world's first hang glider parachute clinic on Saturday, April 10th, at Bill Bennett's Delta Wing shop in Van Nuys, California.

The clinic was jointly sponsored by Delta Wing and the Southern California School of Hang Gliding. For the first time, recreational pilots were introduced to the benefits and use of an emergency parachute system. Parac.hutes are de~igned to save the pilot's life in case of complete loss of control of the glider, whether from a midair collision, an inverted kite, a structural failure, eminent unconsciousness due to altitude hypoxia etc. Many of the most tragic hang gliding fatalities might have been prevented if parachutes had been available.

The clinic was conducted by Rich Picirilli, designer of a parachute system, who began by showing films of several parachute tests. They involved a chute being deployed from an unpiloted, but

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You've heard of Fly-Drive vacation tours? Bunson Travel Service has organized a Fly-Fly tour for Americans attending the hang gliding competition in South Africa.

It is designed to give hang gliding pilots an opportunity to fly over some of the wilderness areas of Africa.

Departures will be from New York, Los Angeles, and Miami, and continue to Johannesburg via Rio de Janeiro. Following the competition in Johannesburg, pilots

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H-2 Cloucb H-4 Flight

2408 2210 2160 2115 2080 1960 1906 1829 1790 1770 1736 1718 1684 1677 1666

will continue on to Nairobi, Kenya, where they will embark on outfitted, do-it-yourself safaris to some of the most exciting and bec1utiful hang gliding country in the world.

The Kerio V.illey, for example, presents a 5000' vertical with great thermal activity.

The group will be led by seasoned couriers, including Phil Snyder, the flying warden of Mt. Kenya National Park. Following the Kenyc1 Soaring Safari, pilots will return to the U.S. with optional stopovers in H.imburg, Paris, or London - al no additional charge.

A complete brochure will soon be available from Bunson Travel Service, and details will be published in an upcoming issue of Hang Gliding.

AOd $1.DO postage &. hanclllng per •hlrt. "{S0--50 lnterkx:k kn~, rinted on Iron~

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Dealer Inquiries Invited Custom Screening Ava~able

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JUNE 1977

weighted, broken glider. The typical 24 foot chute, weighing five to six pounds, opens i n two to three seconds, and w il l bring down a broken gl ider and its pi lot at 20 to 25 fl./sec.

Most chutes are packed in clacron enve lopes for easy handling. The envelope is placed in a conta iner which can be sewn to any hammock type harness. Slightly different set ups are used fo r sea ted and supi ne suspension systems. A line from the parachute normal ly runs along the keel and up to an attachment point in the heartbo lt area above the sail.

Beca use the container is mounted low o n the ha rn ess it is not noticeable during fli ght. However, some pilots have reported that the extra weight at the bottom of the harness required them to read just their leg stra ps to permi t easy runn ing. ll is probably worthwhile to practice running with you r new parachute and make the neces,;r1ry ;idj u~tment hefore trying 10 IJke off.

The way the c hute is deployed depends o n the situation. A pi lot fearing eminent unconsciousness from hypoxia need only open the container, drop the chute, and al low gravity to dep loy it. The pi lot w ith a broken kite opens the contai ner, takes out the envelope, and throws it away from the glider in a direction which w il l m inimize the chance of its ta ngl ing in the wreckage.

Parach utes a re currently marketed by Delta Wing, Ultralite Products, and W ind-

haven School. Most chutes come with an owner's manual explaini ng how to use and pack them.

The clinic concluded w ith a demonstration by Rich from the 1500 foot hil l at Sylmar. He deployed the chute, released it from the glider, and landed. The chute was released before landi ng because it is hard to make a perfect I anding ,with a parach ute, and Rich didn't want to risk damaging his kite. The parachute is an emergency system, not an alternate way of landi ng the gl ider; it is intended to be used on ly in case of a serious threat to the pi lot's l ife. It is also not an alternative to normal safety precautions. A r>arachute should not be used as an excuse to do aerobatics, to fly an unsound ki te, or to la unch i n unreasonable weather condition~. But the widespread u se of parachutes, combi ned with all other proper safety precautions can greatly derrPa~P thP fatal ity rate in hang glidi ng.

38 Mile Flight for Larry Tudor On Apri l 24, Larry Tudor flew his Dragonfly MKJJ-8 from St. Francis Peak, Uta h, to The Poi nt of the Mountain - for a straight line distance of 38 mi les. Upon takeoff, some 18 mi les north of Salt Lake City, Larry gained 5000' under a fast developing cumulus nimbus. Turning downwind, he new

to Park City, approximately 12 miles east of S.L.C. There he en tered a shearline and flew to S.L.C., passing over the city ao.d the airport at an altitude of 5000'. He then headed South downrange for another 29 miles where he landed at The Point of the Mounta in . The 38 mi le fl ight was w itnessed

by USHGA Observer Bruce Brown. Congrats, Larry, for a fantastic flight!

"Guide to Rogallo FlightBasic" 4th Edition The up-to-date USHGA approved handbook for people who are really interested in learning to fly.

30 pages---25 illustrations - - - 50 photographs. Get your USHGA "1" or "2" rating with the complete. easy to understand, information in this manual.

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~ Flight Realities . , . 1945 Adams Ave. G San Diego, Calif. 92116

SEAGULL AIRCRAFT IS PROUD TO INTRODUCE THE SEAHAWK. DESIGNED AND BUil T WITH THE SAME TRAD ITION OF EXCELLENCE AS ALL THE SEAGULL PRODUCTS BEFORE IT. THE SEAHAWK OFFERS FLIGHT PERFORMANCE SUITABLE FOR Fl RST TRAINING FLIGHTS AND ON THROUG H COMPETITION.

3021 Airport Avenue, Santa Monica, California 90405 (213) 394-1151

HANG GLIDING

11

AERO-INNOVATIONS edge, which is 1% x .060 wall, is the same weight as 1 V2 x .049, supports as well as 13.4 x .049, and yet each end can rlex within 4 feet of a complete circle before breaking.

The material is more resistant to dents and fractures than alumi num and is quite easy to work with.

The cost as of yet is not determined but a fiberglass leading edge option should run the consumer less than $150. Much more testing is needed before any conclusions wi ll be given as to the feasibility of fiberglass leading edges.

Electra Flyer Experiments With Fiberglass Airframes W ith the more exotic gliders enteri ng the market there has been l ittle advancement in the fie ld of suitable materials for the main structures, o r for that matter .airframe advancement.

Electra Flyer has been experimenting with many forms of hang glider frames. Testing has been done with no crossbar frames. no kingpost frames, strutted frames, and now experimentation is taking place with fiberglass leading edges.

The purpose of the fiberglass leading edge is to rmvid0 a virtua lly indestructible tube with unlimited flex properties and yet maintain the same rigidity as aluminum tubing.

Testing with the fiberglass leading edge has yielded interesting results. The leading

CONSUMER INFORMATION Wills Wing Grounds Cross Country A recent Wil l Wing news bul letin announced the temporary groundin g of their Cross Country glider. They encountered some problems with the large Cross Country that did not show up in the extensive prototype testing. As a precaution, Wills Wing is ground i ng both the large and sma ll models unti l further modifying and retesting can be done. Dealers and customers will be notified as soon as the balloon drop tests on the Cross Country are completed.

Reinforcement Patches for SST's Although no SST sai l has ripped in the Un ited States in over a year and a half of production, it is possible that extreme weather conditions (sub zero) cause the Dacron to become brittle enough to rip (see Consumer Info., May '77). SST owners should contact loca l dealers for information and materials for reinforcing the cu rved portion of the trailing edge. The manufacturer has supplied dealers with 9 oz. Dacron patches, thread, and complete instru ct ions.

HELMET-MOUNTED INSTRUMENTS PELLET VARIOMETER Very sensitive (to 10 fl/min) Always visible No electronic lag $49.50 - less 2-ouart thermos liners (grocery)

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VARIOMETER AIRSPEEDOMETER AND/OR Dual Range (0-25 mph) (0-60 mph) Functions AT and AFTER launch $27.50 Complete

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JUNE 1977

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WILLS WING DOES MORE THAN SELL KITES ! ! !

..

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COLVER SOARING VARIOMETER

'

Researched and designed by Colver Soaring Instruments in coniunction with Wills Wing, Inc. the Colver soaring variometer i£ a dual range audio and visual variometer that offers all the features that the best hang glider pi lots require. It is a must for optimum soaring fl ig ht.

• Audio and visual for total flexibility • Du·a l sensitivity for even the most marginal or extreme conditions • Super sens'itive aud io for the quickest possible response to lift • Damped visual for easy readjng and a slight averaging effect although it is sti ll quicker tha t the best sai lpbme electric variometer. • Prove circuit in production for over 21/2 years • Entirely self contained with no exterior bo ttles or flasks • Audio may be turned off for visual use only • Shock resistant • Streamlined for minimum drag • Extremely lightweight - only weighs 33 ozs. • Built in mounts can be attached to any control bar low power usage insu.res long battery life. $194.00 Audio Only $119.00

- .~ 11

THOMMEN ALTIMETER • Designed especially for Hang Glider pilots • More rugged and far lighter than an aircraft altimeter • High visibility orange Day-Glo needle against black face and white numerals • 19 Jewel oil-free movement • 20-foot increments to 15,000 feet • Superb temperature compensation • Velcro wrist strap • Made in Switzerland $97.00 Visit your local dealer for a demonstration

o,wd'"f11us WING, INC.~ 1208-H East Walnut Street Santa Ana, CA 92701

(714} 547.1344

THE PRICE PRONE HARNESS

In 1he lour years Chris Price has been des ig ning and sewing harnesses for hang gliding pi lors, he has developed lhe most comforlable, safes!, highesr qualily soaring harness on the market.

In addllion he now has cus lorn harnesses to fil every specia l need.

FEATURES OF THE STANDARD SOARING HARNESS • Six sizes: sma ll, medium, large, extra-large, super extra-large, and extra large wide.

• 3-inch aircraft type webbing used throughout.

• Fully padded shoulder and leg straps.

• Foam-filled body spreads support out, eliminating pressure points.

• Pilot can change from seated to prone and back during flight.

• Seated position allows lower pilot CG for easier thermaling.

• Lower CG in seated and landing position makes for safer landings and hitting the spot in contests easier.

• The harness locks into prone position, allowing the pilot to maintain a positive relationship with the glider even in turbulance.

• Adjusters used throughout eliminating the need for knot-tying.

• Available in 4 colors: red, blue, orange, and yellow.

• Comes complete with stirrup, carabiner, & hang loop for control bar.

• Custom Features Available: Side Straps, Knee Hangers, Adjuster elimination, 2-Jnch Shoulder Straps, Double Foam, Custom Designs, Knee-Hanger-Feet-in-the-Wire Harness, Full length Harness, Training Harness, Prices: $56.00 to $98.00 (Write for details and exact prices.)

Also available: Nylon zippered Stuff Bag, with Handles, holds harness, helmet, jacket and jump suit. All harness colors. $15.00 To order standard harness, send height, weight (are you long waisted?) and 2 color choices.

Price $78.50

(

OUR

SPRING

SALE LASTS

-- FOREVER

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.r We think negative rigging is important. Maybe you have noticed that most manufacturers offer top deflexors as optional equipment. We are not sure it should be optional. Our OLYMPUS comes standard with one of the finest wingpost systems in the country. And now the most popular selling glider of 1976 features STANDARD inverted struts. What is this glider? The Electra Flyer CIRRUS, of course.

Effective immediately, all CIRRUS' will be delivered with the sophisticated " OLYMPUS Wingpost System" tor NO EXTRA CHARGE. Not only does this make the CIRRUS the least expensive, complete glider in the intermediate/h igh performance class, but with over 10,000 hours {accumu lated total flight time - all delivered units to date), it is also one of the most proven . If you think any new intermediate is excep-

tional , put it to the real test. Fly it against a CIRRUS. We already know what your choice will be.

The inverted rigging is on us. And OUR Spring Sale lasts forever!

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FLIES LIKE A REAL hang-glider from a control line - or free flight. Tow It up to 300' or more; the line drops away and free fl ight begins. Or soar the ridge lift.

40" wing span. Pilot stands over 8" high. Comes ready to fly with reel and 90 yards of nylon line.

Send 10.00 + 1.00 for postage and handling to:

THE HAPPY HANGER P.O. Box 2028 Santa Cruz, California 95063 JUNE 10-12, 1977, The 2nd Annual East Coast Delta Wing Championship , White Lake, North Carolina. This tow event will otter S1000 In tota.l cash prizes along with trophies. II interested In competing, please write a letter requesting an application and a copy of tho rules. Include a brief resume of your flying experi· ence, type of kite you fly, and any information of interest. Send to: Bill Winstead, 7409 Falls of Neuse Road, Raleigh, NC 27609.

If you have any questions please phone (919) 872-6370.

JUNE 15-19, Region 4 Regionals at Crested Butte, Colorado. Sponsored by Fellow Feathers of De· nver. For more Information contact: Art Gray, meet director,% Golden Sky Sails, 572 Orchard St.. Golden, Colorado 80401 .

JUNE 15-28, " Playground in the Sky," a feature film on hang glid· Ing and skydiving, will show at the Surf Theatre In Huntington Beach, CA. JUNE 16-19, Third Annual Maison's Beer and Northern Sun Hang Gliders. Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. $4,000 purse. Contact: Boris Popov. Northern Sun Hang Gliders, Inc., 628 W. larperteur Ave ., St. Paul. Minn. 55113.

(612) 489-8300.

JUNE 17 & 18, 1st Annual God's Country Delta Tow Glider Championship, Rice lake, Wisconsin. $500 guaranteed minimum 1st prize. There will be nightly entertainment. Camping and/or motel accommodations available, $30.00 entry fee (refundable if bad weather or cancellation).

Contact Mr. Scott Warwick, R.R. #1, Cumberland, Wisconsin 54829.

JUNE 18, 19, British Columbia 3rd Annual Open Flight Championships. Terrace, B.C. 2500' verti· cal, 12 mile soarable ridge. Contact Dave Toop, 46 16 Greig Ave., Terrace. B.C. (604) 635-4442 (days).

HANG GLIDING

JUNE 18-25. Midnight Sun Cup held in Bodo, Norway. For more In· formation contact: Bodo Hang Glider Club, P.O. Boks 93, 8012 Skeid, Norway.

FEATURING EIPPtm·fORMANCE

JUNE 25, 26, Fifth Annual Cochrane Meet. Cochrane, Alberta. $10.00 entry fee includes banquet. $1 .00 of this will go to Canadian National Team Fund. 330' verti· cal, soarable. This is a fun meet.

Contact Willi Muller, 34443 12th St. NE, Calgary, Alberta (403) 277-2606 (days) , (403) 932-2759 (nights).

·r

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JULY 1·4, First Annual Motorized Hang Glider Fly-In, Marshall, Ml. Cross country flying, fun competition events and more. For more info call or write: Aero Roat Flights, 82 Fremont, Battle Creek . Ml 49017. (6 16) 965-6455.

JULY 2·4, 1977, New England Soaring Championships at Attltash Min. and Mt. Washington, NH. Sanctioned by USHGA. JULY 10 (July 17 ralndate), The Great Wellsvllle Air Show, sponsored

by Wellsville Aviation Club. Bal· loon Ralley, Ry-In Breakfast/Air Show - aerobatics, sky divers, gyrocopters, warbirds, antiques, annual antique auto show. Contact Ray Stevens, 41 Early St., Wellsville, N.Y. 14895.

(213 ) 90 · IOH lvlldhf E

Yes, We Fly Gliders In Iowa Sell'em Too!!!

"Iowa Glider Co." Representing Several Major Manufacturers

Lessons Sales

JULY 1-4, Juiy 4th Fly-In at Chattanooga.

INSTRUCTION

~

THE

JUNE 20, Monthly Meeting of the Southland Hang Gliding Assoc.

7:30 P.M. 111 N. Hope St., Los Angeles.

JUNE 22-26, Palomar Open held on Palomar Mountain, California.

2600' vertical, $20 entry lee, Hang-4 pilots only, excellent camping facilities available. For more information contact: Bill Armstrong, 9046 Flanders Dr., San Di ego 92126 , (7 14) 566-2189.

HIGHT

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JULY 18-31, USHGA National Championships at Heavener, Oklahoma. Write to Heavene, Runestooe Hang Gliding Association, 210W. 2nd, Heavener, OK 74937, or LJSHGA. Box 66306, Los Angeles, CA 90066.

JULY 20, Annual LJSHGA meeting to be held in conjunction wrth the USHGA Nationals at Heavener.

Oklahoma. The purpose of the meeting is to brief the members present on the affairs of !he Association and answer any ques· tions that might be asked.

JULY 23, 24. N.Y.S.H.G.A. 's Annual German Alps Festival Meet for advanced pilots, at Hunter Mounta1 n, Hunter, N.Y., contact N.Y.S.H.G.A., 393 Rye Beach Avenue, Rye, N.Y. 10580. (212) 294-7949 JULY 23, 24, Mt. Raimer Hang Gliding Competition. Mt. Raimer is located just east of Petersburg, N.Y., 3 launch areas available: north -1400', northwest-1000'. we~\ - 1200'. A hang-3 rating with LJSHGA insurance required.

We will have hot air balloons, powered hang gliders and a rock band. Cash priie will be awarded for the longest duration flight. for more information contact: Mike Mccarron. 17 Vichy Drive.

Saratoga Springs, N.Y. 12866, (518) 587-1957.

JULY 30, 31, Femie, British Columbia 2nd Annual Hang Gliding Meet. $1100 in prize money.

Ent!)' fee $20.00. 2500' vertical.

Chopper 11ft available to 6000' vertical. Contact Al Edgar, Box 1581. Fernie, B.C. VOS 1MO. AUGUST 4-7, 3rd Annual Mt. Swansee Meet, lnvermere. British Columbia. Contact Dean Kupchanko. Box 716, lnvermere.

B.C. (604) 342-9378 (nights).

AUGUST 5-8, First Annual Crested Bute Colorado Ry-In, unpowered aerial event. Contact J_ Robinson. Route #1, Box 19, Gunnison, Colorado 81230.

AUGUST 5-14, Wor1d Delta Glider Championships. $3500 in prize money. Cypress Gardens. FL AUGUST 13-21, Telluride Hang Glider Invitational.

AUGUST 20-21, Second Annual East Coast Beginner"s Safety Meet and Clinic for Class I am! II pilots only. (1st Prize· Brand New Glider.) At Ward Pound Ridge Reservation 1n Cross River, New York, contact N.Y.S.H.G.A., 393 Rye Beach Avenue, Rye, N.Y. 10580. (212) 294-7949.

----ALI

AUGUST 20, 21, 1977, Mt. Washington Valley Hang Gliding Champ· ionships at Mtr. Cranmore, NH

~

AUGUST 31 thru SEPTEMBER 5, Robert Sage Memorial Hang Gliding Meet. Carr Canyon in Sierra Vista, AZ. Write P.O. Box 1572, Sierra Vista, Arizona 85635.

(602) 458·8004

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SEPTEMBER 3, 4, Annual General Meeting AHGA, Lacombe, Alberta. Meeting, flying and party.

Contact Lyle Brown, Box 118, Lacombe. Alberta, (403) 782-6437 nights.

SEPTEMBER 17, 18, 2nd Annual "Pitt Open", sponsored by the Mid-Columbia Gorge gliders.

The meet will be held at Klickltat.

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SEPTEMBER 22-25, Grandfather Masters of Hang Gliding Championship, Linville, N.C. 28646.

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OCTOBl'R, Chattanooga's Great Race, Box 6009, Chattanooga.

TN 37409. Dates to be announced.

OCTOBER 8-22, Wor1d Championships in South Africa, For more information, contaci Harry Robb, 2909 Gull to Bay, Apt. 0-203, Clearwater, FL 33515.

OCTOBER 15, 16, 1977, Fall Hang Gliding Festiwl at Mt. Cranmore ar.d Mt. Washington, NH. OCTOBER 25·26. CIVL Meeting, Paris. France.

NOVEMBER, Thanksgiving Fly-In at Chattanooga.

Let Hang Gliding magazine help you to publicize your upcoming gliding events. Send in your calendar items at least 8 weeks in advance.

Calendar of Events Hang Gl1d1ng Magazine Box 66306, Los Angeles, CA 90066

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The Post Office returns undeliverable magazines to us and charges us 25¢. In the final analysis we are all paying for magazines that never get read. Please re· member to let the USHGA know immediately when you move. Thank you for your cooperation.

16

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JUNE 1977

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NEW ENGLANd FAA/USHGA MEETiNG ON PowEREd HANG GlidERS - PART 11 Wilton, New Hampshire, April 2, 1977 Transcripts of Meeting Edited by Bill Allen Allen: I have some sort of idea of what's going on in terms of numbers. Counting all the different sources we are fam iliar with, it appears approximately a hundred propellors for hang gliders are being made a month. Now that' s a fairly rough number, but I don't th ink it's all that far off ... So if we just said "a hundred propellors a month" (and figure mar,y are replacements) we're talking about somewhere around a thousand motorized hang gliders by the end of the year in this country. And considering there's, as of last December 3 1st, 6,440 experimentally certificated aircraft in this country, (my projection indicates) an increase of about 12%in experimental aircraft numbers by the end of the year, and a 12%increase in FAA work load for dealing with these people.

Maybe at this point it would be good to describe a little bit about the operation of these hang gliders. Jon, wou ld you like to ta lk about ... what kinds of flight you've been making?

Jonathan Winsor: Basically, lo start out with, we've been doing a lot of fooling around with what we need for a prop. Our engines want to run around 8,000 rpm and we've got to get the pitch and the diameter of the prop correct in order to get the climb rate that we want to have. ... The first one thal I used, as near as I cou ld figure, (gave me) between 50 and 75 ft. per min., which is a little slow. What I did to learn how to f l y the thing was start on a hill . . . getting into the air first and then hitting the throttle and flying away - hopefully.

Unlike a lot of areas in the co untry, we don't have a mi le and two miles straight shot over flat ground without trees. Sometimes a lot of turning and turning and turning and turning has to happen, and that just makes things a little more difficu It. At this point, I've personally made about 10 to 15 take-offs from flat ground with a g lider (with keel-mounted engine). My bes t climb rate to date has been about 1SO ft. per min. I haven't taken off from flat ground in dead air yet, although .. . I believe it is going to be very possible to do. With a five mile per hour headwind, you pop up quite easily.

Everything at this point is pretty minimal. And everything counts. This g lider (on display) doesn' t have fairings on the cross tube or the ki ngpost, al though that is a rr,iajor thing that needs to be done. Engines need to be tun ed as carefu lly as possible to get the best perfor. mance, and the props are quite crit ical ...

I've made four or five flights from point A to point B, the first one being . .. a distance of about six miles, where I got to about 1,500 to 1,800 ft. I've had three or four flights li ke that,

18

everyone knows that a 150 is "duck soup" to fly. This airplane (the Easy Riser), in my estima tion, is about ten times easier to fly than the 150. Thal is one thing that is going to make it difficult for people in aviation to gear their minds to. Of course it is an aircraft. Like anything el se, it can be abused; you can ki ll yourself in it. And, yet, on the other h,rnd, ii is one of the easiest to fly, most forgiving aircraft man has ever seen.

The highest altitude I've had now ... is 6,000 ft. above take-off ... rhere was no lift, no thermals, (just power-on climbing) ...

Now, I have a little different philosophy in that I am not all that bent out of shape w ith the FAR's (Federal Aviation Regulations) as they now stand. We have been able to work our aircraft into the FAR's. It's like fitting a round peg into a squa(e hole; you can gel in there, but it'~ not too practical.

We do have many aircraft (motorized Easy Risers and lcarus-ll's) ... General ly, the FAA ~ has been most cooperative in most areas. For Ji instance, (with my new Easy Riser having) about nine hours on it now, I've been told by my EMOO (Engineering & Manufacturing D istrict Office), that, even though they set me up originally in a test flight area at 75 hours (as with most aircraft with non-aircraft engines), they'll Mr. Mike Sacrey of the Washington FAA office: "I'd remove my restrictions at 15 hours, provided I like to see this operate within the present regulations. have no problems . . . and give them a letter with minor changes." stating that the aircraft performs acceptabl y .. . one of which was to my home, which is 4V2 On the o ther hand, I' ve heard of other . miles over the woods in another town, and I EMOO' s where the inspector wanted the landed in my back yard. Hopefully, someday I 2-cycle engine to have an oil temperature can take off from there. I've also been getting up gauge. Now that's kind of difficult ... without in the air and going downwind and my longest an o il ba th. flight . .. is 14 miles ... The highest I've had I do have other EMDO's, I think in the Cleve my mach ine up is about 2,400 ft., which is land area, that have said they would set up the plenty high, I think. ultralights in their areas for ten hours ... Rather (Asks John Moody to talk abou t his flights) than going through the motion of setting them Moody: As many of you know, we' re into the up for 75, (you all should) set them up for ten, rigid wing type of gliders - the Easy Riser by (and) with no problems they woul d be free from trade name. Originally we started off w ith the the test flight area ...

Icarus. Of cou rse. these (unlike the Rogallo) Frankly, I would push for lhis more than wou ld be closer to the full-fledged airplane as anything . .. because, rea lly, if an airp lane you are accustomed to seeing. causes any trouble in the area, there's no law that says you have lo remove the restrictions at Just to bring you up to date on w hat we have now, the airplane with 150-lb. pilot (according ten hours, or 75, or 750. Just because you've got to custom ers) ... is performin g to spec or c lose a pass for 75 hours, doesn't mean you have to to It. A 165-lb. pilot flying an Easy Riser was take it all ... Sevenl~1 -five hours is a ludicrous getting a t rue 300-ft. per min. amount of time for this type of airplane. Unlike rate-of-climb . . . at sea level on a 500-lb. homebuilt carrying 20 gals. of exploa ... 60° ... foggy ... calm day (without) sive fuel, crash ing or landing - as the case may wind or thermal activity. be, al 65 or 70 miles an hour, literally I could land this airplane on somebody's roof top if I The airplane itself we ighs about 80 lbs., is fully contro llable ... had lo ...

I can give personal testimony about flying the You go about 25 miles per hour. II weighs abou t, let's say 300 lbs. includi ng the pi lot, airplane. I've soloed now a (Cessna) 150 and

.i.

I J

JUNE 1977

(

I airplalle, fuel, and everythillg. Fr;inkly, if you smacked right illtO a building at th.:it speed, challces are you would sustaill the worst problem. There would be very little dam.:ige to peo-. pie or property. What I'm getting at is you can l.:ind the thing ill somebody's gardell; the d,:rnger to other individuals on this type of airplane is extremely minimal.

So the test flight area is pretty much to tell whether something is going to go wrong initially alld I think ten hours is a reasonable amoullt of time, (in which) a guy call get pretty proficiellt with his Jirpl;rne, too.

The biggest hassle we're finding (is in people tryi11g to find Certified Flight Instructors (CFl's) to get checked off to solo . . One thi11g I would be i11terested in having from the FAA is a reminder or somethi11g to Cf l's that they do have thf' authority to check out anybody in the sillgleplace, single-engine land airplane. Of course therf' has been clarification of this by the FAA (piece of correspondence) which I have in my information material that I put out, to indicate that a man call be checked out .

But there are many CFl's who don't want to stick their necks out and end up in court in a lawsuit because they personally don't have ctny experiellce with the airplane.

I doll'! propo5e that everybody ill aviation should teach themselves to fly, but I'm here as standing proof that it can be done. I'm not saying that I'm the world's best pilot - I've made mistctkes as mally of you know, but I've survived and apparently sustained no major damage ~nywhere ... This i, something that the FAA is going to have to realize is a possibi lily. Now, the (Fl can give the man instruction as to basics· stalls, willd gradients, keeping your speed up ill turns and on approach, things like that. He should know he call get into (active) airspace. He should have a reasonable handle on regulation,, (There should be a way in which a beginner can stay) in ground effect, say 10 or 15 ft. off the ground, whereby he can tea<:h himself or have a Certified Flight Instructor there instructing him in his (powered hang glider) how to fly it and still be legal before he's checked off to solo and break out of ground effect. There isn't a whole lot that Jpplies ill a 150 Right now I thillk most of the people, frankly, are being "outlaws." They'll go out alld see a frindly farmer, learn how to fly in the gliy's field, then go find a friendly CFI to check him off.

Now, I guess, techllically, as long as the guy's feet are still touching the ground, occasionally tapping the ground - he's that close, he's really taxiillg the airplane. (I have over 60 hours of time logged in "retractable gear" aircraft now.) You call run along the ground and still not break away from the groulld. I know they're doing 1t, so it would behoove the FAA to filld some way they could do it legally.

Just from the philo,ophy of this thing, we're talking about cross-countries: I have flown my airplane now with two tallks on board, which gives me about two hours fuel capacity without tail wind, which would be about a good 50-mile cross-country.

Our philosophy - at least mine is not to re-invelll the airplane. These are strictly funtype airplanes alld the only reason I'm flying with two tanks is to accrue time on my airplane

HANG GLIDING

to get the restricl1on removed, and to see how high it will·go. But our philosophy is that the motor i> for power-J;sist only. Persollally, the best part of the trip I always enjoy is when you turn the "egg-beater" off. Get up to altitude, turn 1t off, and soar.

That's why I don't pooh-pooh the Rogallo,.

They're climbing 150 or 175, maybe 200 ft. J min. - that's plenty. My goal was 250 and I really didn't think I needed that. I had J ball with my airplalle earlier when I climbed only 125 ft. a min. So now that I climb between 350 and 300 ft., I feel like I'm on an elevator, practically.

I'm also of the opinioll that research will continue. I think there's a possibility of getting too much power on these airplalles. You can get wrapped up alld probably get in trouble. My airplane with motor will push the aircraft about 40 mi ll"s an hour straight out, full power, level flight. And red line is 45, so you really don't need to go any faster. .. the phi lo,ophy we have is .. not to rely on the engine. I do have, in the information package I put Olli for people interested 111 my plans, that this (McCulloch MC-101) is not an aircraft engine ... never rely Oil it. A 2-cyde engine. it can die JI any time ... So you never fly airplalles anywhere you c.:in't land safely should the engine fail to restart 111 the air or should you have an engine-out.

The lastth1ng, I guess, to wrap up this portion of it, is that I certJinly hope the FAA takes the position to do as much as they can to treat these people coming into this aircraft with kid gloves.

I'm very glad my inspector, way bJck when, was tJ<.tful enough to handle me properly.

Frankly, it came to a time or so when, courteously, I told him that "Well, we're either going to have to figure something out or I'll see you in court next Tuesday," or something like that. He kllew that I was in this to stay and we were going to work something out.

But many hallg glider enthu,iasts, bless their hearts, are not all that impressed with the government, alld the bureJucracy, and the FAA, or ally other government agellcy. I always encourage them to be legal. I provide as much illformation as I can to make it easy, to let them know it's not all that big a hassle to be legal (But) I've had more than one person tell me "Ahh, they give me too much trouble, I'll fly in the swamps . . .the younger generatioll, if pressed to the wall, would just as soon become outlaws as comply. So I do hope wherever eventually (rules) come out ... they will be reasonable measures so a man will be inclined to comply.

'Cause, otherwise, as portable as these airplanes are, the FAA is going to ·have their hands just full of "bandits" if they don't have J way for a guy to comply.

You call take your airplane off (your vehicle). you call get it set up .. in 15 mills. to a halfhour, you can fly, you can land at ctnother site, pack it up, and be golle before anybody can hunt you down.

I thillk there should be some regulation.

We're doing it; we're complying with this airplane. But if there are changes 111 it, I hope that they will be reasonable, otherwise yOL! gentlemen will have the "Citizells Band of aviation" on your hands. (continued on page 50!

FURTHER THOUGHTS In discussing the reluctJnce of flex wing manufacturers to produce r.iw materials kits for reasons of safety, I proposed to this New England meetillg that production hang gliders always be dealt with in the exhibition class as leniently as with homebuilts in the ama!eur class of the experimelltJI category. I forgot to mentiOll a compromise propo'><ll: The FAA would set a date, before which JII production hang gliders would be forever licellsable in tfw exhibition class, if ever motorized, with limitations as liberal as for homebu1lts. Production units built Jfter that date would have to go into the exhibitioll class under the same conditiolls as "bastctrd" sailplanes and balloons - sometimes handled leniently, sometimes not, at the local FAA's discretioll.

It isll't the customer's fault thatthe glider he now wants to motorize was only available complete, ready-to-fly when he bought it. Nor is it the mallufacturer's fault that he never had reasoll to consider the ramificatiolls ;omeday of motorization and FAA's unpredictable reaction to it.

Enthusiasts must have access to the rules, if they are to be expected to follow them. And manufacturers need time Ill which to reorient their thinking and to design high-performallce craft for practical and safe homebuildmg.

I feel that out-and-out refusal to license old productrion gliders leniently would be Ullfair to this new segment of the FAA's constituency, would show J blindness to the realities oft he hctllg gliding movement as it exists, and could rerider useless much of our effort to get enthusiasts to comply' with FAA regulatiolls in this area.

The above has been illserted in the meeti11g trJnS<;ript record for the FAA. Understalld that to s.:iy flex willg hang gliders cJnllot be homebuilt safely alld practically goes against the entire homebuilt aircraft act1v1ly and mdustry - a strollgly entrenched segment of Americall aviation which has good relations with the FAA, Jnd which includes aircraft types vastly more complex than any hang glider .

Aside from powered subjects, something that came out in unofficial discussion after the meeting WJS a "reliable source's" illdication of concern at FAA headquarters about a threat to public safety; "If anyth111g brings FAA regulation to all of hang gliding, it will be the cJrryillg of passengers" (approximate quote).

Probably we should move immediately to add a dual sign-off to the Hang-IV (not-1111. In any case, please be highly cautious about whom you carry and in what man Iler, what collditions. It might be a good idea to voluntarily limit dual flying to advanced instruction only - no first-timers or "sightseers," i.e., no members of the "public." It might only take one well.publicized accident to do in the whole sport.

-WAA.

19

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THE AlfflOST OURTH POLE HADli lillDIDli EHPEDITIOD

by Boris Popov Beaver aircraft and hang glider after flight from ridge In background. Cornwallis Island.

View from aircraft of one of the many arctic cliff sites available.

22

"Six thousand verti cal, I SO miles long, on the ocean, almost always soarable ...

Want to fly it ?" John asked.

"God yes," I answered, "Where is il?"

"U h, just north of town a bil." " How far north," I ask ... I shouldn't have ...

One month later, Dr. John Cesnik, Jeannie Tierney his fiancee, Wes Ament, and myself c ros sed the Arctic Circle en route to a hang gliding experience extraord inaire.

The thought of hang glidi ng in the high arctic first came to us after the Thunder Bay meet in 1976. All of us were st rained from directing an intense four day meet, and were casually discussing the need ior a sma ll vacation "away from the c rowds".

Johri, who quite often takes things litera lly, suggested the North Po le, where he c laimed the Inuit (Eskimoes) didn't even have a word in their language for hang glid ing, much less know what it was. The group chuck led, but since John, while working through medical school was one of the top arctic pi lots, and had piloted the first com mercial north po le landing, I somehow sensed this suggestion wasn't as ludicrous as it appea red to the rest of the group. I asked John, who al the time had about one year of hang g liding experi ence, if the po lar area was flyable. I had always envisioned the High Arctic to be nothing but a flat, barren, blizzard swept sea of ice, where nothing lived but converging lines of latitude and a few aurora bo·realis'. John politely informed me that the high arctic is not on ly a beautiful p lace this time of year, but offers some of the most fa ntastic hang gliding potential anywhere in the world.

And, he continued, if things work out,

maybe he could arrange a trip for us sometime this summer, glider and all. Knowing just how short weekend trips usLia ll y go astray, I could only remain skeptica l when the destination was to be the North Pole.

Inc red ibly, after a month of frustration s tryi ng to coordinate all of our sched ules, the trip was about to begin. John managed to trade a week with another resident at the hospital; Jeannie convinced her boss that she truly needed a vacation from her custom woodworking apprenticeship; Wes Ament, a TWA captain and expert Pitts stunt plane pilot, wa s already on vacation and would meet us in Alberta, and my business would be superbly managed by a beautiful person who just shook her head in disbelief.

With the glider already on its way via Northwest Airlines to Reso l ute Bay, Northwest Territories, John, Jeannie, and myself left St. Paul's Downtown Airport in John's Cessna 185 on July 23, 1976. We checked in at the Winnipeg c ustoms, where the cordia l custom boys muttered something abou t "craty yanks" when heari ng the purpose of our trip. From there we flew on to Edmonton, Alberta, where Wes had just arrived from San Francisco in his beautiful Beechcraft Travelaire, which we used for the rest of the flight. After spending the night al Yellowknife, we fl ew on to Cambridge Bay, where !he flat arctic tundra began. " No hang gliding in this part of the arctic" , I pessimistically said to John, who just smiled and said "just wait".

Our base destination, Resolute Bay on Cornwa llis Island, appeared that "night", where we landed after barnstorming the arctic ice at 180 knots at elevations under JUNE 1977

a hundred feet, cl imbing higher on ly to get better glimpses oi sea ls, w hales, and majestic polar bears. By this time only a few sma ll ridges were seen, albeit some of them over 20 miles long ... still nothing to get overly excited about.

After struggling to get to sleep in ful l daylight al 2 A .M., we al l awoke to hear that the outs ide temperature was 61°F, an al l time high fo r Resolute Bay. Good timing on our part, since we were expecting temperatures at best to be in the 20-30 range. After John concl uded his "welcome back, how'ya been" scenario with all the pilots, we started cautiously expla ining the purpose of our visit, throwing out innuendoes that we wou ld like a fl ight or borrow a plane to get as far north as possible, ultimately hoping for a flight to the actual geographic North Po l e. We learned that we could ily Wes' Travelaire to a gravel strip at Tanquary Fiord on Ellesmere Island at 81 °25'N, w hi ch would put us about 400 nautica l mi les from the pole. But a Flight from there to the pole wou ld req uire some doing, l ike $8,000 worth of doi ng, wh ich of course precluded that option. The other altern ative would be to fly to Tanq uary and hope for an empty Twin Otter wi th an understand ing pilot whom we could negotiate with. We decided to fly to Tanquary ourselves. Si nce the Travela ire was much too short to carry a hang gl ider, it would have to be left behind for now. After refueling at Eureka, where gas was $3.60 a gal lon, we began noticing some nice looking hang gl iding country. The farther north we trave led, the greater the relief became. Near Tanquary Fiord I saw what has to be the most i ncredible hang gliding geography anywhere. All around us was a panorama of conti nuo us mountai n range s over 8000' vert ical, broad landing beaches, and of course no trees, j ust gravel and snow fie lds. As we approached Tanquary, John pointed out the ridge he had mentioned before the sta rt of the trip. Incredible, an almost vertica l 6000 1 wall o i rock and gravel on the Arctic Ocean extending from horizon to horizon.

We fl ew over the ridge looking for possible landing sites for when we could return with the glider and a more suitable aircraft. As we conti nued on I noticed that we had yet to see a cumulus cloud. I was informed that you rarely do in the arctic.

Because of the stabi lity of the arctic air, lenticular clouds predomi nate. However, due to the 24 hour sunshine in the brief summer, thermal soar ing from heated mountain sides can be good. John mentioned that one of the pilots once shut down the engine on a Beaver aircraft, and though the Beaver has a terrible sink rate, was stil l able to soar the slope for over two hours. I began to imagine what that kind of HANG GLIDING

lift wou ld enable a ha ng glider to do. W ith w hat I had seen so far, the high arctic holds the potential to easily break al l distance records on hang gl iders.

Arter l anding at Tanquary, I stood amazed at the 7000' vertical sheer rock wa lls that c loserl in on that beautifu l fiord.

It wou ld indeed make for a fantastic fli ght, bul there was just no way of la nd ing the travelaire anywhere on top. To the northwesl, beh ind the moun tains of Lhe fiord, lay the north pole. As I ~tarted climbing up

very seriously. We heard many stories and saw many wreckages of aircraft along with grave markers of others who had taken the high arctic for granted.

Sleep that night at Tanquary was futi le.

Al three in the morning the sun was as bright as ever, forcing us to try blocking the windows of the quonset hut. We had to try and gel some sleep by pretending it was night time. The excitement and intermittent thunderous roars of moving glaciers fina lly fo rced us back outside, w here we started up theTravelaire and headed back to Reso lute Bay. On our way back over Cornwallis Island we noti ced tha t the wind was blowing right up a n ice seas ide ridge that also had amp le landing areas on lop. Upon arriva l at Resolute we decided to fly back with the glider and try soaring that ridge. Jo hn co nvinced the flight manager to lend him an old single beaver aircraft, a type that John had flown often during his career in the arctic. My fi rst commen t was that the plane's cargo area was too smal l to transport our hang glider. "We' II tie it to the

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Top: Map shows expedition route. Above: Dr. John Cesnik tying the glider to the airplane at Resolute Bay. one of the mounta ins, I found myself disside" John said. "Right, just like we do on believing that I could be this c lose to the your Honda back home'', I rep lied, knowpole, yet be wa lking around in light jacin·g fu ll wel l John was surely kidd ing ... I ket amidst fields of wild flowers, arctic never learn. I stood in d isbel ief as John cot ton, arctic hares, seagulls and long began strappin g our almost new, hartailed jaegers, and even wa lkin g up to o ne dearned gl ider to the side of that weatherof the rarest mammals on ea rth, a herd of beaten old plane. " It's gotta blow off, musk oxen. As I climbed h igher I began to John. Ch ri st, crui se speed is over 90 knots, catch glimpses of the start of the actual besides I've never heard of anyone do ing it before, and if it doesn't tear off in flight, polar ice pack shimmerin g on the horizon. it'll get damaged on landing on that rocky I began to appreciate the formidab le, dangero us type of expedition it would take hilltop" ... I pleaded. John just gave me to venture out to the top of the world, his famous "you worry too much" look, and conti nued tying. The entire fl ight concertai nly something that has to be taken

a

23

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Author soaring a ridge in the cool, smooth air of the high arctic.

sisted of me twisting my head with my nose pressed to the side window, waiting to witness the sink rate of a stuffed kite bag.

However, the ropes held, and as we neared the ridge John ilew over it a couple of times to make sure the landing area was safe. He then did a magn ificent job of dropping it down withi n feet of the take off area for the glider. We walked over to the edge of the ridge line, which appeared to be about 1000' high, about 13 miles long, and with the wind blowing as smooth as country cream right up the slope at 20 mph. As I excited ly sel up the glider, John took off and landed down on the beach, wa iting for me to finally begin the first high arctic soaring flight.

Well, I will personally attest to the fact that our old friend "Murphy" IS al ive and well, and yes he does haunt even the arctic flying sites. Just as I raised the ki ngpost, the wind began subsiding, and as I got ready to launch, was blowing no more than 10 mph. "Shit" I thought, "even up here".

But as I looked around, hoping for the wind to pick up, the end less expanse of pristine tundra behind me and that beautiful dark b lue iceberg c lu ttered ocean below, I knew the fl ight would stil l be a memorable one. As I launched, I wondered if this was to be the furthest north flight on a hang gl ider. If not, I'd su re like to hear about it. After attempting a few feeble soaring passes, I turned out away from the ridge. The air, though cool, was fairly smooth and al lowed me to gaze at the unique scenery. As I looked down I noticed a small skiff with two eskimos pointing wildly in my direction . I could just imagine what they must have thought of all this. As I banked into a 360, I swear I heard two distinct rifle shots from the direction of the skiff. "CH RIST" I thought, "I'm getting shot at!" I dove and turned away from the skiff, which was slowly turning back toward t he vi ll age. After

24

landing, .1asked in disbeliei if anyone else heard the shots. No one cou ld say for sure, but later on I learned lhat eskimo hunters often shoot seals which sit on the ice floes.

I'll never know for sure, but being the first hang glider pi lot lo be shot at by eskimos is one distinction I really don't need.

The next few days were spent expl0ring the arctic and discussing the polar rlight with the officionados of the arctic ... the arctic pilots. The consensu s was that the best time to attempt a landing al the pole wou ld be Apri I or May. Any earlier and the tempera lures could very well be 40 lo 60° below zero. Any later and open leads begin to appear, which means the actua l po le could be on open water. Since the pole is on ice for most of the year, the o nly p lace to fl y a glider would have to be from on the ice ridges that form from converging plates of ice. Some of the ridges get over 100' high, so a fl ight from one wou ld be possible, although not long lasting. The most serious concern, however, would be the flight from T~nquary Fiord or A lert, both of w hich are about 400 r.autical miles from the pole. This means a round trip of 800 mi les without refueling. The range on a Twin Olter is no more than that. Any sort of off course or consumption problems wou ld force us down God knows where, and even He m ighl not know where ...

As the departure day for home drew near, we began rrantically searching for a means of getting to the pole. We came close to getting a helicopter tha t cou ld feas ib ly make the pole trip, but unfortunately the territorial adminisler was in the area and had already requisitioned the copter. We began slowly accepti ng the facl that the ilight just might not happen this year. Time and money were short, we already were into late July, and aircraft just weren't available. I spent the rema in ing few days flying the glider on some of the spots on Cornwal lis Is land. We fin ished up the trip by formalizing plans to make the trip in the summer of'78. This would all9w ample ti me to set up logistics, and find sufficient sponsorship money to allow ior a more professional approach to the expedition.

Wh i le taxiing out to leave Resolute Airport, an im mense fog bank ·began rolling in, almost as if to remind us that we had been fortunate so far with the weather, but don't push your luck. Just two weeks later, Resolute had six inches of snow ...

As the Travelaire banked slowly toward home, the sun created a kal eidoscope of colors reflecting off the ice, water, and fog.

W hat a fitting ending, I thought, to a tri p through a land that has the on ly hang gliding site in the world where the wind always blows from but one d irection ... south ... the North Pole. ....

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HOW TO FLY IN TURBULENCE OR STRAIGHT AND LEVEL

By Chris Price .. Do-It-Wrong''

''Do-It-Right" Flying a hang glider with weight-shift control in more turbulence than one anticipated is something every pilot ends up doing no matter what his ski I I level.Taking five different situations of turbulence that a pilot finds most often and taking two imaginary pilots on a flight through the turbulence, one pilot flying wrong and the next pilot flying right, will help make a pilot aware of the problems and the control techniques involved when flying in

turbulence ... and help remove the "Oh, shit! What do I do now?," factor that is a~sociated with unexpected turbulence.

Often right after takeoff a pilot will find

the glider has an excessive amount of airspeed. There are usually two reasons for this. When the pilot flies away from takeoff, gaining altitude away from the ground, the glidercl1mbs through the wind gradient and has run into more wind than was next to the ground. The other reason ior this added airspeed after takeoff in gusty conditions is that most pilots wait for a lull in the wind before taking off. If the wind is going to change velocity, it will usually be in an increasing direction. Pi lot Do-It-Wrong, after takeoff, pushes out on the control bar because of this added airspeed which causes his vario to read up.

Thinking he has hooked a thermal, he initiates a 360° turn right back up over takeoff. Before he can even get the turn going and just as he gets one wing down through the wing gradient, the gust quits, reducing his airspeed. His inner wing stalls, spinning him right back onto the spot he took off from. Pilot Do-It-Right

26

takes off. He feels the extra airspeed but doesn't let the nose come up, holding the bar in a position that will give him a good airspeed by keeping the glider in a level attitude. He makes a slight bank to the right or left if there is any ridgelift and does not attempt a 3 60° turn ti II he is far enough away from the hill to complete it even if the sky /al Is. Do-It-Right' s main concern is to keep from getting turned back into the mountain rather than trying to cheat a little extra altitude right after takeoff.

In order to let Do-It-Wrong keep up with

"By making small corrections quickly Do-It-Right avoids having to make large corrections which ruin a glider's sink rate and would /eave him easy prey for a large gust."

Do-It-Right in the story, we have given Do-11-Wrong a new glider and neck. He is now flying along a minute or so after takeoff in disorganized turbulence that seems to be coming from every direction.

Once again, even though the glider is in a level attitude due to a gust, Do-H-Wrong finds himself with an extra amount of airspeed. He pushes out the control bar to bleed off this speed. The gust that hit him from in front quits, leaving Do-It-Wrong in a nose-high position without any airspeed.

Do-\t-Wrong panics and sucks the bar in all the way in order to pick his airspeed up as fast as possible. What Do-It-Wrong has accomplished with the help of the turbulence is a full-blown whip stall. You !',U€Ssed it: just as he is pointing straight down and has not had a chance to build up much airspeed, a gust hits him from behind. Do!t-Wrong jams the bar out as quickly as possible which slows the glider's rotation a little. But while rotating into a straightdown attitude out of the stall, he is weightless and has little control over the glider.

The glider is flipped negative. Do-ltWrong crashes onto the crossbar, breaking the glider. We leave Do-It-Wrong as he spins to the ground with his glider folded around him.

Do-It-Right flies through the same turbulence, letting his speed pick up a little rather than pushing out on the control bar.

This momentum helps carry him through the dead air after the gust. When the gust hits him from behind he is flying straight and level with a proper amourt of airspeed. The gust from behind does hit him hard enough to throw him weightless. The nose of the kite drops. He jams the control bar out as quickly as possible which keeps the nose from dropping below the horizon. Do-It-Right pulls the bar in as his glider pulls out of the slight dive, maintaining a good airspeed and keeping the nose from rising up too high.

Before Do-It-Wrong hits the ground we give him a new glider so we won't also have to give him a new back. Do-It-Wrong finds himself near the ground flying down JUNE 1977

a ridge towards the landing .ire,L There seems to be enough lift to soar the ridge.

Do-It-Wrong stop, tu make a couple of passes along the ridge. The air is extremely gusty and turbulent. As Do-It-Wrong slowly loses it on the ridge, he is being yawed around. Every time he goes to turn, a gust will turn him the other way and as he gets lower to the ridge he just misses it.

After ten pas~es, Do-It-Wrong has decided to outguess the gusts. As a gust turns him back into the ridge to the left, Do-It-Wrong banks hard right to keep goi11g in the direction he wanted to go. The gust changes direction. Before he can unbank, he flies into the ridge downwind.

Do-It-Kight, c1fter seeing Do-lt-Wr6ng falling out of the sky, loses altitude to fly over Do-It-Wrong to see if he i, ok. Soaring back and forth in the same spot ,h Do-ItWrong, Do-It-Kight seems to be having much less of a problem. He seem, to be going with the punches rather than thrc1shing around in the sky like D0-lt-Wro11g. He does not fight the gusts ds much. Do-ItRight is dble to rn,iintain above the ridge as he carefully keeps the glider deliberately pointed away from the ridge. By making small corrections quickly, he avoids having to make large corrections which ruin a glider's sink rate and would leave him easy prey for a large gu,t.

Thinking Do-It-Wrong is hurt, Do-ItRight flies out towards the landing area at a fast speed but keeping it conservative due to the loads that can be put on a glider's frame at high speeds on a gusty day.

Do-It-Wrong messed himself up awful bad in this last crash. We give him a new glider under one condition: that he go in and land. Do-It-Wrong i, tired of flying now anyw.iy so he tucks the bar in all the way and dives full speed towards the landing area. At the high speed he is flying he hits a gust, that would not have hurt the glider at a slower speed, and bred ks the cros~bar.

Before Do-It-Wrong broke his crossbar, Do-It-Right saw him 1n the air. Thinking he is ok once again Do-It-Right decides to work a small thermal over the landing area. The thermal is small and turbulent.

Since Do-It-Right is so close to the ground he does not bank more than 15° to stay in the thermal. His main concern is nut hitting the ground. Eventually as he slowly gains altitude he become more aggressive but never banks the glider more than 25° due to the extreme turbulence. Eventually this small thermal that he has worked for ten minutes as it blew downwind turned into a 1000 feet per minute boomer. Dolt-Right goes to 14,500 feet in it and turns down wind.

To save us the hassle oi giving Do-ItHANG GLIDING

Wrong another whole new bodym well as glider, we put a new crossbar on'his glider before he hits the ground. Do-It-Wrong now changes his mind about landing after seeing Do-It-Right catch that thermal.

Do-It-Wrong keeps getting thrown out of the thermal that Do-It-Right caught. bolt-Wrong gives it one last try ,rnd banks the glider over to 60° to try and stdy in the thermal. A gust hits him from the other direction and he is flipped over onto his glider as it turns upside down. Miraculously he is saved. Instead of l,rnding on the crossbar, he goes through the control bar and lands on the keel. The glider goes into a straight down dive .ind pulls out leaving Do-It-Wrong with SO feet of altitude.

From fifty feet Do-It-Wrong dives the glider down into the landing area, needing the extr.i speed for control in the gusty air.

When he flares one foot above the ground, he finds he still has 30 mph of airspeed to bleed oif. He cannot decide whether to flare back up or ride it out in ground effect.

A gust makes up hi, mind for him. He is slammed unto the ground at 30 miles an hour, trips, falls on his face, and breaks his control bar. This time we do not help Dolt-Wrong out.

Meanwhile Do-It-Right has used the unstable air this day to his advantage and is now a hundred miles downwind from takeoff and about to land. He is about SO feet in the air and the wind is blowing about 10 gusting to 17. Instead of diving down to the ground through the turbulence, Do-It-Right keeps the glider's speed a little above best sink as he settles to the ground. If he thinks he i~ going to stall he

"Do-It-Wrong gives it one last try and banks the glider over to 60° to try and stay in the thermal. A gust hits him from the other direction and he is flipped over onto his glider as it turns upside down." pulls the nose down but never allowing the glider to pick up any real speed. When he is about 5 ieet above the ground he is stalled. He just holds the bar steady and just before the ground, jams it out, landing on his feet with no forward motion.

Reviewing Do-lt-Right's flight he had the following priorities: 1. Keeping the glider from hitting the ground out of control; 2. Keeping the glider in one piece;

3. Getting out oi the turbulence; 4. St<1ying in the 11ft.

He also used the following control techniques: 1. Kept the glider straight and level by using quick and deliberate control imputs whenever the glider was upset by turbulence, 2. Never banked the glider more than 15° to get it going in the direction he wanted to go; 3. let the airspeed vary a little trying to keep the glider in a level attitude that would give him a good airspeed at about best LID; 4. Never let the airspeed build up excessively (getting out of trouble or trying to get some place fast) in order to protect the airframe of the glider.

5 On landing, chose to fly slow and chance being stalled rather than hit the ground with an excessive amount of air and ground speed and energy.

There is another factor in turbulence flying that was not brought out in the Do-ItRight, Do-It-Wrong story, f.atigue, both mental and physical. Thermaling at a site with a lot of turbulence a pilot will find himself with a dedlh grip on the control bar, his shoulders all tensed up waiting for the next gust. Instead oi looking for lift he is thinking about how bad the next gust might or might not be. One would find Do-It-Right making a conscious effort to relax his grip on the bar. He knows this might be the flight he goes a h~ndred miles. He does not w.int to wear himself out unnecessarily. He doesn't worry about the turbulence knowing that he can re.ict instantly to any that is thrown his way. He keeps his mind glued to the challenge of finding lift and avoiding sink.

A pilot used to have to take a fatalistic attitude towards turbulence. Once a pilot knew that he could do everything to keep his glider from breaking up and under control he could only say "If my day has come for Tl tAT piece of turbulence, my day has come." It was not surprising to see most of the hard core thermal pilots running out to buy parachutes as soon as they came on the market. Maybe it won't be their day after all.

Often beginning pi lots ask the question. t tow bad can turbulence get before it's too much? A true blue thermal pilot will have his hands ripped off the control bar, his feet kicking the keel as the battens in the sail clang against the cross bar while his harness is bruising his body as the support straps snap tight after "Going over the falls" and still he turns back into the lift.

Turbulence, Iike many of the finerthings in life, can truly be appreciated only after one has acquired a taste for it. ....

27

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By Dan Johnson Tales already abound proclaiming the magnificence of Clinch Mountain. Eager pilots talk of 1he exciting potential of a ridge that runs 500 miles, spanning the states · of Tennessee, Virgin ia, West Virgi nia, and Pennsylvania. Much discussion also ensues over the cha llenge of crossing the gap at the end oi the first thirty mi le section of ridge line. Few pilots have flown into the broken up ridge area that makes up lhe gap.

Clinch has now entered the hang glider ledgers as THE opening gathering for 1977. It is a rather unorthodox initiation for a Spring hang gliding season. Clinch,

28

while possessing great cross-country potential, is so new that it has hardly been seen by the hang glider community atlarge, lel alone considered for the location of a major meet.

Buster Yates is a principal in the company that operates the Clinch Mountain Sky Ranch. He is a Tennessean who has been flying gliders fo r severa l years. Buster was the foca l point of the Easter weekend activities, thus qua lifying him as the best inform ationa l source for this effort.

Buster begins, "Cl inch Mountain, as it if known in Tennessee and Virginia, is part of a ridge system which runs in a southwest to northeasterly direction from a point some 20 mi les northeast of Knox-

vi I le, Tennessee to some p lace in Pennsylvania.

"Last May, a fe ll ow named Kar l Striedieck hopped in his sa il plane very early one morning and rlew south rrom Bald Eagle Ridge in Pennsylvania all the way to Lutrell (Tennessee), 507 mi les, turned around and flew back, 1014 miles total in 14 hours. A fa irly mean feat, right?

"About the first of March this year, four other guys: Larry Floyd, Bi ll ard and Jack H ughett, Steve Elli s, and I decided to 'do' a flight faci lity. That is, operate a conimercial area which wou ld provide people with a mountain to fly, hills to learn on, camping accommodations, and, in the future some flyer amenities, like a bathJUNE 1977

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Flyers set up gUders In the clearing at the top of the ridge and get psyched up for some competitive flying.

house. We created the Cli nch Mountain Sky Ranch.

"After much work, cu tting and clearing, we christened the site's northwest side on Wednesday, March 16, 1977. Five pi lots soared in smooth winds at dusk. Paul Nicholson (a top local p i lot) described the potentia l that night after landing. He excla imed, ' I looked lo the north and saw a sign wh ich read, One Hundred M ile Hang G liding Flight - Straight Ahead.' The next day Larry Floyd and I christened the southwest side with sled runs.

"On Sunday, March 20th, it happened!

Several pi lots launched late in the day, and went 8, 10, 12 miles. After the lead pi lot landed, I went on for 60 minutes to a point 28V2 mi les down the ridge. A moonshiner picked me up and gave my Phoenix 8 and I a ride to the Gra inger County Sheriff station."

Writer Dennis Pagen went to Knoxville for the Fl ight Festival week end after a brief visit in Chattanooga . On an opportune day prior to the event, Denn is and Buster set the stage for long cross country flying by going the full distance to the "gap". They also became the first "wind dummies" to check the gap's difficu lty. The encounter would later be presented to the competing pi lots in the form of a stern warning to ga in suffic ient altitude before negotiating the gap. It seems Pagen had tried with less than enough height, and for his efforts ended up extricating himself and glider from a tree. Wind conditions became quite unpredictable in this 5 mile wide gap.

Precious I itt le room is available for landings as well. As Irv Alward and I followed the flights of Larry Newman and Jim DeBauche, we saw from the va lley road just how d iffic ult the area truly is. Trees totally covered all but a few sparse c leared fields where local residents attempt farming.

Even if you compose a successful landing, how on earth are you going to get back all the way to launch? Some pilots managed HANG GLIDING

to convi nce locals i nto driving them the 20 p lus miles back to take off. It took some ground crews most of the day to locate their pilots back up in the h ills.

J im DeBauche, flying an Olympus. took t he longest Olght honors at the festival - 35.4 ml.Jes. an Eastern distance record.

The word about this ridge sprea d rapid ly. This exceptional locale attrac ted 70 pi lots to the first meet of the ' 77 season.

Clinch offers a unique spot fo r more than its long ru n possibi lities. The Sky Ranchers have a twisty, but relatively smooth road constru cted right to the top of a large rocky area that affords la unches in both easterly and westerly w inds. Tlie Sky Ra nch group has had some help on this road because a loca l land developer owns the property at present. His plans ca ll for some luxu ry homes to be bui lt on the ridge - of cou rse requiring roads. When he sells only a few such lots, he should be able to have the state pave the road comp letely, and the Cl inch Mountain flyers will have prem ium access to their launches.

Th is exact dual launch situation actually presented a special problem; the competition side faces easterly while we all know westerly breezes p revail in our hemisphere. The east side was where the paid spectators were located, and meet officials fe lt a moral obligation to please them.

After a confusing start when the first three

competitors became mere wind dummies as it was found thei r scores had been missed, the remaining 67 pilots flew "free flights" for the remainder of the afternoon.

However, it made for a good show for the spectators.

The real contest for the pilots was on Friday the 8th, though. I can only guess at about 125 fl ights that day from the soarable west side. Many eastern and western pilots prepared to "shoot the ridge". Severa l got 2 to 5 mile first fl ights. Later flights averaged 12 lo 15 miles, one-way! Tri p Melli nger excited the crowd with a barograph adjusting and sea ling ceremony, as he psyched himself for a world record distance flight. While the ridge has excellent continuity for 30 miles, followed by 5 miles of broken ridge, it picks up again on the other side. Trip esti mated that he cou ld continue to a larger gap yet, w hich is some 75 miles later in Jackson National Park.

But Mellinger did not get the honors that day. Later conversations w ith the Eipper, Electra, and De l ta W i ng team flyers seemed to indicate their top pilots th ink the new world distance record could happen here al Cli nch Mountain.

Beyond the 12 to 15 mile flyers, another group of pilots flew between 27 and 35 m iles. Larry Newman went about 32 Y2, whi le co-team flyer, Jim DeBauche flew the maxi mum of the weekend by traversing 35.4 mi les, an Eastern distance record.

The Easter Festival was a fine collection of ecstati c cross-country pi lots. Clinch and the Sky Ranchers provided a pleasant begi nn ing to a new year in our sport. They are to be congratulated for their efforts in open ing this fantastic ridge to hang glid~ ing.

A Phoenix 8 pilot sets up his landing approach over the spectators on the east side of the Clinch Mountain ridge.

TRIMMING TECHNIQUE

by Dennis Pagen ...r

A glider out of trim is like a guitar out of tune. They both will function mechanically, but a slight adjustment makes a world of difference. This difference is most readily noticed during flights of longer duration. If your &_lider is o ut of trim, a constant force wi ll be required to keep it flying at a reasonable speed or in a given direction. How tiring th is is can be illustrated by holding a hand in the air for 5 minutes or more. A gl ider that is "trimmed" should fly hands-off at a speed between minimum sink and maximum LID (about 20 MPH) in a straight path. If your glider does not do thi s, you are missing a lot of flying pleasure and performance as wel I. DEFINING THE PROBLEM Assuming your glider design is inherently sound, poor trim can be a resu lt of several things: a drowsy assemblyman at the factory, stretch in g of the sai I o r stretchi ng of the deflexor ca bles. Even if the glider fli es like a c hamp when first purchased, a tree landing or other mishap ca n stretch both the sail and cables . Some stretching also occurs in norma l use. If the components stretch uniformly (i.e ., the same amount in the left and right w ing), the gl ider will simply change flying speed. If one side is affected more than the other, a

30

turn and dropping off on one wing will resu lt. In bri ef, the most common trim problems are: 1. A tendency to turn at fly ing speed.

2. Flyi ng too fast or too slow with no pi lot in put.

3. A stall occurring in one w ing before the other.

MAKING ADJUSTMENTS To correct the above problems, a combi nation of three ad j ustme nts ca n be made. These are:

1. Changing the deflexor cable tension.

This is a bit compl icated, si nce d ifferent designs employ different systems. One of the most common systems is shown in figure 1. The single 45° deflexor is used often in intermediate designs. Tightening this si ngle cable wil l bow the leading edge down and out, which decreases bi llow.

This action creates more lift in the rear section (the down bowing gives the rear a higher angle of attack and reducing bil low improves the efficiency of the airfoi l). Less billow also means less washout. The rm-

r

I ~

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NO.SE Fig. 1. A typical deflexor system used on intermediate gliders.

JUNE 1977

plicationsofthis will be examined shortly.

The system depicted in figure 2 is often used on high performance gliders. Three deflexors are employed in this case. The

the wing tip) forward or back on the leading edge, the amount of billow, and thus, the stall point can be controlled. The stall characteristics of a wing tip is determined

•

bulence or gusts.

Te~! for J turn first. Simply fly along, tracking straight a head and relax your gr1 p on the control bar. Jt will be obvious if the glider has a built in turn. Let's assume the glider is turning left. This means the right wing is flying better than the left. This is ca used by either less bi Ilow or more bending in the leading edge on the side rising in the turn {see figure 5).

/><->-;<"._ V pp 1''1se.

CABLE:.

SI De:.

CABLE BOT"TCJM CABLE N:lSE

Fig. 2. A typical deflexor 5Ystem used on high performance gliders.

upper cable doesn't come into use in normal flight. Tightening the lower cable will bow the wing down and thus, create more lift in the rear section. Tightening the single deflexor will reduce sail billow. A combination of both will have about the same effect as tightening a 45° deflexor.

Most deflexor systems have turnbuckles placed in the cable to shorten or lengthen it. Some gliders have deflexor posts that can be lengthened or shortened. If your glider lacks either of these devices, you can still change the length of your cables by twisting them. Twisting a cable so as to unwind it will lengthen it, while twisting it the other way will make it shorter. Don't put more than 10 complete twists in a cable. This should be sufficient adjustment.

2. Moving the pilot attachment point (changing the center of gravity (CG.).) If the hook-up is moved forward, the pilot's weight is moved towards the nose and the trim speed will increase. If the hook-up is moved back, the trim speed will decrease.

Small adjustments of this type can be made by hanging the suspension loop behind or in front of the control bar. If a greater change is required, a C.G. adjustment (as shown in figure 3) can be used.

by the amount of washout. Washout is a twist given a wing so that the tip is always at a lower angle of attack (more nose down)thantheroot(keelonahangglider).

Since a stall results from too high an angle of attack, the center of the glider will then stall before the tips. However, if one tip has less washout that the other, this tip will stall first and drop during a landing flareout. Reducing billow reduces the amount of w.ishout on a flexible wing. Thus, equalizing the billow on both wings will prevent one wing from stalling first.

Pulling the sail tighter on the frame reduces billow while slackening the sail allows more billow and in turn, more washout. Some gliders have lines holding the sail at the wing tips to facilitate this adjustment. Other designs use conventional screws, requiring redrill1ng when making changes. With gliders employing truncation, the angle of the tip (when viewed from above) should be changed to alter billow instead of changing the sail mounting point. Figure 4 indicates how this is done.

TIG!,T,N

TUl<N""--"'KL-E 7V BICJ.,c<,,,

ROaD,a,

ANc,WA.:,"HO'-'T

Fig. 4. A system for equalizing blUow"" both sides.

' Fig. 3. Common C.G. adjusters.

3. Altering the sail positions on the leading edges. By moving the edge of the sail (at HANG GLIDING

TROUBLESHOOTING At this point we can apply our knowledge to the specific trim problems. First, check your glider out in flight. Select a hill that provides at least 40 ft. ground clearance to avoid ground effect. Call your local weatherman and plead for a generally light wind day. There must be no tur-

Fig. 5. Troubleshooting for "built In" tmns.

First, turn your attention to the billow.

Stand at the nose and tilt the glider down until the trailing edge of the sail appears from behind the crossbar. Both sides should appear at the same time (see figure 61. With a very tight sail you m.iy have to

Fig. 6. Sighting lor unequal biUow.

sight below the crossbar. If the billow 1~ unequal, check the keel for straightness. If a front to back flying cable is the wrong length, the keel will be bent to the side, thus. loosening one side of the sail while tightening the other. Replace the cable in this case. · Fold in the wings or use a measuring tape to compare the sail mounting. Both sides should end at the same place on the leading edge. If this is not the situation, remount the short side (the tighter side can be loosened, but since the sail stretches it is best to tighten the loose side).

If the billow is still unequal, check for bending in the leading edges by sighting down them from the nose to the tail. The best way to do this is to line up the front part of a cable with the back part and make a mental measurement of the distance between the cables and the deflexor. Figure 7 illustrates this. We are sighting down the cable to judge the bottom cable tension.

The distance between the two arrows indicates that the bottom cable is tighter in the first drawing. Note that for clarity in the drawing, the side cable isn't quite lined up fore and aft. To check the side cable adjustment line up the front and back of the JI

Ag. 7. Sighting fm cable tension adjustments.

bottom cable. Cable tension can be tested by pushing them inward, but this method is not as accurate as sighting. Compare the right and left sides and get a picture of which cables are tighter.

Equalize the bottom cables first. Then, tighten the side cable on the wing possessing the greater billow until everything is balanced. Be aware that tightening a side cable may loosen a bottom cable. Multiple adjustments may be needed to get everything perfect. Another matter to watch for is a tight bottom L.;1bl~un one wing balancing out a tight side cable on the opposite wing. The glider may fly straight ahead, but still be out of trim. Finally, if the billow is exactly equal and the side cables are the same, yet the glider still turns, tighten the bottom cable on the side that the glider turns to. There is a possibility that the sail ;\self is not symmetrical.

The method to use when making these adjustments is educated trial and error.

Make each change individually, then sight for cable alignment and billow. The more flights you take and the more sights you make, the better.

Once you get the glider flying straight, check for trim speed. Let go of the glider in flight. If it slows to a stall or speeds up above L/D max speed, it needs trimming.

To speed the glider up, move the C.G. forward or move the sail back on the leading edges. To slow the glider down, loosen the bottom deflexor cables equally, or loosen the sail. When making these adjustments, be on the lookout for sail wrinkle. A ripple appearing at the crossbar indicates that the deflexors are too loose.

The last alternative to correct trim speed is to move the C.G. back to slow up and tighten the bottom (or 45 degree) deflexors to speed up. These changes should be used sparingly since both reduce pitch stability.

When making any adjustments for speed, do so with small increments between flights. Start out with a single full turn on deflexors.

To test fort he third problem - dropping a wing when stalling - make a series of landings with a full push out. Note if one wing drops. A better way to test for th is is to

stall the glider with at least 500 ft. ground clearance. Again note if the glider falls off on a wing or the nose drops straight through. A common occurrence is for a glider to turn one way at flight speeds and break the other way when stalling. This is because the billow is unequal. The side with less billow lifts better, but stalls first.

The best way to adjust for a sta II i ng wing is to pull the sail back on the wing that doesn't stall. These adjustments will equalize washout and consequently the stall point in both wings.

The flight characteristics of the glider can be changed dramatically by moving the sail mounting. Pulling the sail back on both sides will provide a slightly better glide ratio. However, the glider will stall more radically, spin easier, and be more "skittish" in flight. After a bit of practice you can trim in the performance that suits you. Remember, the adjustments affecting a glider trim arc interrelated several things change at once. You must learn the process gradually. Follow the outline above in proper order and the knowledge will come easily. Once you get your glider in perfect trim, it will fly for itself. This will free you in flight to look for lift, survey the scenery, or play your guitar. Be sure to stay in tune. ....

Cash, prizes, and trophies through 10th place. Grand Prize---1 Horizon Hang Glider by Hangflyer Inc. Many prizes donated by US Hanggliders Inc. Requirem_ents: Hang IV with all special skills; Liability insurance; must be a full member of the USHGA.

August 31st to Septembe~ 5th (Labor Day) 1977

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Fall out and send to: Robef! Sage Memorial Hang_gl1der Open, P.O. Sox 1572, Sierra Vista, Arizona 85635.

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$15.00 entry fff: make all checks and/or money orders to Robert Saga Memorial Fund.

Post entry fff: $25.00. Please have all Information In before August 1st, 1977.

I

32

JUNE 1977

INTRODUCING THEALL N E W - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ,

l!!l!!PHDENIX Vl-p

"'

!l!I

By Delta Wing

•

Applied Leading Edge Pocket

VI-C Leading Edge: Keel Nose Angle:

Now Available $50.00 Extra

20'6" 11'0" 100 degrees

180 sq. ft.

Span: 31.4' Aspect Ratio: 5.48 Pilot Weight: 150- 200 pounds Sa/1 Area:

VI-C JR. Leading Edge: Keel Nose Angle: .,

18'6" 11'0"

Sail Area:

Span: Aspect Ratio: Pilot Weight:

THESE NEW FEATURES INCLUDE: FLOATING KEEL POCKET

1t CAMBERED CUT SAIL 1t NEGATIVEG. DEFLECTORS

~\ Q r )) Wing

blH~~GllDEIS ~ ---

-----

1t ALL NEW SUPER TUBULAR TRIPLE DEFLECTOR SYSTEM

1t NEW IMPROVED RADIAL TIP

DELTA WING KITES & GLIDERS, INC. 13620 Sallcoy St.,• P.O. Box 483 • Van Nuys, California 91408 (213) 787-6600

On April 20th, Ton)' De Rosa, flying an SST, took off from [lsinore, California and flew 44 miles. During the 3 hourthermalling flight, Tony at one time gained 5600 ft.

Later, in spite of losine all but 150 {L. of altitude, he mat'1aged to continue 12 more miles.

Convinced by a fellow flyer, Mike O'Toole, that a flight to Banning was po.ssible and that sailplanes "do It <11/ the time", Tony set out following Mike who had a mile head start.

What Tony didn't know was that Mike veered off the planned route and soon landed.

Tony, still believing he was following his more experienced guide, flew to Banning and beyond. What makes the FJ;ght partiwlarly remarkable is that Tony has only one year's flying experience!

The following is a personal account of the flight as told by Tony.

JUNE 1977

~

I

J •

wind I couldn't see Mike anymore, but I knew where he was heading.

As soon a~ I left the range I started go11'\g clown to the tune of 500 to 700 fpm. I headed for the airport which is about 6 miles away and a nice place to land. My altimeter read 1000 ft, just north of the ~kydivers landing area when I got a little lift. then zero sink, then I 00 fpm up - A thermal. a thermal, I found a thermal! I thought a 360 would be appropriate, and after a few more l found the core. It was registering 400 (pm up, Wow! 2000ft later the l ift started dy ing out and as I looked around I noticed a single engine Howard heading right for me. I watched as I heard the engi cut back and out leaped a skydiver. Boy, did he plummet! It sent a fow chil ls down my spi ne. I cranked a hard turn and headed for the Sedcos, some sma ll mounta i ns bordering the eastern part of the va Iley. I lost 2,000 ft gelling over there but found a short choppy thermal good for a grand. Where did Mike g()? I had seen him over the Sedcos a little north of here. W hi le I was circling over the valley, he must have gone on.

"Me too/' I though t as I headed eastward. I c,aw a plowed field with hills on both sides running paral l el lo my flight path. I thought maybe the heat wou ld come off that little valley.

The best I cou ld do now was zero sink.

And unfortunately I was getting low again.

My altimeter was heading for zero when I saw some rocks at the end of the plowed field. What luck, a therma l! I gained 2000 ft working it back and forth then around and arou nd. Whe n the l ift weakened th is time, I didn't stay around looking for it; I headed for the nearest hi lls. It didn't look like I would even come close. I headed for a dark plowed field, hoping for another thermal. Again a therma l picked up my spirits to 1500ft, just enough to reach that little mountain I noticed before. I approached it from the ~outhwest. A farmer plowing his field c;howed me with his dust that the wind was from the northwest. I chose to rly over the mountain to the

,e

On April 19, I was driving north to the base of the Ortegas at Lake Elsinore looking for my friend, Mike O'Toole, The wind had been blowing strong from the west when I left Oceanside tha t morning and since the Ortegas face east my hang glider stayed behind. When I arrived at Elsinore I looked around and noticed there wasn't any wind in the valley. A quick look up at the mountain and I found Mike, going round and round. He must have been 2,500 ft. above take offl 1' 11wail for him, I lhoughl. I walked around, laid in the sun, drank a few beers, and even changed the oi l i n myVW. What a flighthewashaving!

Hours later I had my chance to ask M ike, "How do you 5ky out?'' H i~ reply, "Well, I had a hearty breakfast, the 89¢ special and a beer.'' When he said it was going Lo be good tomorrow I got really excited . I immediately hopped i nto my car, drove back to Oceanside, picked up my favorite lady, Nancy, both kites, and made a bee l ine for the monument, the big land ing area at the foot of the Ortegas. And there we set up camp for the night.

Early the next morning we dragged Mike out of bed for that mandatory breakfast. although I did trade in the beer for some coffee. I questioned him thoroughly over breakfast on his techniques of getting high, and my excitern~nt steadily grew. A half hour later, our minds were skied out many thousands of feet above. When I asked, "Then what sha ll we do?," Mike's simple answer was, "Fly to Banning." He had spoken of that place before. "Sa il planes do it, so can we:' he'd say. "Sure," I quietly thought, "We're off in dream land again."

Mike~aid, "Let's go. If we're too late, it will blow down on top like it does almost HANG GLIDING

every afternoon. A$ soon as the sea breeze pushes into the valley, you might as well pack It up." This morning was already the beginning of a beautifu l day, the visibil ity was good and it was getti ng wam, .

When we reached the launch site, 50me 1500 ft above the Elsi nore valley floor, the thermals were cyc ling through at regular interva ls. We got so excited it was a scramble to get our kites off. the car and into the air. Mike was first to launch.

Nancy and I were sti ll putting our gl iders together, but stopped to watch the exciting opening moments of M ike's fl ight. When soa ring thermals, the first few moments of the flight are most important; you either hook a thermal and go up, or sad ly miss it and land. Mike got a good one and was safely on his way up. Some 15 minutes later I launched into a thermal and also rose skyward. Mike now was out of sight and Na ncy was almost ready Lo lake off. I was al 2000 ft above take off when Nancy la unched. About 15 mi nutes had gone by.

I watched as she worked the sadd le. She was low and that made it tough. A few minutes later, Nancy was forced to land.

But up here it was great. The l ift got better and better. My vario hit 500 fpm up and danced there for minutes at a time. I kept looki ng for Mike, but il wasn't unti l my alti meter read 4, 100 ft that I saw him. He was right next to me. Around we went again and again but we were not gaining any more altitude. I had set my altimeter al zero w hen we launched, so adding 1500 ft, we were now 5,600 ~ above Lake Elsinore. Mike took off across the val ley heading east, wh ich was now downwi nd. I stayed and tried to get higher, but it wasn't working. We had topped out. About 5 minutes later I too started my journey down

Tony De Rosa

35

wi ndward side, but I didn't have enough alti tude to c lear the top. (My altimeter was below zero) . I c ut left and shot through a saddle at the lower end. It paid off - on the other side was l ift, c lose to the ground and hard to work. And it did take a whi le lo work, but it turned into a boomer worth all the sweat. Soon my altimeter read 4000 ft. and goose bumps appeared o n my bare arms. From here I could look eastward and see Soboba, a flyi ng site I had flown once before. Soboba would be good wi th th is wind di rection and time o i day, but it was sti ll a long ways away.

I started therma I hunting agai n. The next therm al I happened upon was by fa r the biggest thermal I have ever had the p leasure of runn ing into. I set my bank and sat up in my harness and rested as best I cou Id .

I watched my vario settle in at 500 fpm up.

I on ly needed one hand to mai ntain my bank angle w hile my other o ne was vigorously rubbi ng my arms and legs to keep warm. At 4500ft I had thoughts o f leaving the therma l in search of a warmer o ne. But no way, I just couldn't do that, no t yet.

Around and around I went. A jet passed below me; it looked like a military type to me. I cha nged direction for variety. All of a sudden I heard a helicopter, first on my left, then around to my right, and fi nally leaving, back to my left. I banked up trying to see it b ut it wasn't until it was q uite far away that I caught a gl impse of it.

I was tired, fly ing now for about two hours. That wa s longer tha n I had ever

36

flown before; I w as higher that I had ever been and a quick look back at Lake Elsinore showed l had flown farther tha n ever before. I left the thermal, vario sti II read ing SOOfpm up , and c ru i sed out toward Soboba. I was now over 7,000ft above the ground . From here i t was easy to see Ba nni ng over the range in front of me.

Duri ng the long straight glide to Soboba I rested. As l lost altitude l warmed up. I wat ched Ban n i n g gett i ng c l ose r and c loser. The d ream of fly ing to Banning wa s renewed. I fl ew right towards the "S" on Sobo ba, getting some l ift out in front but not where I thought it would be. I sti ll had some altitude so I just kept flyi ng straight.

After cresting the top I encountered 500 to 600 fp m sink. It was obvious I wasn't goi ng to make it. I fo llowed the road to the left and looked for a place to la nd. There was one ridge left between me and Bann ing and I was looking up at ii. I noticed some rocks off to the right. It was a long shot and p ro bably a lo n g wal k b ut I thought I may never have th is chance again, so . .. I went for it.

I passed the road and reached the rocky hill with about 50ft to spa re. The rocks were about 100 ft off the fl oor so I wa s ready to turn out and land at any time. The first pass convinced me there was lift, so I fl ew back across it agai n and aga in, then circled aro und and aro und . It fizz led out shortly but I left with a 1500ft ga in! I d id n't look back, just stra ight ahead eyeing the on ly low spot left i n the range. I co uldn't

believe it but I made it and with a bo nus. A ''welcome to Banning" thermal registered 3000ft o n my altimeter. The air got cold aga in . I'd been low and warm for awhi le so it felt even colder than before. I left it and headed for an airport I had spotted. I thought that it would be the perfect endi ng to my fl ight.

I was almost there when I h it 400fpm up.

How could I pass up thi s ki nd of lift w hen I've spent so many fl ights hunting for the illusive thermal ? I cran ked off turn after turn, up to 2500 ft. Then i l got cold again and I left. I decided to fl y along this range and end up i n the desert. The therma ls were good fo r awhi le. Then l fel t it. The air got cho ppy and hard to work . I knew it was all over. The l ift was no longer around. I headed toward a protruding finger of the ridge, tryi ng to put up a good fight, but there were only small areas of l ift to be fo und and lots of strong wind. I flew to the next finger, but I knew I was on ly prolonging my descent. I landed across fro m a sign that sa id "Pa lm Spri ngs Exit", two hours and 44 mi ns. after ta ke off.

Tired and starry-eyed, I laid in the sand fo r a good 10 minutes as my mird danced fro m thermal to thermal, reca lling the flight. Then I rea lized I was sitting in a dry river bed with a lo ng wa lk ahead. I was fa irly sure that I had flown over Banni ng but where was I now? And w here wa s Mi ke? Could he sti ll be up ahead? For the ti me being, it d idn't matter, because I fe lt l ike I had landed in East D ream land.~

JUNE 1977

by Jim Walker In last month's artic le, I mentioned structural failures. There have been several, some caused by poor ma intenance, some by improper assembly ,and general stupidity on the part of the pi lot, and some by just poor or inadequate design. Some of those thi ngs the manufacturers cannot do anything about except to educate owners, and try to be at least a little selective about who gets their gl iders. But, poor design .. . that's another thing.

It's always been the responsibi I ity of the manufacturer to put out the best possible, safest product he can. But the sad fact is that a great many manufacturers have been negligent and irresponsible about testing in the past. Part of the reason is because the body of knowledge about these sai l gliders we are flying is pitiful ly sma 11 right now. It's growing, !'Jut it's real Iy a very new fie ld. A lot of the problems of control and stabi lity that hang gliders have are peculiar to hang gl iders and have not previously been an issue with airp lanes.

Hang gliders using only weight shift for control, and having a continual ly varying sai l shape have complex inter relationsh ips between control inputs and resultant control, and stabi lity . Remember that a membrane or sail is not a rigid, fixed thing. It' s al ive and responds to varying HANG GLIDING

ASG-21 airframe loaded with almost 3A ton of sand representing 6.3 g's. forces. There is a balancing act between control and stabi lity. Too stable and you cannot control it; too unstable and you also can't control it. I'm not making a plea for rigid wings with control surfaces. I much prefer weight shift "rag w ings", and I think the future oi hang gl iders l ies with them.

Another reason why testing has been neglected is that it has just not been economica lly reasonable to manufacturers. The game has been to "design and test" and then market. Unfortunately "design and test" has too often meant just cut and try, and wonder why it's not perfect.

But very little actual testing has gone on other than just "going flyi'ng". That's not good enough anymore, if it ever was. This artic le w i ll try to explain how one manufacturer is testing, what is being learned, and how th is information is being used and hopeful ly how it might be useful to anyone else in the business, because "we're all in the kettle together".

The problems of structure have become CRITICAL in the last year. The HGMA certification has started to push manufactur-

ers to find out what' s happening. Last year Bob Wills took a gang and flew down a sa nd dune in almost gale force winds. The result? The gl ider survived. It grossly distorted and because of that distortion to its lifting surface, could not l i ft eno ugh weight, at that air speed, to hurt itself. As crude as that test was, it was, at the time, one of the best structural tests done. The problems have been to try and design te sts that were easy and not too expensive (hang gl ider folk s are neither ric h nor highly motivated when it comes to doing things other than flying).

Our initial temptation was to bu i Id a tow vehicle where we could tow a glider and l ift large weights at various speeds ... (without a p ilot) ... The problem with that is, that every time something fails, you have to make a whole new glider. You can imagine what happens when a glider carrying 1200 or so pounds at 50 miles an hour breaks some little part or other. Instead of saying ... "look, the frame is broke" ... you would have to say ... "did that wad of junk real ly used to be a hang glider?" After starting the test veh icle and doing lots of head scratch ing, it sudden ly occurred to us to test the way airplanes are tested ... Static Tests ... Basical ly just hang the thing upside down and put sand

37

bags all over it in a rough simulation of the actua l li ft distribution .

The pictures here show the results of some of those tests. The glider tested was an ASG 21, 180ft 2 . In al l cases, we tried to ma ke the tests more strenuous than the actual fly ing situation. By that I mean, the tub ing used fo r the fra me was far fro m perfect; it had scratches and dings in it. In several p laces the sleeving used was smaller than on the productio n gliders. The sail was cut to a smal ler billow angle tha n prod uction gl iders. Thus we cou ld be assured that if this gl ider could pass, a production glider in average good cond itio n cou ld also. Once testi ng proceeded, we saw that w ith the flatter bil low sai l we were prepa ri ng to i ntrod uce, the prod uction crossbar was not enough. At j ust over 4 G' s it fa iled.

A beautiful "S" shape appeared (see photo 1) just li ke the books pred ic t. The tube d id n't break, no r was it damaged. It j ust bent o ut of a stra.ight l ine unti I some of the load was back on the floo r and then it was ok. In fligh t, it mig ht have bent unti l it broke. This crossbar was 1 3,4" X .049 stronger than most gl iders yet it fa iled a1 a G load that is possible to pul l in a 45 or 50 mph maximum effort pull up.

As a note I would like to add that the al loy wa s not mentioned because in what is cal led a " long column" situati on, where the load is purely compressio n, al l the al uminum al loys have essentially the sa me strength. They are primari ly dependent on the d iameter, wa ll th ick ness, and length.

On a tube whic h is in a ''bend i ng mode" o r an excentri cally loaded co lu mn (where a compression load makes it try to be nd) the alloy is important. Control bars, leadi ng edges, and keel tubes are all bending mode, excentri cally loaded colum ns, and the alloy does make a difference in their strength.

We now attempted to "fix" the cross bar at the center. If you exami ne photo 1 you

considered the options: thicker wal l tubi ng, sleeving, or larger tubi ng. The thicker wa ll was not weight efficient. Thal is, the necessary strength improvement, weighed too much . By staying wi th 1 %"tubing and increasi ng the wal l thickness we would have to add a Imost 3 I bs. to getthe strength we needed. Sleeving had two bad consid erations. Weight, and the olher is that we have had tests indicate that while a sleeved tube fail s al a higher load, the failure is more total. It crum ples or "beer cans" at the end of the sleeve. It looked like the best bet wa s a 1%" X .058 tube. It added slightly more 1han 1. 5 lbs, and increased the column strength by almost 45 percent. With tha t cross bar, we reached 6.3 G's wi thout too many more problems.

The contro l ba r is now very near fa i Iure, and there wil l be more about that later.

The side wi res are so tight it's fr ighteni ng; their thimbles are pulled almost straight.

(See photo 2 ) By increasing the l oad

~ Photo 1: Illustrat es " classical" long column failure.

w il l see !hat for the bar to fa il in this "S" shape, it must rotate slightly aro und the heart bolt. In theory, if the tube could be kept from rotating at this poi nt it would i ncrease its strength by a facto r of 2. We put a 'I/a" alumin um p late between the crossbar and the keel and sol id ly bolted it to both . Surpri singly, it made no signi fi cant difference in the fa il ure point. It d id red uce the amount oi deflection, however.

W hat happened was, i nstead of j ust bendi ng the crossbar, the keel also bent. At any rate, a much more sign ificant improvemenl w ould be needed so we abandoned this approach.

We looked at tub ing strength ta bles and

Photo 2: At maximum load of about 6.3 g' s the side wire thimbles looked like this. slightly, the cross bar aga in failed. This was the I 'l's" X .058 tube, which has a col umn strength of abo ut 975 lbs for thi s' length. The gl ider has about 1500 l bs of sa ncl on ii.

In the photos, it is apparent that the sa il is to uch ing the floo r alo ng the traili ng edge. We found it was helpfu l to allow it to

Photos 3 & 4: Comparison between Wills Wing test (July Ground Skimmer) and ASG-21 loaded 'to 6.3 g's illustrating lea ding edges.

38

similar deflection In the

JUNE 1977

just touch for ba lance reasons. We have :Y4 ton hangi ng by 1 point; if we lift it all the way up, just the weight of an added penny somewhere on the sail would make the whole thing tip to that side and sand bags wou ld start sliding around. As evidence that it was only lightly touching at th is point, it was possible to swing and rotate the w ho le thing slowly around w ith only one hand on the noseplate.

The ASG 21 is one oi the stiffest Frames on the market, yet look how it distorted.

Looking at an upside down picture or the 21 next to the pictu re of Will's kite, you can compare how much they are both warped. (See photos 3 & 4 l The truth is that we all have flexible airfra~es, and one is not that much different from the other.

With this crossbar, the struc ture just re ached the G load limit that we have set for ourselves. So we did some experimentation with some other things. One or them was I he belly bars that are used when converting from prone to seated, and vice versa. You can see that it is radically d istorted. (Photo 5) The base l ength is stretched 3Ya", and this is with a load or somewhere between 3 and 4 g's. Also you wi ll see that because of the twisting loads being put on the bar the uprights are also distorting. The problem is that when the

fl:.r. .

control bar uprights are bent a lot as shown i n the picture, their strength is reduced, and also, with the base bar stretched, the cross bar bows up at the ends, and it might be persuaded into fai lure.

Because or th is test, we have advised our dealers and owners not to use these conversion bars. And I wou ld also suggest that if you fly with one of these, you might examine the picture and then let your own conscience decide if it might be better for you to leave it at home from now on.

What all this means is that since the bi llows have gotten flatter and flatter the stresses have gotten higher and higher and the structures are in many cases not strong enough. By next month, we shou ld be able to show you pictures of the gliders undergoing further tests o n the tow vehicle, because we are goi ng to use it lo confirm the static load tests. We will also be doing pitching moment tests to find out what happens when the g lider is deflated and in a vertica l dive. And finally there will be some REAL performance data. Actual measurements of the lift and drag. So if after seeing these pictures, if you have any doubts about the glider you are fly ing, ask your ma nu facturer to give proof or its strength. We don't need ANY more accidents. ._...

Photo 5: This is what the "belly" bar looked like at a load of from 3-4 g's. Notice that the downtubes are also bowed.

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39

Instructor Mike Meier teaching a student on his prototype Integrated Aight Simulator.

Mike is the owner of Hang Flight Systems, a hang gliding flight school and glider dealership located in Placentia, California. His educational experience includes ten years as an athletic skills instructor, a bachelor of science degree in physics and professional teaching experience in physics and physical science at the high school level. He has been involved in hang gliding for about three years, and is a Hang-IV pilot and USHGA certified instructor.

There is one thing about hang gliding instruction which should be obvious: safety is the instructor's primary concern.

In fact, safety is almost the only justification there is for the existence of the instructor. In this article I will deal with some of the methods which I have found usefu l in maximizing the level of safety for my students. This is not a how-to-instruct manua l, nor do I claim to have found the ''on ly correct way." I merely wish to offer the benefits of my experience in the spirit of a free exchange of information, and I hope mher instructors wil l do the same.

Learning to fly a hang glider doesn't require an instructor. Many of today's expert pi lots learned without the benefits of or-

ganized instruction. There is no reason why today's beginners could not learn the same way, by tria l and error, except that the consequences of error in this sport are often disastrous. In fact, the whole idea of learning to fly a hang gl ider safely is almost a contrad iction in terms. You hear it again and again, the first commandment of safety: "Stay within your own l imitations." This commandment is in direct conflict with the whole concept of learning which implies advancing to new and more challenging flying experiences as one advances one's ski lls. In order to avoid exceed ing hi s or her limitations in flight, the student pilot shou ld acq uire new knowledge and new skil ls, as much as possible, on the ground. The idea of acquiring new knowledge on the ground suggests a number of things; reading back (and current) issues of Ground Skimmer and Hang Gliding magazines, talking to other pi lots, thinking things out for onesself, and listening to one's instructor.

The idea of acquiri ng new skil ls on the ground suggests the use of a flight simu lator in conjunction with mental exercises to achieve a level of "preprogramming'' as described in Donald

Walters' article in the February issue of Hang Gliding.

This pre-programming is needed because in the ai r things happen too fast for the student to be able to: 1) Recognize the situation or problem, 2) Determine the cause, 3) Formulate the correct solution, and 4) Execute the proper corrective action. By the time the student has reached the second stage, the situation wil l have changed, or the problem wil l be out of control. The pilot's flyi ng responses must be near-instantaneous reactions to sensory input. Flying is, in this sense, like walking or riding a bicyc le. If you have to think about it you're bound to fa ll down a lot. These stimulus-response patterns are not inborn, they must be programmed in, and it's a lot safer if they' re programmed in as much as possible on the ground.

It was w ith this end in mind that I began about six months ago to design what I have come to ca ll the Integrated Flight Simulator. The concept for this simulator is based on the idea that its usefulness wi ll be in direct proportion to the degree to which it accurate ly simu lates the sensory experience of flight. I therefore wanted my simulator to incorporate the fol lowing features: I wanted it to utilize a complete full-size glider which would respond in pitch and ro ll to the pilot's weight shifts. I wanted the response to be damped as it is in flight, and I wanted the simu lator to produce the same bar pressure which is produced by the stabi lity, especia lly in pitch, of the glider in flight. Fina ll y, I wanted the simulator to provide a simu lation of airspeed, and the changes of airspeed which result from decreases or increases in angle of attack, and from rolling the glider without the coordinating application of positive pitch.

I have built two prototypes so far, and am working out the design detai ls for a third. Each one has come a little closer to what I originally had in mind, and hopefully this last will do it all. The one I am currently using consists of a stand which supports the glider under the neck of the contro l bar, allowing it to pitch and roll freely. Dampening is accomplished through the connection of two automotive shock absorbers to the crossbar and to the simulator. Bar pressure is provided by appropriately arranged bungee cords which simulate the aerodynamic stability. Airspeed simulation is c:urrently being accomplished through sound effects, increasing or l owering the volume to simulate changes in airspeed. Eventua l ly, I hope to have a blower connected into the simulator which will automatical ly adjust the speed of the airflow over the pilot's (continued on page 42/

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POINT OF SUPPORT

This sequence demonstrates a launching technique used by the author. Note: This method calls for the use of wheels and wide control bar to protect student in case of an accidental nose-in. 1. Pilot lifts glider, hands low on downtubes, until harness straps are tight. Resting horizontal tube on thighs tllds pilot in keeping nose from pitching down. 2. After leveling wings, pilot pulls back slowly on downtubes until glider is neutral to the wing and then immediately starts to run. 3. As glider starts to lift, the C.G. for the system lowers due to the pilot weight acting on the glider, and the point of support moves up creating a very stable system. Pilot pulls down hard on downtubes as he leans through the control bar. This causes gilder to accelerate and enables pilot to maximize running speed. 4. Pilot eases out on the control b'ar producing a smooth, controlled lift-off.

face in response to the pitch and rol I of the glider.

The way in which the simulator is used by the instructor is important. I have found it most helpful to take the student through an imaginary flight, starting with the take-off run, going through the lift-off, pulling the body forward to accelerate away from the ~tall, correcting for an inadvertent turn due to a gust, easing the body back to exchange kinetic energy for lift as the glider slows on its final approach, and finally the flare at landing. I describe to my student all those sensations he or she would be experiencing which the simulator doesn't simulate, primarily the visual experience, and describe what is happening to the glider aerodynamically.

These simulated flights can be repeated until the pilot's responses to the various inflight situations become immediate, automatic, and correct. Once some actual flight experience has been gained, the student can continue the mental exercises without the simulator, and further improve the level of programming.

Out at the flying site, the students practice the take off run on near level ground (a 42

very slight downward slope helps to make this part a little easier.) The students first concern is lifting the glider and holding it 1n the proper position. l have them do this by first rotating the nose of the glider up to a neutral static balance by grasping the neck of the control bar and pulling backwards with the glider resting on the horiLontal tube of the control bar. Then with the glider balanced just slightly nosehe,wy, the student squats behind the control bar grasping the down tubes near the bottom in the way in which one holds the sides of a ladder he is Jbout to climb. The student then lifts the glider, allowing the horizontal tube to rest against hi~ thighs if the nose tries to pitch down. If the nose pitches up at this point the student will probably have to set the glider down and start over. Preventing the nose from pitching up is a matter of keeping the glider nose down from its static balance attitude.

The student lifts the glider until the harness straps are tight, and levels the wings while pointing the nose directly into the wind.

(See Figures) Then, by pulling back gently on the downtubes the student slowly raises the nose until the glider reaches its neutral

static balance attitude. At thi~ point the student immediately begins to run (a~~urnmg the instructor has cleared the take-off).

The neutral static balance attitude will usually correspond with a slight to moderate positive angle of attack depending on the glider de~1gn and slope of the hill. The resu It is that after J few steps the glider wi 11 begin to fly itself, supporting its own weight and trying to lift the weight of the pilot. At this point the system h.is Ix-come extremely stable due to the shift in relative location, of the center of gravity and points of support. As long as the student is supporting the weight of the glider, the point of support (the student's hands on the control bar) is below the cg (roughly the keel/cross bar junction) and the glider is unstable; always trying to pitch the nose up or down. Once the glider is flying and trying to lift the pilot, the point Of support has moved upwards to the center of pre~sure of the sail, and the cg has moved below it, its exact location depending on how strongly the glider is trying to lift the pilot. The glider is now responding to the student in much the same w.iy as it does in the air and feel, both more stable and JUNE 1977

more easily controllable.

The student has been instructed to lean forward into his run at this point, pulling down aggressively on the downtubes and pulling the upper body through the control bar. This effectively shifts the cg of thP system forward while also increasing the load on the glider. As the glider accelerates in response to the student's actions, the student accelerates his run. During the pre-flight level ground practice the student is instructed to limit himself to \/2 to 11.i normal maximum running speed so as to avoid possible injury. The purpose hpre is 10 experience the feel of the glider Iifti ng as the take-off run is initiated, and to feel ihe glider's acceleration in response to the student's leaning forward and pulling down on the downtubes. During the actual take-off attempt the student merely continues to accelerate until he reaches maximum running speed. At this point, maintaining the run while easing out the control bar will produce a smooth positive lift-off, with little tendency to climb sharply to a stall. The student has been instructed to ease the bar back in following lift off to accelerate away from the stall, although this becomes less and less necessary as the student achieves higher and higher speed prior to lift off. The goal here, as expressed to the student, is to always try to keep the glider on the ground until maximum pos~ible running speed is attained, and to ,ivoid trying to launch at any particular point on the hill This discourages "cheated" take-offs which can otherwise resu It in al I kinds of potentially dangerous situations which arise from a lack of control immediately following take-off.

If enough effort has been devoted to pre-programming and ''level-ground" practice, the first launch attempt from a short way up the hill will usually be successful. From here it is a matter of continual prdctice, refining the launch and landing skills, as well as lateral control and airspeed control.

Occasionally the student will fail to flare for landing or stumble on take-off, resulting in a control bar landing. There has been concern expressed that the method of holding the downtubes from behind as described here would result in serious injury to the pilot's arms, elbows, or shoulders in the event that the glider stops short and the pilot's body is forced through the control bar. The most practica I means I have found for avoiding this situation is the use of a pair of large, strong wheels mounted on the horizontal tube of the control bar, as close to the corners as possible. These will virtually eliminate the possibi Iity of the glider stopping suddenly. during a control bar landing, and thus pro~ tect both student and glider from damage. I HANG GLIDING

h<lve even had students land on the wheels at high speed and subsequently take off again to fly another thirty feet or more. In addition, the practice of initidting the take-off run in such a way as to get the glider flying almost immediately greatly reduces the chance of a nose- in during the take-off run. Finally, the gliders which I use for training have unusually wide control bdfs, which minimizes the prospects of this type of injury by allowing the body to pass more easily through the bar in the unlikely event that a nose-in does occur.

Let me stress once again that all of the methods described here are merely the ones which I have found most effective.

I've tried, at one time or another, every apprvach that I know of that is currently being used, and I cannot say that I've found the best or the only way, only the methods that work best for me. The most effective method in any given situation will probably depend on d number of factors, including the individual student and instructor, the design of the glider being used, the topography and micrometeorology of the site. I often use a ~lightly different method with different students. particuldfly those who might lack the physic<ll strength to lift the glider in the manner described previously.

Another useful piece of equipment is a ha_rness which suspends the student in a vertica I standing/ha ngi ng/1 ea n ing- slightly. forwJrd position. Many prone harnesses can be adapted for this purpose; I use a special training harness designed for me by Chris l-'r1ce. This elimindtes the need for the student to change body or hand position on take-off and landing, while suspending the student's upper body above the control bar in the event of a control bar landing.

A radio attached to the glider allows me to be in constant communication with the student during each flight. I usually stand directly upwind of the student prior to take-off and check the attitude of the glider prior to clearing the launch. During the launch, flight, and landing I can issue commands; reinforce correct responses, and help to make up for the student's initial tendency to respond too slowly to the changing situations in flight. Following the landing, I can offer an immediate analysis of the flight while it is still fresh in the student's mind. In addition, the prese11ce of the radio seems to significantly add to the student's confidence. As the student progresses, I offer less and less verbal in~truction, confining myself to reinforcing correct maneuvers or issuing emergency commands. One factor which greatly affects the student's rate of progress is the choice of which glider is used for training.

I have used ~tandards, intermediates, and

•

high perforrn<lnce glider~, and have found that interestingly ~nough, the more re~ponsive the glider, the faster the student progresses, and the less chance there is of in jury. Thi, runs counter to the experience of many of today's advanced pilots, who had varying degrees of difficulty adapting to the flying characteri~tio of high performance gliders dfter flying for years in stJndJrd,. I rernernber myself thdt the fir,t time I flew an SST I was over controlling it all over the sky, and that I totally blew the landing. And yet those students that I train on the SST do far better than those that I train on, for example, a Swallowtail. I believe the reason for this has to do with the fact that a new pilot has no stimulusresponse pattern, progrJmrned in, and is thus not subject to the tendency to overcontrol the glider as is a pilot whose reactions were learned on a heavily damped, slow responding standard. Secondly, the rate at which the qimulus-response patterns are learned by a new student depends hedvily on the lag time between the student action (body left) and the glider's response {roll left.) The more immedidte the response to a given control application, the more quickly the student learns to correctly associate the correct response to a given action.

There Me certain flying characteristic~ inherent in high performance gliders which require that specic1I Laut1on be observed when training on these gliders. In particular, a student should not be al lowed to fly without direct supervision until he has demonstrated the ability to handle all a,pects of flying a high performance glider, including the ability to set up an accurate l,rnding approach. This brings u, to Jnother method of maximizing the level of student safety; namely to encourage the student to take as much instruction as possible. This can be done in a number of ways; by offering to apply lesson fees toward the purchase of a glider, by offering reduced training fees in connection with the purchase of an extended course of instruction, or by contracting with the student to bring him to a given level of proficiency for a given training fee. This last can be especially effective, as it reduces the financial pressure the ,tudent might otherwise feel to push his rate of progress beyond whilt is a safe rate for him.

Finally, and possibly most important, is the attitude of the instructor as reflected by his behavior. If the instructor i~ genuinely concerned with safety, the students will know it, and their behavior will reflect that concern as well as their own. If the instructor's behavior does not demonstrate a concern for safety, no amount of preaching on the subject will instill a concern for safety in his students. ~ 43

Sail Glider Performance Problems &Potentials

by Bob Ormiston Aerodynamic performance of flexible wing sai I gl idcrs has improved remarkably over the fMSt few ye,H~ providing us with flight capability far beyond our earlier limits. I am ~ure many flyers, like myself. have wondered what the performance potential of the flexible wing hang glider is Jnd how we can move closer to that potenti,11. 1recently looked into this subject and came up with some intriguing results.

What I've done is apply standard aerodynamic theory to predict some basic perform.i nee chJr,Kleristics of sa i I gliders.

In the course of this study I've had to extrapolate limited data and make some

educated guesses to handle the special problems of flexible wings. It's not necessary to go into the detail, of the calculations and the equations, but Js I describe the re;ults, I will try to briefly outline the aerodynamic principles involved.

Aerodynamic performance ultimately boils down to the lift and drag forces and how they vary with both the airspeed and the configuration of the glider. Since the lift is essentially equal to the weight {at steep glide angle, the drag can support a large part of the weight) most of our attention will focus on the drag force. It is important first to realize that there are two 60~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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44

main drag components: parasite drag and induced drag. These two types of drag are fundamentally different and change with airspeed in completely different ways. The parasite drag is relatively easy to understand and it can be roughly interpreted as friction of the glider moving through the air. It increases with the squJre of the airspeed: double the airspeed and the parasite drag quadruples. It is also proportional to the size of the glider, larger gliders have more parasite drag.

Induced drag is more subtle and arises as a consequence of the lift generated by the wing. As the high pressure air beneath a wing tries to escape out from under the wing tips toward the low pressure region above the wing, swirling vortices are set up that trail behind each wing tip. These vortices represent kinetic energy lost In the wake behind the glider. The energy required to set up these vortices is manifested as induced drag acting on the glider. At high airspeeds the vortices are relatively weak because the wing lift acts for only a short time on a given volume of air. At low airspeeds the glider spends more time traveling through the same volume of air and the wing lift has time to set up stronger vortices. An important res ult is that the induced drag is larger at low airspeeds than at high airspeeds. More precisely, the induced drag varies inversely with the square of the airspeed; double the velocity and the induced drag is cut by a factor of four. The induced drag is also a function of the wing lift and the wing span, and it varies with the squ'are of the lift divided by the span. It is thus the "span loading" (weight in lb.per ft.of span), and not primarily aspect ratio, that determines the induced drag.

To illustrate these points, I have plotted the parasite and induced drag of a typical glider at various airspeeds in Fig. 1. This glider has a 32 ft span, wing area of 171 ft 2, aspect ratio 6, and total weight of 215 lbs.

Also shown is the total drag which is equal to the sum of the parasite and induced drag. The variation of the total drag with airspeed determines the important performance characteristics - L/D and sink rate at various airspeeds. The L/D or glide angle is obtained by dividing the weight of the glider (essentially equal to the wing lift) by the total drag. Maximum L/D occurs at the point where the parasite drag equals the induced drag and the total drag is a minimum. The sink rate is given approximately by dividing the air,peed by the L/D and it reaches a minimum below the maximum L/D airspeed. This occurs when the induced drag is equal to three times the parasite drag.

Let's now look at the effects of parasite drag on the maximum L/D of a typical glider without any induced drag penalties caused by sail billow or tip washout.

(We'll take a look at these factors later}. It is instructive to first compare the relative contributions of the different parts of the glider to the total parasite drag. These include the wing airfoil section (the sail and leading edge spars), frame tubing {crossbar, downtubes, control bar, and king post), cable bracing, and the pi lot and suspension harness. It is convenient to express these parasite drag increments in terms of their drag coefficient~ values to remove the effects of airspeed and glider size on the actual drag forces. The parasite drag contributions are plotted in Fig. 2 for a range of Jspect ratios because the crossbar and wing cables increase in length as the aspect ratio increases, thus increasing the total parasite drag coefficient for a given wing area. The largest uncertainty in estimating the parJsite drag is the airfoil contribution because of the almost total lack of wind tunnel test data on flexible airfoil sections. Furthermore, the airfoil parasite drag varies with the wing angle of al!ack, an effect thJt I have ignored in this article.

The obvious conclusion from Fig. 2 is that the frame drag (with unstreamlined (con!inued on pJge 46)

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Fig. 2 Breakdown of parasite drag coefficient contr,butions for a typical unstrearnl,ned ghder. *based on wing area

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• SOARING WINDOWS, APPLIED LEADING EDGE, SPLIT PANELS AND MANY OTHER SPECIAL OPTIONS AVAILABLE. • TEST FLIGHT, FULLY CAMBERED AND BATIENED SAILFORM, SAIL COLORS, QUICK-RELEASE TENSIONERS, AND SUNBIRD'S SUPERB WORKMANSHIP AT NO ADDITIONAL COST.

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• given airspeed, the induced drag can be minimized if the wing lift is d1,tributed

elliptically across the span, varying smoothly from zero at the tips to a max· imum in the center of the wing. This minimum induced drag is called the ideal induced drag. If the wing is untwisted, i.e.,

flat, this condition is achieved by having a wing with an elliptical planiorm. Any other planform produces a larger than

ideal induced drag, the penalty depending on how poorly the planform is ~haped.

Furthermore, for a flat untwisted wing the induced drag penalty is the same for all angles of attack because the load distribution doesn't change with angle of attack of the wing.

If the wing is twisted, the angle of attack varies along the span further influencing the spanwise lift distribution and the induced drag. Unlike a flat untwisted wing, the load distribution and the resultant induced drag penalty vary with angle of attack. In a flexible wing glider, spanwise twist is produced by the billow cut into the sail as well as the sail stretching upward at the wing trailing edge due to the pressure forces on the sail. The effective twist usually increases to a maximum at the wing tip except for trunoted tip gliders where the maximum twist occurs somewhat inboard of the tip.

Let's first look at the effect of planform shape on the induced drag of a variety of typical wing pl,rnfurms including elliptiol, rectangular, triangular, straight tapered, and other tapered shapes all untwisted and of aspect ratio 6. Fig. 4 depicts the planforms and lists the penalty in induced drag in terms of the per cent increase over the ideal minimum induced drag of the elliptical planform. It is clear that for many typical nonelliptical plan-· forms, the induced drag penalty is very small or negligible.

PLANFORM

"

c:::::::::=:::: c:::==:=i

.010

""f---+

~

O"

'_J 13,

ELLIPTICAL

0%

RECTANGULAR

15%

STRAIGHT TAPER

.8%

~ CURVED TAPER

"" " ,,' ::,

~II·

~

X ,o

<(

WINtLOR~

FLEH

6.

C•~INS "?, ~E'AC,U\-L I:!r S<AC,\tLL Y!l

¢

= s:,.

7

ASPECT RATIO

Z.

DRM-O!<FLY

0

6

1.i

(:!

<:,

' ' '''--~-~ 3 4 5

'

P\IO!oNI':( 8 C\tM!.IL\t~ SB

'

F,g. 3 Variation of maximum LID with aspect ratio and parasite drag coe1ficient for gliders w11h ideal minimum ,nduced drag.

'6

------

"

~

.9%

TRIANGULAR

12.7%

ROACHED TRIANGULAR

3.3%

SCALLOPED TRIANGULAR

39%

Fig. 4 The eHect of plan form on induced drag !or various untw,sted aspect ratio 6 wings

JUNE 1977

Next we consider the effects of spanwise twist prod uced by sai l billow and tip washout . Since the spa nw ise lift distribution of tw isted wings varies with angle or attack and thus airspeed, these resul ts are shown as a function of airspeed in Fig. 5.

The stra ight tapered aspect ratio 6 p lanform is assumed to have a spanwise variation oi twist due to both sail trai ling edge deflection (billow) and washo ut produced by a truncated tip. The twist angle is maximum at the three-quarters span location.

The penalty in induced drag, in per cent or the idea l minimum induced d rag is ~hown for three different values of maximum twist: 0°, 10°, and 25°. As was shown previously in Fig. 4, the untwi sted flat wing has a negligible 0.8% induced drag penalty that does not cha nge w ith airspeed.

The 10° twist wing has a small pena lty at low airspeeds but al about 40 mph the induced drag increases to a sizeable 100% increase over the ideal m in im um induced drag. W ith the 25° twisted w ing, the penalty is greatl y exaggerated. This shows that whi le small twist angles have on ly a small effect, t he induced drag penalty increases very rapidly for moderate and large twist angles. Many present-day high aspect ratio gliders probably have twist angles of around 25°. The increase in induced drag pena lty with airspeed for twisted w ings is due to the reduction in loading at the wing tips at low angles of attack at high speed.

This distorts the span load distribution, concentrati ng the lift at the center of the wing and increasing the i nd uced drag.

This may be viewed as a loss of effective span. Although the induced drag penalties from wi ng twist can be very large at high speeds, it shoul d be remembered (refer back to Fig. 1) that the i nduced drag is much less important than the parasite drag for these cond itions.

To gel a complete picture of the effects of parasite drag and induced d rag penalties on aerodynamic performance, I have calcu lated, fo r the straight taper aspect ratio 6 glider, Lhe sink rate at various airspeeds. These results are shown in Fig. 6, including results for four d iffere nt variatio ns of the basic glider configuration, labeled A, B, C, D. Configurations A, B, and C all have the typical paras ite drag coefficient of .057 but d iffer in the amount of twist. Configuration A is assumed typical of present g lider5 with a maximum twist of 25°, curve B is for a hypothetical low twi st glider with 10° twist and curve C is for an ideal untwisted flat wing glider.

Configuration D represents the untwisted glider with moderate st ream Ii ning (strearn1 i ned c rossbar and kingpost, sl ightly streamlined pilo1 and sa il airfoil) to reduce the parasite drag coefficient to .035 . Lines of constant L/D are superimposed on the sink rate c urves i n Fig. 6 to show the variati on of g lide angle w ith ai rspeed tor the fou r different configurations. The following conclusions are evident. Large twist angles ca n substantially reduce performance, part ic ularly at high speeds where the L/D reduction can be severe. Moderate twist angles produce much less severe reductions in perfo rmance. Stream! in i ng, especially starti ng w ith today's typical unstream lined g lider, rea lly pays off. StreamI ini ng o nly a few parts of t he glider (crossbar and kingpost) by the installati on of commercially avai lable accessories is a very simple method or sign i ficanlly irnprovi ng perforrna nee. A comparisi on of curves A and D probably gives a rough idea of the performance advances that might be possible i n the nexl couple of years. For an aspect ratio 6 glider, sink rates could go from 200 ft/m in to a little over 150 ft/mi n, and L/D from 8 to 11.

500%

Stretching wing spans to 36 ft and beyond would improve these figures to possibly 120 fl/min and 14, respectively. ~

Robert A. Ormiston is a research scientist with the Ames Directorate of the U.S. Army Air Mobility Research .and Development Laboratory located at the NASA Ames Research Center near Sunnyvale, Ca lif. He i.s involved in theoretical and wind tunnel research on helicopter aeroelasiic stabi liry, clynamic loads, and vibration. While at Princeton University, where he received MS and Ph.D. degrees in Aerospace and Mechanical Sciences, he participated in development of the Princeton sailwing. He holds severa l patents on helicopter andsailwing devices. l le is a member of the US HCA and the Wings of Rogallo and has been an active hang gliding enthusiast for nearly three years . In addition to flying, he is interested in high performance glider design and the development of analys is and testing methods for determining glider performance, stability, and structural in tegrity.

In 1975, while working at O.N.E.R.A. (national aerospace R&D f~bor.atory) in Paris under a U.5.-France cooperative p rogram in helicopter research, he was associated wtth a program for wind tunnel test,nlj of hang gliders.

AIRSPEED, MPH 20

25

30

35

40

45

;400% f----i----l>-----l---1-·/---1-- - ~ <t

z

w

z 300

o.. 300% t - - -- t - - - 1 - - - - 1 - -

~

(..'.)

<t 0:::

~200%f----i----l>----/·---1----I---~ w (.) :)

0

z

100%1-----+---,, ___,___......__

~ - - - < 1 -;>',,

't:;:: w"400 ~ - - l - -- l - l - - -

ti 0:: 2500 > - --L--1-L--1-1---"'-'

u5 0° (.s%)

20

25

30

35

40

45

AIRSPEED, MPH Fig. 5 The variation of induced drag penalty with airspeed and maximum wing twist (al :Y.. wing semis pan) for a straight tapered aspect ratio 6 wing.

HANG GLIDING

Fig. 6 Variation of stnk rate and l/0 with airspeed for the typical straight tapered aspect ratio 6 g lider of 171 ft 2 wing area. 32 ft span. total weight of 215 lbs, and various amounts of parasite drag and sail twist.

47

others I didn't uncover but I believe the table 1, rea,onably complete as to number.

As you can see, I am missing much data even on these. Obviou~ly, I solicit the help of every liJng ,gliding reader in completing (or correcting) the table. In addition to the items shown, I like to know the pilot's type of suspension, experience or h,rng rating, protective equipment worn, .ind type of injuries. Description of the fatal maneuver is, of course, primary. (A

1976 ACCIDENT SUMMARY

by R. V. Wills A friend recently quoted a Cal Tech aeron.iutical engineer as estimating that

pcHJchutes would rut hang gliding fatalities by SWk to 75'7c (!)

Another friend observed thot most serious accidents obviously involve novices

?

"

---

22

A

friend in Europe believes that most fatal accidents there are caused by pitch divergent kites. Some people feel that the new high performance kites are increa~1 ng accidents; others (eel they are safer. Many ~ay that practica Ily a 11 fatalities result from "pilot error". Others suspect design and mechanical defect~ as the chid culprit.

Who is it that gets killed on hang gliders and why? Where arc the fatal accidents hc1ppening? Are there more at certain times of the year? Are they .ill young males? Is ,tructural failure a major cause?

Is a long, full-luff dive the typical fatality?

I don't claim to have the final answer to each of these quest1on5 (although I can tel I you for sure that the Cal Tech engineer is way out of his field). I can tell you that those who want simple answers are doomed to disappointment. I can tell you thJt fatal accidenb increased in 1976, but perhaps not in proportion to total participation in the sport. I can tell you that mechanical factors seem to be increJsing in proportion. And that the majority of pilots killed are Hang 2 or better, not novices (at least two in 1976 were SJfety Directors and mJny were Hang 4 ... ).

If the answers lie Jnywhere, they lie in statistics. I have been gathering data on serious hang gliding Jccidents for J little over three years, through the auspices of the USHGA and through reading every hang gliding publication \ can get my hands on. A few conscientious correspondents in Europe, in Canada, in Hawaii, and "down under" hc1ve helped immeasurably. I hereby thank every correspondent from Montreaux to Calgary to Caracas to Allawah for the unanswered - but - digested reports (and hereafter, you scoundrels, give me pilot names and ages and equipment data ... ).

What follows is a table of the salient data on 67 hang gliding fatalities that occurred in 1976. I'm ,ure there were a few

48

1976

Jan. 10 -Feb.?

---

PILOT Brent Applebay

AGE

biorhythm researcher recently asked me for birth dates, but I'm lucky just to get the age ... ).

In next month's issue I will give you a breakdown of the 1976 fatalities into certain categories (e.g. U.S. versus foreign, mechanical problems v. none reported, long dives v. low altitude accidents, tow and balloon drop v. foot launch, and 1976 v. prior year,). Space limitations prevent further analysis in this is~ue. ~ APPARENT OR PROBABLE CAUSE (S.e Footnote Table)

EQUIPMENT

LOCATION

Homemade Rogal1o

"

-

1, 14

south Africa Shaw Butta, Arizona Ed Mooty ~--~--+--+----Brownsville, Oregon Sam Arbour 25

?

?

Electraflyer Nimbi.ls Dragonfly

1, 2 9 (wing nuts)

El Cajon, California

W,ncllord Prototype

11, 7, 14

?

?

-?

-+----~~-----

Steve Spurlock

28

-

---

-----

_ Free Flight (Standard} _______ 1__ 28 Darrell Schroder +-~+_A_lb 0oq~~-cr_':1~· New Mexico ----- 30 Torrey Seagull Ill 3. 15 Pines, California Marc/1 3 Paul Caldwell 3. 16, 14 Monument Peak, San "Calypso·' Prototype Dave Ewing 22 -+--"-m_am_in_~, ~-'-"'_o_m_i• _ __, __ R_og~al-~_ -- -Lake Osborne, Florida Bennett 12. 17 64 19 Henry Holmes '

"

"

--

-

--

-

22 Herbert Sacher 30

Mk:hael Leach

___ ..-

--- -

35

-"~===~~~--+~==----------~- --Schralstal. Aus~_a_____j Standard Rogallo ?

Escape Country, California

26

--~-19

-----+--a-~==------'

"'-'-''-'-- ..2__-------f---'-1-J"'c~c_________-j ? ______________?__ ca~ ?as~--+--'°-e-"~ilp__,_~=1a0, -"-'-'"-"'- ----l-"'"c="c"'""'.""-ilc______ >----~ _ _ 16 ? ?

Lake MacOuarie, New ?

12, 6 South Wales, Australia _________ ----------f-------+ 20, 14 Council Bluffs, l o ~ ~ - _Hom":_made Rogallo 16 James North 23

'

16 Mario F. ------

1-='c·'c'__

Erda, Switzeriand

24

Star Alps (Sw_is_!c81c•c"c'c'"~', Dragonfly Mark H

- ___ ~ Phil O~'B0M0eo"---f--'"'-t-"'="'ca_?~yon, CaUornia 24 James Geiger 24 Fort Funston, California ---"cc-1-cT:ch<>cmc•-s,R~o-h,OO...__j

-=="-----Cumulus V

1_.,-,.oc,,0 R~ed""..c"c'·I ______ ~ · . ~ - _

_?_

Waimanalo, H~w,a.ii_ _ _

Ed Tr_:1ng~'----1-c'°~f--G 0 ,0 o0s000h0t_.Pa_ss. ~_i,_oo_a___ Seagull V Jim Buckley ?

Calgary, Alberta Standard Rogelio 4 - -G~rges_z__--+-,.- "Grenoble, France _ _ _ P1Jors own Rogallo

30

May?

3

13 -f---8

-~~

-~i-==ccc_-+c:__, '

3, 5

---

_ _ _ J_ - - - - - - - - - + - - - 1 - - - - - - - - - -- ---+_s_1a_ooa __,_, ______ - - · - - Guatemala __ ?

8 Harry Douglas 25 3 Tranquille. British Homebuilt Eipper Derrk:k Wemp ?

9 Colum~a _-J __1,B--1B ,,_______ 1_____ _ 18 Jerry Cox ?

Waimanalo, Hawaii Cumulus V B B _ _,_4 __ ~c_ross _ _ _2.__ _cao,,ooec·c"'c·ctis h Co=·'='mcc•c•_ _:P_:::ac~c Gu"u·c,a,c,c,~--+--oc,--000 000

"

29

Larry Lowa __

23

1

1

·B-~ersfield, California___ _,_8'.,.,.o,o.,., 0,o"-·S.t,art,da ....,d 0 _ ---1--"---- _

- - " - · Arthur Norderer .. f---'--l~W0a0im='°c"c'c·c"c'c"c"c'__ 30 John Stevens 21 Mt. Mansfield, Vermont June 13

?

'-----+--+-?

Edward Geiger 19 Claude N. ---=-+==c.

20 Denise B.

---··

__ __

TBnn~~m, Austria

Cumulus V B - - - - - + - c ' ' - - Sun Ill 26

1_.s-1a.o_.da='':.c"c°'<'='""-----I- 10. 3. 21

,,01__,_w0a_m_"'~"c',·c"c'c"c"c·1_ _ _1_c~1 Qider 1, 27 0 1 1 8 ~-1--"c'c"="c~c•-·cSw="='"c'c"c'_--1_ c''c'c"c'c'c,______ ,__,_.' - ' - 23 Mieussy, France R~hner Standard 21, 16, 29

='

---- --- f----------- - ~ - -----------1-'"'°'""."-"'---------26 Bob Sadowski 20 Lake Trashmora, Virginia ?

29 Robert Hughes 32

,. 30

---

12, 31

----+--=-'---I

Barbara Jones

?

CasUemorton, 0E0o0g,0a1_.d,__ _c 0h 0 "1lce'c':.c"clc50,______ I-__, _ __

Toni Ann Barragan

21

6

Rod Stillson

22

8

Guy Twiss

?

Peavlne Min., Reno Nevada Dinger Wing ~~---+---'~-- I Grants Pass, Oregoo..__ _e'P,h.M,to,m"'.'.'c'_ _ _ _ _ J-c'·'o· ''"'--1 Bo Peep Hill, Firle, Miles Gryphon 35, 14 England (Prototype)

July ?

4

4

-----+--+--~~-----,-~~~------+-----!

-~10,_4c'~~~---+-='~l-'c'cm2pctoco_.,_.Tc•c•m_.aco_.ia,____ ? --~~~-~--+-~'',c·c"'~__101_l-H_.a_.,o~S0t~="''----t-'c''--l-E_.M0t0B,=ady, Pennsylvania Sky Sports Kestrel 33 20 Rk:hard Jones ?

Arizona Dragonfly Mark II 9

-='"==""'"'-----'--=-~ JJNE 1977

1976 22

PILOT

AGE

LOCATION

Robert Anderson

30

Kiona. Wastiing!on

.

EQUIPMENT

'

28

Hazen Heath

' " -·

Lake MacQuarie, New South Whales, Australia

?

Lookout Mountain, Georgia (Side)

Seagull Ill

Mill H,11, Shoreham.

England

Manta Fledgling

'?

Paekakariki, New Zealand ------Cresnine. California

Pacific Kites Lancer

?

Wilson, Wyoming

Free Flight Standard

·-

Aug.

?

Denys Irving

5

---··

---

'4

Rick Fogel

22

Bill Barnes -------

--

28

David Shegda

?

Sept.

'

John Dobberthein and Richard Smith

· -

'

Allan Kling

5

Dan Ballas

21

Al Mulazzi

"

Lee S!erlos

2, 37

Homemade Expenmental Rogal lo

" "-

Mt. Sterling, Ken!ucky

-

..

Simsbury, Connecticut

'·" "

Stowe, Vermont

Seagull II!

Long Mynd, England

McBmom Cobra

a

Jacob S.

27

Davos Oavadel, Switzerland

?

Black Knight Mountain, B.C.

21

..

31

No,

James Hammer

20

...

Little Sioux, Iowa

Ben Factor

21

Santa Barbara. Caifornia

'6 '7

.. - - - - - - ·

__________

_._.

Muller Starn:lard (Kit)

. -·----

..

9, 48

Dragonfly Mark II B

200 sq. ft. Roach Tip Battened Rogallo

Mansfield, Victoria, Australia

7

---·

"

- Manta 1-1ectg1,ng

_

Electraflyer arrus

··--

.

-----

"

50

2, 16

Dragonfly

6

11

Hurburt Kuehr

38

.

Mt. Ki~manjaro, Africa

Don Cohen

26

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

Wind Gypsy, Mark IV

'

51

Doc 20

Dusty Stapp

27

Cucamonga, California

Dragonfly Mark II

6

?

- - - ---~-

APPARENT OR PROBABLE CAUSE TABLE 1. No eyew~ness to impact, so exact maneuver unknown. No evidence of mechanical or design !ailure reported.

2. Low altitude dive during approach to landing area, preceded by stall or turn.

3. Full, luff dive from 200' or more into the ground. No evidence of mechanical or design faill.lre reported.

Sideslip or turn into the launch area within seconds alter take-off.

5. Kite or glider inverted dunng steep dive.

6. Some evidence of crossbar failure before impact.

7. Some evidence of leadng edge failure before impact.

Some evidence of seat or harness failure before impact.

9. Failure to complete kite or harness assembly before take-oft, resulting in mechanical failure before impact.

10. Drift wito rotor area behind the ridge or hill.

11. Vehicie tow accident.

12. Boat tow accident.

13 Landed in water Md drowned.

Experimental, prototype, or homemade kite or glider.

15. Spiral dive, pulled out into diff face.

16. Reporter believes the k~e was pitch unstable.

17. Lost gnp during climb, fell bac~ards free of seat.

18. Flew into a ski ill cable, broke wires, fell 100 feet.

19. Killed during ins1nx:tion. No report filed by instructor.

20. Ktte tethered to a van, very high winds, flying alone.

21. Very inexperienced pilot 22. Ftyi1g in clouds, lost orientation.

23. Fell backwards out or seat while soaring.

Report (newspaper article) in Spanish.

25 Failure of crossbar bolt at leading edge; stripped from wear.

26 Downwind landing without flare.

27. Flying at night, flew into diff. Had talked of joining his cult leader, Yahowha, in death.

28. Possible mechanical faiure - hook to control tine.

29. Dive from take-oft, no flare. M pavement.

30 About to touch down when "dust devil" pitched nose up to 50'.

Slid in hard. Hazardous conditions. Four reporters report pilot was warned, had been drinking.

31 Lost grip on control bar in turbulence. Inexperienced boat driver

,.

"

"·

HANG GLIDING

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~

[bl

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7th revision, 205 pages. over 100.000sold'$5 95postpaid.

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,,,

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27

'

- -- -

ASG 18 (Frame by Jim Lynn)

?

?

----

. -------

63

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postpaid. (Californians add

The first complete book on

Dragonffy Mark II B

An!hony Jones

__

2, 41

·-----------

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.,

-----

..

HANG GLIDING

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" -----

Anthony Epp

A basic flight manual:

90'-171/2 ft.

·-

Aschau, West Germany

11

------

4, 42

22

---- ..

-

authoritative, compact. .. .... ,.,. • concise. complete. $1.50

' + ::!:::;:

3, 40, 14

Tri-State

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0c,. 3

13, 21

.

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• . •

HANG GLIDING MANUAL & LOG

--------

Standard Aogallo

Ft. Funston, San Francisco

26

'

.

'

.

3

Thompson Mountain, B.C.

31

-- -·---.

3, 39

Phoenix VI

195 sq. ft.

---

.

--

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Mt S!erling, Kentucky

.

38

---··· -

' 32 " 29

--··· - -

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12, 6

--- -··

- .

-

3'

·- -

---

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.

24

APPARENT OR PROBABLE CAUSE (See Footnote Table)

.

DAN POYNTER, Box 4232·G, Santa Barbara, CA 93103 --

turned Mm Into the wind. Hit on·shore.

32. Hit power ines, was electrocuted.

33. Apparent heart attack during turbulent flight.

"·

500 footfull luttdlve. P,lothad re-rigged kite in several questionable respects.

35 Apparent downwind stall into hill. Witnesses were hillers.

38. Strong wind. "Lost control" and hit a tree. No helmet - head injury fatal.

37. Kile stalled at 100' while pilot was adjusting an overhead movie camera.

38. New equipment and a new hil for this Hang 2 plot. One hinge attached wrong, stalled in a turn, dived 40'.

39. Fogel was the second N.Z. Safety Officer to crash fatally within a year.

Gusty wind and turbulence. K~e apparently sized for one man, spiral dive lost 1000' in 3-4 seconds.

Pilot pulled in to lose some altitude for bullseye landing, went into a 30" dive despite attempts to flare out.

Kling stalled after take-off, turned back, hit a tree, lell 50'·75'.

Mulazzi failed to hook his harness to his kite before take-off, hung on unli hit trees 300' below, fell SO' to ground, had an arm cast on .

ThtS kite was being tested for a reported pitch problem. Went into a full luff dive from 150'+, started to pull out at 50' when !he crossbar broke.

Kuklewski was doing a loop during M exhiti.tion when his control bar down tube broke and the glider raided up at 900'.

'6. After launch drifted left into ski 1ft cable, slid into a tower.

"Hit the ground in a 360° turn".

Two wing nuts for crossbar at the keel not attached (in kite bag).

Kite folded up in a stall, dived in 400'-aocr.

Flapping sail. Kite looked like positive reflex. Pilot nosed down a!

150'. Full luft dive from 75'.

50. GoCKl soaring wind with some turbulence. Kite inverted in a 180" bank, folded up when the king post buckled, then the crossbar broke.

51. Balloon drop flight !rom 6000'. Cohen released his main line without releasing his nose (anb-rotation) line, k~e hung by Its nose for 1O', then \he line broke and the kite slid back, went into a tumble, folded up.

"'

"

"" "

" "" "

49

(continued from page I 91

John Moody: "So I do hope when eventually (rules) come out ... they will be reasonable measures so a man will be inclined to comply. 'Cause otherwise, as portable as these airplanes are, the FAA is going to have their hands full of 'bandits.' " Allen: Thanks. Jon and John.

Pete Snyder just walked in ... (He) is a motorized hang glider pi lot ... he's president of the Boston area club, and has been one of the two people leading in getting the New England Federation of Hang Gliding Clubs going ...

There' s been discussion aboul power-on fligh ts and it's true that the developers are flying with power on for 13 miles cross-country here and for 8,000-ft. cl imbs ... and things like thi s.

Partly it's working off restriction hours ... In John'~ case he was concerned that people in Denver are starting at 5,000 ft. (above sea level ), and (wan ted lo prove that they) can take off, can fly ... real ly the philosophy we're meeting on here today is where hang gliders are set up for assisted launches, not for cruising ...

I'd like to (separate hang gliders) from sailplanes with assisted launches. For instance, the proposed rules - maybe now the official rules for motorgliders say that they have to have a JO-min. maximum of iuel on board. (Sacrey later said this is not under FAA consideration for powered sai lplanes.

W.A.A.) That's unreasonable for us because we sometimes spend 45 mins. getting up into the better air w ith the glider~ that have a slower climb rate. So if such a limitation is lo be placed on these aircraft to be called hang gliders - not airplanes, then we really ought to be talking about restrictions of something like an hour's time, or an hour and .i half, or two hours, but certainly not half-anhour.

A hang glider is as different from a sai !p lane in its operation as a powered hang glider is from. an auxillary-powered sailplane. We do get up and operate at the same altitudes at times, bu t, more often than not, we're down very close to the ground and operating at a different speed range (in a) different type of meteorology.

Some of these views I'm putting forth are really my own not representing either USHGA or the pi lots here, and they will all have a chance to respond if they'd like to.

I think, talking about the problem of "banditry" in powered hang gliding, we have the same problem in our own self-regulation efforts. As we self-regulate the sport, we have to make everything simple, sensible, and definitely applicable to what's going on, or else our own people don't fo llow what we're trying to do. There are two differences: One is the r AA has the clout - that is, i f you do catch somebody, you can come down on them pretty hard.

We don't have any clout at all, or very little clout, but we've got a lot more numbers (people to deal with regulation), and we're a lot closer to what's actually being done.

I'd like to explain to you the self-regulation program how we rate our own pi lots ... what we call the "Hang Rating Program." This is in effect all over the country now.

Hang-I is like recognition of a first flight. Hang· II is like getting your student license. Hang-Ill is something simi lar to a sign-off for solo activity.

50

(Reads aloud portions of the Hang-Ill requirements) We usua lly fly without airspeed ind icators (so) we' re dependent on a number of things: the vibration of the craft, the ears - what you hear, the fee l of your body position relative to the glider, and your angle-of-a tt ack. It's very effective. It's quick. When you're flying close to the ground you don't have to take your attention off of what you're doing to look at an instrument face, which is very hard to do in a tight situation.

(Notes that Easy Risers are so quiet pi lots do use airspeeds; cont inue~ revi ew of Hang-III and mentions a few Hang-IV requirements.)

(The p ilot rating) is applied to the rating that we assign to each one of our sites. If it's a Ill-site, then you have to have a Hang-Ill rating to fly it ... In addition to this, there are many d ifferent sign-offs: flying cross-country, towing, and the newest .. . is powered flying. I' d like lo

best angle-of-climb airspeed, and the be st rate-of-climb airspeed. You have to make passes whi le alterna ting power settings. You have io demonstrate both power-on and power-off landings. You have to demonstrate slow fl ight. including at least two 180° turn s and at least 20° of bank ror a continuous period of at least one min.

This was passed by the Board of Directors out of conce rn tha t the way the FAA is presently controlling powered hang gliding, the FAA is licensing (them) but it's really doing almost nothing to insure that the pilots know anything abou t what they're doing. The only contro l at all is from the CFI, and at this stage CFl's have not really been informed ... that he can even sign somebody off. Most CFl's know nothing about hang gliding ...

Important News!

The FAA has made a major policy decision. backing out of all regulation of auxiliary-powered hang gliders, but noting that, for this to continue puts great responsibility on enthusiasts to rly safely and to avoid interference with other aircraft. USHGA Pres. Vic Powell has been invited to an FAA meeting on this subject, which report we hope to have next Issue. - W.A.A.

I'd like to te ll you what we tell somebody who walks in the door right now and asks what does he have to do to become a powered h,mg glider pi lot legally ... you must get a student pilot license, if you are not already rated for single-engine, land. You must get a CFI sign-off.

There is no word on whal is required for the CFI sign-off. Most typically, CFl's right now (go by the enthusiasts instructions on) "this is the way I ~ hear it's supposed to be done." (Some) CFl's £ u right now are requiring an hour or two of dual j! instruction in an airplane such as th e 150. It has i J:; been mentioned as a possibility, but in no way' g as a recommendation, that a CFI could sign f somebody off on the basis of a demonstration of powered fly ing. We've been told "You must get a CFI sign-off but we won't tell you what you Jonathan Winsor. getting ready for take off In his flex have to do to gel it." You also have to have a wing with keel mounted engine. third-class medical. read to you what USHGA has instituted as of With lhe aircraft, it must be l icensed in the January for our own ru les on powered hang experimental category, theoretically in either gliding: the amateur-bui lt or exhibiti on c lass depend ing First of all, you must comply with all FAA on whether or not it was a production glider. It requ irements. Two, demonstrate proper premust have an airworthiness certificate, and it fl ight of a glider. (What we're really concerned must go through all the applicable restrictions, with here, al though preflighting is important in fees, and such. And must have the N-number hang gliding, is we've never had vibra tion probfrom the FAA. lems before ... ) You have to go through an oral Mike Sacrey: That's essentially correct. examination relating to torque and P-fac tor, There is some guidance in Part 6 1 on what power-on and power-off trim changes; relainstruction an instructor must give a student tionsh ip of pitch and power contro l respecting pilot in order to be signed off. It is very general, airspeed and altilude. You have to demonstrate purposely so to allow the instructor to deternormal take-off without a signi fi can t turn from minewhat should be required for this particular straight line; demonstrate minimum runn ing craft and what would be safe ... It says things distance for take-off; demonstrate a normal like taxiing, free fl ight, starting and stopping the take-off with an abort w ithin five secs. to show engines - it's more specific than that and yet that you ca n hand le a power-off situa tion. it's broad to allow thal latitude.

Take-offs must be from level ground to do th is.

Moody: Something that was just brought to You have to demonstrate a steady climb al the

-

(con tinued on page 52)

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Bill Allen: "It would really be better for the FAA to leave the actual rule making ... up to the hang gliding manufacturers ... and the USHGA ... to see where we have the problems, and change those rules. Ifwe do a good job ofit, there's no reason to ever come in to make FAA rules. light lately.

1s that .. a, long as you're checked off by a CFI, anybody who holds any pilot certificate can fly that airplane. A glider pilot, ,1ncc it's an e~perimental homebuilt, can fly that airplane if he has a (Fl endorsement even when he didn't have a powered airplane or student pilot license. A balloon pilot could fly that airplane ... (Subsequent investigation indicates that a sign-off is not even necessary, the only additional requirement would be a medical for ;ail plane pilots without one. - W.A.A.) Incidentally, 1do have a lot of confidence in CFI'~. I think you fellows do, too. They're generally on the cautious side and they usually·foll into one oi two categories: They either can't go out of they way (enough) to help you because they think you've got all the guts in the world.

Or they can see that they aren't going to make their $300 of dual instruction and they could care le,s about you. . When I was at Oshkosh (EAA national flyin) ... (a CFI) asked me "Let me give you anothE'r check-of/. I'd like to have my name on your license." (Laughter) And then there's other fellows who wouldn't touch you with a ten-ft. pole. They don't want to be sued, or they can see they can't make a buck on you

Allen: OK, but it is a problem for a lot of people.

If anybody's around John or ... us, they most I ikely can get help with dealing with CFI' s. The individual out in the middle oi nowhere . has still got himself a problem.

Moody:We havereali,:ed this problem at UFM, but we have taken some step; . . to help fellows to help themselves. Though obviously it is not complete, we do have, with every aircraft we sell, an owner's flight manual ... I believe we're the only manufacturer putting out kits that also produces a super-8 training film. This deals mostly with the glider, but it still gives basic elements. On top of that, this spring I do hope that we'll be able to produce a training film like this ... primarily for our powered aircraft.

One nice thing I'd like to see the FAA do eventually is get some sort of licensing - Mike. maybe you can take this back with you I icensing available so a man can be checked off as a pilot for local sport flying where he won't need all the navigational aids and all that's wrapped up in getting a private pilot license, and yet not have to be checked off every 90 days as on a student ticket. I realize that there was a time when the student license was like this and then eventually it went to the 90-day check-off. This type of flying is mainly for local, fun, SfX)rt flying. You don't need to worry about Omni (-directional radio range), you of course have to know about weather, but you don't have to have all the experience and .~o on that goes into a private license, and a man can stay reasonably current. So I would have hoped someday that the FAA considers some sort of interim license maybe having an annual or bi-annual flight review by a (Fl in-

stead of every 90 days I think eventually such a number of these people (will be) around that (the FAA is) going to have to have some licensing available.

Sacrey: Do you envision something like that just to fly a single-place aircraft?

Moody: Yes Sam Francis: You mentioned the four level'> of private pilot basically .. Does the U.S. Hang Gliding Assn. have anything th<1t would correspond with an 1n,tructor's rating or an examiner's rating? That is, who gives the tests for these four levels. , ?

Allen: Good point. . in addition to those ratings, there is an instructor certification, and to become (one) you must have assisted in hang gliding instruction first, then . , . go through a course ... you take both practical and written tests on your instruction ability, and each year you have to renew by going through a ... cl 1nic ... you have to have logged a certain number of student teaching situations during the preceding year. Then there's a senior level to that, also Instructors issue th(' Hang-I and Hang-II The way th(' -111 and -IV are issued is this: There are 25 Directurs from 12 Regions in the United States, ar.d each Director appoints baminers.

These are highly responsible people ... probably at this time there are somewhere around 50 to 75 of (them). They make it their business to be familiar with the rest of the most-experienced pilots in their <1rcas and they appoint what we call "Observers. (They) issue the -111 and -IV ratings.Typically Observers are also Instructors and are usually either the flight officers for their clubs or they are in the business of the sport.

They have done a very good job so far. In the last two years we've only had to consider pulling two (Observerships) that were issued that (perhaps) shouldn't have been. (Both people were exonerated after USHGA investigation W.A.A.).

The U.S. Hang Gliding Assn. has grown by 3,000 people in the last several months as a result of people coming into the program both for pilot I iabi I ity insurance as well as for getting the ratings, because some of our controlled sites require ratings.

One of the problems that wi II be in the power sign-off/or ratings is that you can fly a fX)wered hang glider anywhere. . However, it has been our experience - to our surprise - that hang glider pilots, being the gregarious sort they are, generally tend to come back to the flying sites anyway ... many of which are controlled.

Going on ... I don't feel that a medical cerLet's consider tificate is really necessary that sailplane pilots are not required to fly with medical certificates, and they're flying heavy aircraft - 600 to 700-lb. aircraft. We're flying hang gliders that weigh anywhere from 35 to 70 lbs. mostly, although some of them do get as high a; 125 THAT'S TOPS. Sailplanes are capable oiflying at 125 miles an hour cruising.

If you put a hang glider into a full dive and hold.

it, you might get to 40 to 45 miles an hour. We have very little inertia ... so what might happen with an aircraft as a result oi a pi lot becoming Incapacitated for a medical problem is even less of a problem with a hang glider, even with a 30-lb. engine (added), than it is with a sailplane.

We have had a number of heart attacks in hang glider activity, and you might attr1 bute th i, to people becoming a little exhilarated jumping off a hill. But the truth of the matter is that before they jumped off the hill, the person has had to . so there's physical exermake a long (walk) tion and there'; tremendous mental agitation ... There have been four or five cases oi (;uspected or known heart attacks) . since 197.3 There's never been a byst,1nder killed, to my knowledge, and only a very few injured - none of them seriously ... I don't expect much more from powf'red activity although the USHGA i, concerned, as the FAA is, of the potential for a powered hang glider being over populated areas where we pretty much have not been able to gE't to by our limitations at thi, time without engines. We are concerned that, if a bunch of powered hang gliders do get into that type of trouble, that the press and the public aren't going to differentiate between the powered ones and the unpowered ones I'm really concerned sti 11 that the CFI doesn't know re,1lly what to do .

For this reason I think we need an Advisory Circular - either an amendment to 60-10. or one just for powered hang gliders. It needs to define what is a powered hang glider, it needs to give recommendations to CFI' s a> to what they ought to be looking for, and it ought to give recommendations to people who do inspections oi the airera ft ... I'm not loo king for rules. l'm not really looking for recommendations. But I think there should be possibilities mentionE'd.

I mean, it ought to be stated in there that a 2-cycle engine literally cannot have an oil temperature gauge ... that the only indispensable instrument 1s an altin1eter (to follow FAR's where specific altitudes are mentioned) (and including) a reproduction of the USHGA position on powered hang gliders not a requirement ... but just ... for information.

It would really be better for the FAA to leave the actual rule making, as much as possible, up to the hang gliding manufacturers . . and the USflGA ... for at least the time being, until we have a chance to make rules for ourselves, to sec where we have the problems, and change those rules. If we do a good job of it, there's no reason to ever come in to make FAA rule,. If we don't do a good job of it, there's no question you've got the responsibi I ity to protect the public and other ,11rcraft. At that pOint ... it could be done on the basis of rules we've worked on but adding to it your clout. .. a very big problem we have (is that) most of the aircraft that are going to be motorized in the ne<1r future are production hang gliders. (continued on page 54)

52

JUNE 1977

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BiJI Allen: "If we are told that we have to sell raw material kits to get (powered hang gliders) to people . .. it's ... a case of the FAA forcing the whole hang glider manufacturing industry to step backwards from what it knows quite well to be its own safety efforts .. ."

Under current interpretation of Federal Aviation Regu lations, that means that those aircraft have to be licensed in the "exhibition class" of the experimental category, w hich means the pi lot has to file flight p lans and he's very, very res tricted in his activity. ... You have a lot of problems with this.

That's because, if all flyers are fo rced to follow these ru les, (one of) two things is going to happen: ... you're going to have lots offlight plans being filed, or, just the opposite, you may not have any flight plans being filed, in which case you've got i llega l activ ity going on. ... the hang glider manu'facturers in 19 74 together agreed Lo stop making raw materials kits ... bec ause we had a very bad track record ... (with) the way people were assembl ing them.

The se are not aircraft for somebody who is going to be working _on them for 2,000 hours, asking for FAA assistance on how to ·put them together, and going to c lub meetings and finding out from other experienced homebui lders how to do it (EAA practice}. These are something that can be put together in ... from 10 to 20, 30 hours in the case of a fl ex wing, and about a hundred hours on a rigid biplane ...

One of the th ings that really helps to control the safety of amateur-bui It aircraft is how much time and trouble there is to go into it. There's very little ... that goes into building a hang glider, in comparison.

So you're going to ... have problems of not knowing how to swage cables ... You have trouble even drilling holes out of place; a halfinch difference on the cross tube, between the right side and the left side, can give the flyer a bad spin problem. Two turns of the turnbuckle on· the leading edge wire - two turns difference between the right side and left side can gi ve the glider a bad landing problem and co uld possi bly cause some spin entry and exit problems.

Moving the (keel) forward or aft a coup le of inches makes the glider very difficul t to fly after a period of time because ... the pilot becomes so fatigued that he either can't keep it out of a dive or can' t keep it out of a stall ...

Manufacturers had all these problems w ith home-built, scratch-built aircraft, so they all agreed, if they sold kits, they would sell prepared kits, which, as I understand it, are not i ncluded in what you consider to be an amateur-bui It aircraft because more than51%of the work has been done by the factory ...

Now, if we are told that we have to sell raw materia ls kits to get (powered hang gliders) to people ... it's . .. a case of the FAA forcing the whole hang glider manufacturing industry to step backwards from what it knows quite well to be its own safety efforts ... (See accompanying suggestion of a compromise on this issue W.A.A.) Another problem for yourse lves is ... informing every inspection officer in the United States about what const itutes a safe flexib le-wing hang glider. That rigid biplane (on display) over there doesn't look too unfamil iar to you

compa red to conventional amateur-built aircraft. A flex wing is not. There's an awful lot that's being done in that sai I ... just like cuts in clothing to make it fit, there are cuts in that sail to make it fit, to make it flow with the air correctly. There's things that are being done w ith the battens ... things about the way the sail is mounted on the frame. We use fis h scales or simi lar instruments to determine sai l tension ... There are a lot of tricks being done ... in the way the battens are bent, and the way the leading edges are being bent. We do fine tuning with those turnbuckles - one turn at a time to get the very best performance out of a gilder and also to make it handle well. There is no manual on this; we're sti ll learning ourselves ... it wou ld take a manual (and) a lot of FAA seminars to tell your inspectors what to look for to have a safe aircraft to be closed up for licensing.

What really I wou ld like to propose is that these aircraft - production aircraft - be given the exact same treatment as amateur-bui lt air-

j .,.

i1 Climbing out fast ln his powered Merlin, Jonathan Winsor puts on an air show for the FAA officials. craft. You ca n put them in the amateur-built category - period, or, in th is Advisory Circu lar, recommend to inspectors that they give the exact same (treatment) . . . even though it's in the exhibition class . ..

(Another possibi lity wou ld be to) allow us to do prepared kits, but even that isn't as acceptable as selling a production glider which has been factory-tuned and factory-tested . ..

Now, John indicates he has no qualms at all about using only kits, and it may be that we have a very strong contr.ad ict ion in hang gliding ... all the appearances are that the rigid w ing is more complex than the flex wing. But the fact of the matter is that the flex w ing is becoming more (critical) in its manufacture than any rigid w ing ... it may be that there needs to be a differentiation in thi s recommendation to inspectors as to whether or not the craft is a r igid or flex w ing. (But it) wou ld be eas.ier just to

group them all in there ... as amateur-built aircraft.

Francis: The British Glider Assn., under delegation from their department of transport, manages all the development, certification, and quality control o f all their gliders (sai lplanes) in the U.K. Could the U.S. Hang Gliding Assn. prepare standards and inspection standards such that it would preclude the fabrication of a hang gl ider wh ich did not meet airworth iness requirements?

Allen: I think that would be very hard to do without an awful lot of recognition of the organizations - in this case .. . the Hang Glider Manufacturers Assn. It is true in Britain that the British Gliding Assn. handles both the manufacturer and the amateur end of sa il plane activity, and it works quite well . In fact it was done by th e National Aeron autic Assn. in this country before the old CAA came into being, preceding the FAA. I think there's an awful ·lot of room for more cooperation in having the hang gliding community governing itself. Even where we're talking about FAA regu lation, there's a lot of room for us to be involved in the contro l of what's going on with some sort of FAA backing. The problem is, is the FAA going to expand and handle a thousand more aircraft th is year on a ... level equal with what you're doing with other aircraft (now)? Are you ready for whatever number we ca n have in 1978 ... ?

I mentioned defining a hang glider ... we define it as foot- launched and, generally, footlanded, and ... as having less than 3 lbs. per sq. ft. wing loading ...

Just 'cause we don't fit in with the rest of the FAR's, it really isn't correct, I think, to require that our pi lots come back and sign off with a CFI every 90 days. You might consider having a · second sign-off •.. (after which) the pi lot is free to fly ... without having any further sign-offs; or have something that is compatible with your present system for ... inspecting private pilots every so often - every two years ... ?

Sacrey: A biennial fl ight review .. .

Allen: (Where it now) says 75 hours (initia l area restriction) in the aircraft, we rea lly should be talking about ten hours, as John said. One of the considerations in the past on how long a hang glider shou ld be restricted .•. had to do w ith how proficient were the pi lots - wou ld the pilots learn how to fly one w ithin, say, 25 hours? And, really, this res triction is (supposed to be) on the aircraft and not on the pi lot. It's not pertinent ... w ithin ten hours you're going to find out whether or not the aircraft (is safe). If you want an hours restricti on on the pi lot, that should be handled separately.

I wou ld afso like to suggest that subsequent 90-day CFI sign-offs, with a little more cooperation between USHGA and FAA, could be accomplished by our own Observers ... a step toward sport avia tion doing much more of its own regulation and taking some of the workload off of the FAA . . . !continued on page ..56~

JUNE 1977

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Paul Laliberte: "I think ... aviation today is where it is only because people were allowed to experiment ... the whole cause should be treated rather sympathetically because where would aviation be today if it weren't for the beginners?"

I'd like to open this up. Do you have some comments, or should we ask some pi lots tu ,tale their views?

Sacrey: I would like to hear all their comm('nts.

I might mention one thing: Talking about an Advi,ory Circul.H, I should certainly like to ,ee the suggested format and what you think might be included 1n that sort of thing.

Allen: I would like tu provide that.

Do we have ,ome pi lots her(' who wou Id Iike to speak on their feel,11gs.

Paul Laliberte: I think aviation today is where ,1 ;sonly because people were allowed to experiment. It seems as though th;s step in Jcrody11Jmics was bypassed only b('cause of the lack of materia Is and knowlPdgp in the days when aviation WJS growing. I think the whole cause should be treated rather ;ympathetically bccau,e where would aviation be today if 1! weren't for the beginners?

Moody: I kind of look at the whole situation as a ''two-edge sword''. The FAR's are, I believe, purposely ambiguous. That can be working against you if you find a local official who hates your guts. On the other hand, it can work for you -- a man has the frpedom to help you. I think this endeavor has to have some regulation (but) I am in just terror of the poss1b1lity of having it ,o defined Jnd so pinned down that there is absolutely no freedom. I don't know where the "tight rope" 1s ... but I do hope that whatever wi II come out of. this d 1scourse is not so defined and so pinned down that there's no freedom to do things. Something cou Id come along that nobody ever dreamed of Allen: I would really like to see the Advisory Circular mentioning (just) possibilities.

Francis: Are we talking only Jbout experimental certificates with respect to aircraft, or are we talking about the issue of some equivalent of a standard (FAA Airworthiness Type) Certificate?

Allen: Well, HGMA isworkingon what'sessentiJlly similar to a standard certificate, although it would be a long way from being a, tightly controlled as the FAA handles it. I don't think there's anybody in hang gliding at all who 1s considering going for an (FAA ATC).

Fr,mcis: I didn't mean this 1n terms of filling out the pre,ent paper work associated with getting a stJndard ATC. But the Soaring Society would certainly concur that there is a great need to allow the organized development and experimentation with new aircraft types, particularly in this whole ultralight area. But it seem, to us that there is a need for experimentation when it's called "experimentation," and a need for a stable product (for) those people who are not experimentalists ... And these two sometimes get jumbled together and I think it may Ktually hurt us trying to put them in the same pot. It may be better to ,eparate them, which is what we do in normal situations.

Allen: Is there any consrderation going on . that you (FAA) might have to deal specifically with an ATC for ultralight aircraft?

56

Sacrey: We're looking into it. We see lots of problems in that area that we have to face up to.

I don't think you'd like the answers.

Moody: One thing about the rigid wing>, we feel we can supply kiK We no longer sell plans becau,e thpy are a bag oi worms But there i, enough. to do in the aircraft that we can pretty well prefabricate the critical components {but leave) Sl'l< more work to do, and the guy has more of a reasonable chanc_e to come up with an airworthy aircraft. For instance, on our airplJne the bent tubing is prebent. The styrofoam cores for ribs are precut, the guy still has to finish them off, put on the cap ,trips, gussets, trim them, paint them this type of thing. Machined parts are pretty well premachined. And we provide them with all the aircraft hardware and equipment, brackets, and so on ... In 120 hours he does enough ... to qualify as a homebuilt aircraft.

Ray Morin: On the restricted time, both Ken (Young) and Jonathan have 25 hours .

Allen: Yes, but there's quite a difference in what's being done from area to area on this We're quite pleased with the type of cooperation we've gotten (and) I think we fulfilled everything that was wanted (by the FAA).

Bob Albright: I ju;\ want to relay quickly what our experience was. Pete (Snyder) had the Icarus unpowercd and we bought (an engine) kit from John Moody .. We had, during the fabrication of it, made an appointment with the FAA for inspection But, or course, we got the thing ready way befor!" that and WI" had a couple of airplane mechanics look at it .

We went tu a friendly fJrmer's field and we learned how to fly it .. I (also) went out and I took five hours of instruction with an airplane We had no problem whatsoever ... Then we did get the inspection of the FAA people and they were very cooperative We were restricted to 25 miles ... {and) 25 hours ... There were a few little things, like , . I said I didn't want to put (my wrist altimeter) on the plane because I tak!" it with my non-powered glider To me the whole thing worked out very well.

Winsor: If you fly without the engine, you'd better take the (N-J numbers off, isn't that true?

Sacrey: That's a que,tiun I'll have to look into. I would say no because it's the same aircraft, but that's an interesting question.

Allen: On the other hand. you won't license an unpowercd hang glider, right?

Sacrey: Put it this way: We would not consider it a licensed aircraft in that configuration, but whether you would have to tear off the numbers physically.

Allen: What about your problem with the public if there is an accident with that aircraft (with engine removed) with the N numbers on it?

Sacrey: We can handle it.

Francis: Did I hear ,omeone sJy thJt the FAA won't Iicense J hang gl 1der? I thought the Icarus was always licensed, wasn't it?

Allen: The original rigid wings were licensed (but) not renewed, and many (GADO'sJ refused to issue (N-numbersto flex wings at alll. That's been the case since 1972.

Moody: To amplify what Bob (Albright) and what I ,aid Parlier; when we talk about how ea,y thp airplane is to fly - teaching yourself how to fly. I hope you realize that we're not saying you can become an instant aircraft operator overnight. The only pilot that lives to be an old man is a guy who never,top, ledrning to fly.

Pete Snyder:.

It's my op,111on th,11 somebody, who's going to take up powered hang gliding. whether they've had experience as a regular airplane pilot or sailplane pilot, or just basically no experience in hang gliders, ought to be able tu fly the glider without the motor before he ;traps the motor on be able to make the proper turns, and be able to spot land ... without ovcrcontrolling because with the motor added, there is enough energy thtcre added to the system to make an over-control problem even worse .

Allen: Some schools are requiring that the students learn to fly without the engine first John recommends starting with the engine from the beginning and has worked oul J very good way of doing 1t Moody:. . unless you have a beautiful 300-ft. ,and dune on the ocean (with) glass-smooth breezes .. the ability to control the (lparning) situation i, enhanced in using the motor because you can pick your days. you can pick your open, flat areas without any turbulenceproducing obstructions, (and) on smooth days, when winds are not from the right direction, you can go to the other corner of the field. So, in the long run, one of my hopes about using power is that a man will be able to gain profi( ierrcy more quickly, and under a more controlled system, using the motor initially.

Winsor: Thr basic difference oi opinion right here would be the fact that we don't have the type of terrain that you have.

Terry Sweeney: I would agree with what you just said, John. I think that there is going to be almost an order of magnitude of difference of the amout of flying time that people get in the air, now that we'll be putting these motors on ... it's going to produce wonderfully proficient p1 lots. pilots with a thousand hours of time in the air in several years' time (instead of) a hundred hours . we're going to learn a grE:at deal more about ultralight flight because there's going to be a great deal more of it.

Ken Young: So far as for the engine being on the glider and learning, I found the engine in ground effect . . helped dampen and ease the effect of .. stalls and that type of thing.

Allen: Thank you all for being here.

(The meeting adjournpd to a closcby flying site to watch Jon Winsor demonstratp a powered Merlin flex wing, and to >Pe Pete Snyder and Bob Albright's newly-rebuilt, powered Icarus II on display.) ~

JUNE 1977

Take the perfect step between dreaming about flying and jumping off a cliff.

They are really fun .

The Morey ULTRA p e rforms supe r as a free flight glider or slope soarer duplicating the flight characteristi c s of full size hang gliders. The same forces which act on real ones work o n the ULTRA teach ing state the aspiring pi lot about pro pe r trim , lift, balance, stalls, etc .

Made from super strong mat e rial (hardwood wing rods, a luminum fittings, nylon rigging lines, and mylar sails) , this is a large 54" wingspan free flight model.

Tax and shipping ore It comes complete and is easy for anylncluded free one 13 years or older to assemble using • common tools like sc issors and pliers.

• They are really • • excellent.

Send for yours directly. Fill out and moil this coupon. or Just send your name and address with check or money order tor S15even to Tom Morey & Company, Inc.. Dept. B. 2571 Roosevelt Street. Carlsbad. California 92008. name address Ci1y

zip code

• i,,

-

-

-

-

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·~ u1t:ra a world cup class hang glider model kit Tom Morey & Company, Inc., Dept. B, 2571 Roosevelt Street, Carlsbad, CA 92008. Phone (714) 434-1079

**********************************

DON'T MISS THE B.U.S. !

********************************** NOW TAKING ORDERS FOR THE INDUSTRY'S FIRST AND ONLY FULLY TESTED

* BACK UP SYSTEM

FLY WITH FOLL CONFIDENCE CAN BE FITTED TO ANY GLIDER A MUST FOR ALL SERIOUS HANG GLIDER PILOTS

WHAT IS THE PRICE OF SAFETY?

szso

INCLUDING CONTAINER

OBTAINABLE ONLY FROM: BILL BENNETT'S DELTA WING KITES AND AUTHORIZED DEALERS P.O. BOX 483, VAN NUYS, CA 91408 PHONE (213) 787-6600, (213) 785-2474 TELEX 65-1425

GLIDERS f ARE HERE. THREE MODELS TO CHOOSE FROM. ALL SIZES INCLUDE NEW STINGER POCKET.

Built in Australia

MOYES STINGERS Nose Angle Leading Edge Keel Bar Span Square Feet Billow

Plus - Fully cambered sails.

Completely battered.

Stinger pocket.

Low sink rates.

High glide ratios Quick roll rate and unbelievable stability.

MAXI

MIDI

MINI 120° 18 feet 14 feet 30 feet 180 10

Nose Angle Leading Edge Keel Bar Span Square Feet Billow

120° 19 feet 14 feet 32 feet 200 10

Nose Angle Leading Edge Keel Bar Span Square Feet Billow

120° 20 feet 12 feet 35 feet 215 ,o

CONTACT: Hang Glider Heaven MRS. FRANCES "TUT" WOODRUFF TUT SKIERS & KITE FLIERS, INC. P.O. Box 1012 Clayton, GA 30525 (404) 782-3690

3537 Castlegate Dr. NW Atlanta, GA 30327 (404) 233-3842

perfect. Red & black in colorv.ith usual accessories. $550 {US.) You may freight. Would suit someone betv.een 160-220 lbs. The Midi is the kite that has won many championships in both Aust. and the U.S. Contact Phil Fein.stein, Box 401, Double Bay, NSW 2028, Australia.

FREE fl.IGHT 17' $.):)(I. Shipped free anywhere in U.S. [ndudes cover, prone harness, sp11re hardware, wind meter, knoopads. T. Wahl, 101 Highway Blvd., N. Pekln, IL 61554. (309) 382-3191.

CONSUMER ADVISORY: Used hang gliders always should be disassembled before flying for the first time and inspected carefully for fatigue - bent or dented tubes, ruined bushings, bent bolts (especially the heart bolt), re·u.sed Ny!oc nuts, loose thimbles, frayed or rusted ra· bles, tangs v.ith non·circular holes, and on Rogallos, sails badly tom or tom loose from !heir anchor points front and back on the keel and leading edges. If in doubt, many hang gKding businesses will be happy to give an objective opinkm on the condition of equipment you bring them to inspect.

Rogallos_ .. ___ . ~==~--c BOBCAT IL 5 monlh.s old. (17S.230 #). Llke new. With bag and wheels. $595. Call Stwe, (201) 539-8719, New Jersey.

Can we help you gel into the air? Do you want lo fly, but are short of funds? We will trade anything to help you fly.

Contact Delta Wing Kites & Gtiders (213) 787-6600.

CLEARANCE SALE! Halls Hawk Rogallo p[an.s. (Includes prone harness plans), guarantood the most derailed plans available. Hundred sold for $7.fxJ. Now available for only $5.00. Send chock to Jack Hall, 2446 Roosevelt, Berkeley. CA 94703. For further details, send stamped envelope.

HELP! MY HANGER IS OVERFLOWING WITH GLIDERS. EIPPER TEAM PILOT HAS FANTASTIC DEALS! Cumulus V.B. Excellent. $450. New 19' Standard. Perfect for beginner. $350. Used 18' Standard $250. Team Cal-Glider "106" Albatross sail. $400. Factory built, Quicksilver. $250. Mirage land sailor. $400. All of these gliders have colored sails and bags, not lo mention the excellent care they have received. Leave message. (714) 753--4323.

I WOULD LIKE TO GET INTO HANG GLIDING, but don't have the money. l hope you understand my situation. If you have an old standard. [ will provide a good home. Bruce A. Peters, (703) 768,1829.

KESTREL Very good co~tion. New U.P. prone harness. $550, finn. Call or write, Ted Smith, 490 Dale St., North Andover, MA 01845. {6171 685-6690, evenings.

KONDORPEGASUS. 98°nose, 21' wings, 15' keel. 7to l glide. Greatsink@te. Easy to fly. Almost new. $550. (408) 373-3423.

MARK lt C. DRAGONFLY. 145 sq. ft. 4 months old.

Beautifull $900or offer. Day, call [);ckat(213) 787-6600.

Night, Mary, 792,2276.

MONARCH. Beautiful multi-colored sail. Llke new. Flown 6 times Bag & seat included. $695. (405) 946.1657.

CUMULUS VB $575. Orange & gold. Excellent conclition/><tras. (213) 434. 7112, evenings.

PACIFIC GULL "ALPINE lt". #l34LGE version 185.;q. ft. Excellent condition. lndudes facto,y triple de-flexor, snap bag, and LGE. UP Qoud harness w/hanger. Tight sail Gold over orange. $1050. Call Skip Dove, (509) 946-0905. Richland, WA. E.W.H.GA

CUMULUS VB. $800. Brand new. Special features. Must see to appreciate. (213) 434-7112, evenings.

PACIFIC GULL 19'. Red and gold. With bag. Good condition. Call Frank, (201) 444-6301.

EJPPER 19' x 17' Purple, yellow. orange,and red. Set up for prone or seated. With prone harness and cover. $350.

(213) 333-6164.

PACIFIC GULL ALPINE. 6 months old Excellent condi· lion. Call Frank, (201) 444-6301.

===-~

EJPPER fl.EX[ JI 20' x 15' Almost new. Less than l hr. $625. (714) 521-2575.

ElPPER FLEXI 16'. Flov.n 3 times. 3 color sail, cover, prone harness. $350. (213) 845-4172.

FIRST TIME - Motori2ed Hang Glider F'tlm. 16mm, color: loops, steep banks, etc. Purchase for $25.00.

Grossberg, 2503 S. Second St., Jacksonville Bch., FL 32250.

FOR SA1£c AustraKan '"B'tll Moyes" MIDI - STINGER Hang-Glider. Used only 4 times. Condition is therefore

PACIFIC GULL 19' #712. Lite blue with green leading edges Excellent condltlon. lndudes bag Need cash, new kite coming. $500. Ouis, (714) 494-4460.

PACIFIC GULL HA 19' -15'. Team flyers kite. Good condition. Helmet and harness included. $400. (213) 845-4085 PHOENIXVl·B, new, $795. SKYTREKTOWKITE, Aown only twice, $595. 18' x 16', hke new, $495. 18"11' (222B) Advanced Standard, near new, $295. 19'xl7', used. $195. 1911,' Standard, near new. $295. SUNDANCE B rig,'d v.ing, $675. (415) 432.0522.

PHOEN!X 6B. New. $750. SKYTREK 18' x 16' New. $495 Tow kite above add $100. 2228 18W. New condition. $385. (415) 432,0522, make offer.

PHOENIX Vl-8. With bag. New. $725 Bennett tow A-frame. All floats. Upper release. 150' of tow line. New. $195. (813) 294-3844.

PHOENIX 8 Sr. $900. (2103) 240~-444~9_._ _ _ __

00

PHOENIX TX. Floats, tow bar. tlppered bag. Jim Walsh, 1305) 859-3550, days, 851-3488, n',_:jhls. Orlando. Fl..

SEU.ING OUT ENTIRE STOCK FOR $950. {NEW) 18' and 17' Stand,!'rd Pliable Moose. Two helm~. Two seated harness. One 17' kite bag. (USED) - 18' Standard. Good condition. Call Nick, (617) 986-6746.

THE STRATO PHIL WARRENDER THERMAL SOARED TO OVER 19,000' IS lliESAME STRATOHE USED TO TEACH HIS BROTHER TO fl. Y! If you are considenng the purchase of a Hang II rated glider, consider the STRATO - the higher aspect ratio, higher performance "Standard" from SUNBIRD. LID, 7,1; minimum sink, 250 fpm. Available in three sizes. Write SUNBIRD GLIDERS, 12501 Gladstone Ave., #A4, Sy1· mar, California 91342.

U.P. DRAGONFLY MK2-B. 220 sq. feet of saU. 5'h hr. flying time. Tuned. no dings, bag, and UP harness. $650.

Will show new owner how to fly safely. Call Ray, weekends early, (213) 433-4289.

WILLS WING "HIGH PERFORMANCE" 17'. Wlng de· tlexors, battened dean sail, large control frame, custom bag. Beau~ful condition/construction. Excellent for trainers, beginners, lntenned!ates. 40% off b:st price. $400 or best offer. SKY SPORT lARK 16'. Seated/prone, bag and harness. Good condition and ftne construction. Mu.st go. $175 or best offer. Some East ~ t delivery possible.

Call of write, New-Used Wings Emporium, 563 Tanglewood Lane, Devon, PA 19333. (215) 644-5301.

Rigid Wings EASY RISER WeU constructed, very good condiHon In car top box with seat $1000. (408) 373--3423, EAf',Y RISERS, Fledglings, Quick.silvers - New, used and kits. Moody motor packages avai!a~e- Rigid Wing Head· quarters of the East. WINGS FORMAN, Box 249, E_ Jsl;p, N.Y. 11730. {516) 581-3943.

FIRST TIME - Motorized Hang Glider Film. 16mm, color, loops, steep banks, etc. Purchase for $25.00.

Grossberg, 2503 South Second St., Jacksonville Bch., FL 32250.

FLEDGLING "A" Used only once. Best offer (4151 447.6152.

Fl..EDGLlNG B. Twist grips. Prone or seated. All bags.

Flov.n 16 times. $750. (406) 728-8847.

ICARUS V. Good condt~on. $650. 1213) 281-2539.

[CARUS V. Mint condition, mu.st sacrifice, need cash. With

Uncle Henry and Nemo High Flying Art Prints You can buy these supurb reproductions of oil paintings by noted American artist Robert Marquiss. The print size is 16 x 20 BM on fine art paper. Print name and address and send $6:00 for each print of Uncle Henry or Nemo, or $35.00 for each limited edition, (250) Print signed and numbered by the artist.

Add 50 cents for postage and handling. Allow 2 to 3 weeks delivery. Send check or money order TO: Marquiss Art Studios

P.O. Box Z7545

UNCLE HENRY IIJ

Los Angeles, California 90027

NEMO JUNE 1977

box. FLEDGLING A model - excellent condition. W1TI deliver anywhere. Best offer takes one or both. (801) 561-3356 or (213) 933-9897.

QUICKSILVER Assembled from factory (Eipper) kit.

New condition. $400. Arkadelphia, AR {501) 246-2839.

QUICKSILVER Multi-colored sail. Bag induded. $575.

Tenn (615) 455-4010.

QUICKSILVER B. In mint condition. Flown 3 times with trailer. Best offer. (405) 946-1657.

QUICKSILVER B. Red and yellow. Sacrifice, $500. Buffalo, N.Y. (716) 668--4873.

QUICKSILVER B. W/spoilers. cover, truck rack. Good condrnon. $400. (714) 751-5017.

SUNDANCE B. Good condition. Wife says sell. $800.

(714) 751-5017.

VJ-23. Controlled flight. Good craftsmanship. All aircraft materials. Successfully flown. Free tratler rack! $1800. Call (5031 382-5357.

Schools and Dealers ARIZONA DESERT HANG GLIDERS. Futuring Seagull and Wills Wing. Representatives In Flagstaff and Tucson, too. Complete lessons, sales, service, used kites Mountain flights up to 4300' vertical. 3433 W. Mandalay, Phoenix, Arizona 85023. (602) 942-4450 in Phoenix, (60'2) 779-0236 in Flagstaff.

U.S. HANG GLIDERS, INC. Ariwna's ONLY full time, full service, Hang Gliding distributor and school. Representing ALL major manufacturers. All instructors USHGA certified Instruction from basicthruadvanood. Simulators and class room hours included with flight training. All for $55. 10250 N. 19th Ave., Phoenix, Al. 85021. (602) 944-1655.

AR-KA-N-SA5-~---------WESTARK! Call or write the professionals - parts, ghders (new and used), flight schools, accessortes. Catalogs available. Dealer lnquirtes Invited. See Larry Edwards, 3109 Grand. Fort Smith, Ark 72904. (501) 782-3456.

CALIFORNIA

Friday. 10-6 Saturday. Sunday flying lessons.

BIRD BUILDERS HANG GLIDING SHOP has a gocxl supply of excellent used gliders, (not Standards), at a low cost. Below ht price on most major brands of gliders. Call us before you buy! 18717 Pac Coast Hwy., Malibu, CA. (213) 456-6946. Hours: 10-30 - 6 Oosed Sunday and Monday.

SEAGULL AIRCRAFT is now accepting a limited number of dealership applications throughout the U.S.A. Please address requests toe SeagWI Aircraft, Inc., 3021 Airport Ave., Santa Monica, CA 90405.

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CHANDELLE S.F. Featuring Seagull, Eipper, Manta, Sunbird, and Electra, with other major brands available.

We stock new gliders, as well as a complete hne of parts and accessories, PLUS a full repair facility! USHGA certified instruction: basic, Intermediate, and advanced lessons available. Rfteen year,; of comb,ned exJ;N?rience qual, ifies us to do the best job for you. Top o' the hill, overlooking Fort Funston. IO Hillskle Blvd, Daly Ctty, CA 94014.

(415) 756-0650 ESTABLISHED, GROWING HANG GLIDER MANUFACTURER Is seeking investment capital for expansion, promotion, research, and development. Interested persons should write Bill McIntosh, 8622 Apperson St., Sunland, CA 91040 FLY OUR HIGH PERFORMANCE STRATO HANG GLIDERS for training or soaring over acres of sand dunes.

For information and central coast weather, call Al Waddill - weekdays at: Great Arnertcan Sports, Santa Marta, CA. (805) 925-9509.

FREE FUGHT OF SAN DIEGO - Expert instruction utilizing the most modern and safest equipment available.

(714) 56().0888.

HANG GLIDERS WEST-OJLU)N BEACH !'LYING SCHOOL For the most ~mplete line of Hang Gliders, parts and accessolies in the Bay Area, come see us.

USHGA certified Instructors and observers. Free lessons with purchase of a wing. Visit ournew shop, open 10:00 to 6:00 Monday through Saturday. Free Ground School Fndays 7.30 P.M Qualified pilots are welcome to come and try the latest high performance glider,;. After the sale, ifs the service that counts. Hang GHders West, 1011 Lincoln Ave., San Rafael, CA 94901. (4151 453-7664.

THE HANG GLIDER SHOP - 13.51 E. Beach Blvd., La Habra, CA 90631; (213) 943-1074. Come in, visit. and see our displays featuring Elpper-Forrnance Hang Gliders, parts, and other equipment. Hours 4-9 Tuesday through

SUPER FLY SKY-SAILS, INC. Dealer for Manta, Electra Ayer. Demos available. Fly the Fledgling! Oldest, most exJ;N?rienced instruction m the South fuy area. Beginner.

Intermediate, Advanced. USHGA Obse,ver. 21383 Al· dercroft Hg1s. Rd., Los Gatos, CA 95030. (408) 353-2926.

ININDHAVEN HANG GLIDING SCHOOL, INC. Serving Southern CaH!ornia. Complete line of gliders, beginner to advanced instruction. USHGA certified Instructors Write or call, Windhaven, 7S30Wood1ey. Van Nuys, CA 91406.

1213) 989-1814.

CANADA A BOY'S SCHOOL IN MANITOBA, CANADA is ln, terested m getting plans of a Rogallo glider or have a reliable glider donated. Info. on local Instruction also needed. Contact I. Lornrnerse, F. Wiens, St. John's Cathedral Boy's School, Selk;rk, Manitoba, Canada.

(2041482,5525.

The AURORA COMPANY. Hang gliders and accessories.

All services, information. Associate dealers serving all of Canada. Box 91176, West Vancouver. Canada.

V7\l.3N6 (604) 922-7275.

COLORADO GOLDEN SKY SAILS, featuring Flactra Flyar, LEAF, Manta, SeagWl, Sun and Ultralite Products. Our v,;ellequipped shop speciali:,es in expert repair and custom work Huge Inventory of parts and accessories, induding Chandelle replacement parts. Fast service mail order.

Regular. advanced, and high.performance lessons. Mountain flights up to 26()(Y vertical. Ratings availatie. We use the most modem techniques and gliders, as well as twoway radios between the instructor and student. Located just west of Denver at the foot of Green Mountain. Call or write for free price hst or further \nforma~on: (303) 278-9566. 572 Orchard St., Golden, CO 80401.

CONNECTICUT TEK FLIGHT PRODUCTS, INC. Featuring Electra Flyer,

·rnc=.:mc sosF'tN>'ON

~·=r

'"'"~ umFORM".Y ,,snnrui-=

:ruooui,"'""'"

IHlJl>!T

• To order your harness or for more information write or call:

SUN81RD GLIDERS 12501 GLADSTONE AVE., #A4 SYlMAR. CALIFORNIA 91342 (213) 361·8651

Suif Theatre, Huntington Beach, Calif. June 15·28 o.,ec,ed by (NI Boen;,h1P,OOu<:ed by Ted Webs,e,/(<1,ted by R"f.s,d Mey><ce'"''""

by M;chael Lloyd Colo, by Techn;colo<. A T"""a, (o,po, at,On pce,entat;on,

HANG GLIDING

• Piease specify pilot height and weight when ordering by mail.

• A minimum S20.00 deposit must accompany all mail orders • ONLY S69.5D fo.b. Canoga Park. Californians add 6% sales tax.

- DEALERS INQUIRIES INVITED -

61

Sky Sports and other kites and accessolies. Personalized lessons by qualified and certified instructors. Opening now, our new shop for those unfortunate gliders that need medical attention. Call Ben or Alegn, in Winsted, CT.

{203) 379-1668.

teach you to fly safely and easily, and are certified by USHGA and GSI. Open Saturdays and Sundays. Weekday Instruction by appointment. To enroll, contact AEOLUS HANG GLIDER, !NC., Box 184, Littleton, MA 01460. 1617) 486-8278.

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GEORGIA_ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ GLIDER ASCENSYLNS Hang Gliding School Safety/judgement first. 5 hour beginning classes. flights in all 360' winds, training w/2nd generaton standards. Sales -- service - rental. 100% unblemished safety record.

Atlanta. Georgia. 24 hrs. 1404) 448·3516.

JOWA Boag's SKYSURFING SHOP. Being one of the first dealers and Instructors in the U.S. helps me give quahty lessons. exclusively on Phoenix kites. USHGA @tings are available. For lessons with me or one of my slx dealers throughout Iowa call Boag Chumbley at (515) 244-4669.

1323 Park Ave., Des Moines, Iowa 50315. P.S. We'll even take a Moose on a trade.In I HAPPINESS IS burning Standards at dub Hy-ins.)

If you am Jocated in or near low,,, che:;k with JOWA GLIDER CO., Crntral Iowa dealer for Pliable Moose, New and used gliders, lessons, parts, repairs. 2564 Boyd. Des Moines, Iowa 50317. (515) 262,5080.

KANSAS Eipper, Kondor, Sky Sports and Pliable Moose Kites.

Weekly instruction. Complete outfitting aiid sales for backpacking, canoe and kayak bips. Stop by and shoot the breeze! Voyageur's Pack and Portage Shop, 5935 Merriam Or., Merriam. KS 66203 (913) 262-6611.

MAINE SKY PEOPLE SCHOOLS New England Headquarters for Sky Sports, Electra Flyer, Manta. Utrallte. Complete faci~l!es at three mountains. Atl!tash, Mt. Cranmore, Pleasant Mt. USHGA certified instruction and special learn-to.fly packages. Write for free information kit. Don McCabe, Sky People, Box 898. North Conway, N.H. o.3860. (603) 35.,~c"="'-----MASSACHUSEITS ---Try a FREE practice run at Aeolus Atghl Training Center, Groton Hills Ski Area, Groton, MA. Aeolus ill$1rudors can

Quahfied pilots (advanced two's - up) tryout the fantastic flew HORIWN. Abate's Glider Shop. full sales and service for Hang flyer Gliders, in Lawrence, Mass. {6171

66.3.4284_ MICHIGAN DELTA KfTES OF INDIAN I.J\KE-7844 Shaver Rd., Portage. MI 49081. Tov,; fbght school, complete stock of parts. repairs or custom work. Call (616) 327-3075. eve· nings.

MID-WE.ST SCHOOL OF HANG GLIDING. All levels of instruction, located 74 mile from Warren Dunes, one of the best training sights in the ll.S.• Dealers include: Eipper· Formanc.e, Wills Wir,g, Albatross. Moyes, Bennett, and Electra-Ayer. Come fly before your buy. Call (616) 426-3100. Now taking orders for the new ASG-21, Phoenix 8, Olympus, Cumulus 10, and Moyes Stinger.

We're growing!! We can now offer great deals on Wills Wing, Electra Flyer and Phoenix. We offer "personalized"' instruction, ratings, supplies and repairs. Special advanced lessons free with purchase of any new or used High· Performance glider. SOUTHEAST MICHIGAN HANG GLIDERS, 24851 Murray, Mt. Qemens, Mich 48045.

(313) 791,0614.

MINNESOTA NORTHERN SUN HANG GLIDERS, INC. Oistrtbutors for Electra Flyer, Wills Wing, Sun Sail, and UFM Easy Riser. USHGA Certified instructions. Owner/managers of the Hang Gliding Preserve, soarab!e ridge with tramway lift. When in the north country stop by and test fly our line of glders and enJoy our sites. 628 W. Larpenteur Ave., St. Paul, MN. (612) 489-8.300.

MISSOURI MONARCH FLYING MACHINES, your complete mtdwest hanggliderservice. USHGA instructor, basic training with medium performance gliders. Intermediate and advanced tralnlngalso. We are dealers for Electra Flyer, UFM and Bill Bennett gliders. Call or stop by. Mooer"s Alpine

THEO-TEK Variometer The best audio/visual variometer available! suggested retail: $160.00

• lightest on market (1.5 lbs.)

• smallest on market (completely sell-' contained, 4'" square and 5\1, .. deep) • audio sounds in lift.. silent in sink • sens1t1v,ty adjustment· extremely shon lag time • ready-to-mount (bracket included) • low power usage (4 AA batteries) • rechargable N,·cad batteries • day-glo orange needle w/black face and white numerals (large & easy to read) • gold anodized case

ELECTRA FLYER 700 Comanche, NE., Albuquerque, NM 87107

• II your dealer doesn't have rhem, con/act us & we'll sh,p yours 1mmed1a/ely

62

Ltd., 14 N. Gore, Webster Groves, Mo. 63119. {314) 962-5731.

MONTANA THE HA.NGAR - Now in our 5th year of serv1ce with representatives in Great Falls, Butte-Anaconda and Livingston. oUJ shop offers Certified instrucl!on with radios, a full tine of quality gliders, parts, accessories and competent repair service. Insurance, hang ratings and site informa~on also available (406) S42·2725. THE HANG. AR, RT2, Mullan Rd .. MLSSoula, MT 59801.

NEW HAMPSHIRE SKY PEOPLE SCHOOLS. Northeast headquarters for Skysports, E'Jectra Fly,,r, Manta and Ultralight Products, Complete facilities at 3 mountains: Attitash, Mount Cran· more and Pleasant Mt. USHGA certified Instruction and special learn·IO·fly packages Write for free lnformaHon kit.

Don McCabe, Sky People· Box 898, North Conway, New Hampshire 03860.

NEW JERSEY BENNETI DELTA WINGS EAST - Come try a Phoenix. see how it handles. Save $250 on Phoenix by scrapping ANY OLD KITE Also tow kiting. Save on shipping and cover. Write Kues, Box 36. Berkeley Heights. N.J. 07922.

CaU (201) 464-0383.

NEW YORK ATIJ\NnC GLIDERS. 'Lessons' Sales; new and used Bennett, Eipper, Manta, Moose, Electra. End of year discounts and dub member savings. Save $250 on Phoenix Alledin Trede.Jn Tow Kiting too. Cr-,,enwood l.,,ke, N.Y. No tax to N. Y. residents. Bernie Yaged (201) 464-0383 or Charlie Kenison (201) 962·6554.

40 miles north of N.Y.C Aelial Techniques GS[ Certified BeginnelS School with advance trainer kites. Dealers for all Manufacturers. Everything for the beginner, intermediate, and advanced pilot. Dan Ch~pman, .bmes Aronson, Douka Kaknes, dedicated to the hang gliding movement.

(914) 78.3-6751, RD#l, 49 Mine Rd., Monroe, N.Y.

,0950 SARATOOA SPRINGS. N.Y~ Instruction, sales, and repair. USHGA certified instructors. Services available 7 days each week Sky Sports products our specialty. Con-

HANG GLIDING AND FLYING CONDITIONS

by DENNIS PAGEN

•c::::=====cj"';~--~7--

Dver 90 Illustrations Charts and Graphs Some of the topics detailed: • GENERAL WEA1HER - atmosphere circulation - air masses - pressure systems - fronts - cloud types • 1UREULENCE - causes - cornli tions stability - rotors - dangers flying techniques - wind shadow • WIND CONDITIONS - seabreeze anabatic and catabatic winds altitude effects wind gradient • SJARIM:; - ridges fronts thennals. - waves dynamic SITE READIM; - trouble spots finding lift - wind gauging te examples

~~~

This "road map to the sky " is as essential to safe flying as a helmet - for beginners to experts Send $5.95 + 25¢ for postage &handling (45¢ Canada) To: SKY LIGHf FLIGHT - 1184 Oneida St., State College, Perrnsylvania 16801 Please print name and address - Dealer inquires invited JUNE 1977

Man's Dream of Flight

,111

I

Thousands of years ago, man gazed up into the skies and dreamed of going there someday - lifted by balloons perhaps, or by the rising dew of some enchanted meadow.

But it was alljust a dream, all pure as fantasy.

But in the early 70's, the hang gliding movement brought the reality of powerless, manned fiight to thousands ofpeople the world over. And today in 1977, men are soaring for hours at a time and fiying 40-50 miles.

There's so much happening that ifs hard to keep up with it all. But keeping up with the news is what Glider Rider's all about. Ask one of our readers, and they'll tell you that Glider Rider is the hott;est thing going in hang gliding publications. Or better yet, send for a sample copy, and you'll see for yourself why Glider Rider is America's favorite hang gliding publication. Your satisfaction is guaranteed.

• • •

r---~-----------------------------I

SPECIAL!!

THE 1977 SUPERSHIPS were evaluated for a comprehensive Consumer Report which appeared in a four-page feature in the May Glider Rider. How did the new ships stack up against one another? Which ones had the best LJD? Was wing loading a factor? Send for the May issue and find out. It will be the best $1 you ever spent.

Do it today!

(check 'one) Enclosed is a check or money order for: D $1.00 for the May issue; or D $1.00 for the current issue; or D $ for a subscription to Glider Rider

I I I I I I I I I I I I I

: ~

United States Regular 1st Class Canada Regular 1st Class Foreign 2nd Priority Top Priority Air Rate

I Mail Check or Money Order To:

I

~--------------·

GLIDER RIDER • Dept. A-2

P.O. Box TN 6009 Chattanooga, 37401

12 Issues

24 Issues

36 Issues

$10 19

$18 34

'$25 49

$12 19

$20 34

$27 u9

$14 18 33

$23 34 49

$29 44

63

Name _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ Address _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ City, St. & Zip - - - - - - - Countrv - - - - - - - - - -

tact Mike McCarron, 17 Vichy Dr., Saratoga Springs, N.Y. 12866 or call (518) 587-1957.

NORTH CAROLINA COME FLY JOCKEY'S RIDGE! If you live east of the Mississippi and want to learn to fly a hang gUder safely come to Kitty Hawk Kites. Wllbur and Orville came here to learn to fly. Gliding Into the soft Atlantic breezes from Jockey's Ridge is an experience which will always be remembered. Thirteen stories high, it ts the tallest sand dune on the East Coast. We have safely taught over 7,500 folks to fly - people of all ages. Hang gliding from the soft sand dune Is a major factor in the outstanding safety record of Kitty Hawk Kites, the East Coast's largest and finest hang gliding school. We offer several lesson plans all the way to advanced training in the mountalns. Ask about our Fly/Drive Package which includes airfare, car rental, motel, meals, etc. If you need a glider, select one while you're here from our large inventory. We carry the safest and best performing gli ders on !he market from beginning/intermediate to high performance. Send $2.00 for poster catalog. For a free brochure on the Arst Flight School call or write: Kitty Hawk Kites, Inc., P.O. Box 386, Nags Head, N.C. 27959. (919) 441-6247.

OKLAHOMA SKY UNLIMITED - Now has new and used SST's, Electra Flyers, and the new Wills Wing "Cross Country" .

Dealer for Bennett, Scott, and Eipper. Complete service and repair. Dealer inquiries invited. Contact: Richard 'Sky' Kingrey at Sky Unlimited, Star Route, Box 34, Heavener, OK. (918) 653-2437. Site of the 5TH ANNUAL US. NATIONAL HANG GLIDING CHAMPIONSHIPS.

Products. Sun Sail Corp., and now feature Seagull Aircraft. 853. N.E. 8th Street, Grants Pass, Oregon 97526.

(503) 479-0826, ask for Jeff.

PENNSYLVANIA ENDLESS MOUNTAINS HANG GLIDERS. ElectraFlyer, Sky Sports. Sales, service and instruction with advanced glider. Tom Delovich, RD# 1. Box 33A, LeRaysville, PA 18829. (717) 744-2832.

UP-IT Company. Hang gliding lessons with dassroom and on-site training. Representing eight major manufacturers.

Complete line of accessories and repairs. l 103 Cottman Ave. , Phila., PA 19111. (215) 722-8212.

TENNESSEE

W. VIRGINIA

Scott Aircraft. Instruction, hang ratings, all kite supplies and repair. 3832 Guernsey, Memphis, TN 38122. (901) 324-8922.

MOUNTAIN - AJR HANG GLIDERS. Manta dealers.

Kites, parts & repairs. Kenny Cross, 636-0305, 636-4672.

Jerry Pasttne. 636-2801. Box 227, Elkins, W. VA. 26241.

TEXAS

MOUNTAIN STATE HANG GLIDING. Free lessons to gUder buyers through all levels. Basic techniques $25.00, we provide all. Authorized dealer for Seagull, Sky Sports, Eipper Fomiance and Bennett. 1400 Cedar Cresl Dr. #126, Huntington, W.VA 25705. (304) 736-5968.

CALIFORNIA GLIDERS. Distributors for Southwest.

Now accepting dealer inquiries for Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arkansas. Contact Jim Thomas, (817) 625-1991. Armadillo Aviation, 2724 Azle Ave,, Ft. Worth, TX 76106.

ELECTRA-FLYER DISTRIBUTORS. South Mid-Western distributors for: Bectra Ayer Corp., UFM Products, Sky Sports, Seagull Aircraft. Now accepting dealership Inquiries. Call or writo: LONE STAR HANG GLIDERS. 2200 "C" South Smithbarry Rd., Arlington, TX 76013.

Metro. (8 17) 469-9159.

LONE STAR HANG GLIDERS - Electra Flyer, Sky Sports and UFM. Sales, repair, instruction. 2200 C. South Smithbarry, Arlington, Texas 76013. (817) 469-9159.

OREGON

UTAH

ISLAND BIRD - Extends the ultimate, come learn to fly with the bird people. Servicing you from 9 to 5, Tuesday to· Friday, 10 to 6, Saturday & Sunday. At P.O. Box e.v.

Agana, Guam, OR. 96910. Call & talk to Raymond or Armando at (503) 477-7577. USHGA certified instructors.

THE KITE SHOP AT NATURE'S WAY. a complete hang glidJng shop featuring: USHGA certifled Instructors, a full line of parts and accessories, demo and rental ghders, (Manta, Windlords, Cirrus Di's and the Fledgling collapsible fixed wing). The Kite Shop is easily found at 9th So. & 9th East and indudes a great natural foods store and Salt Lake's best sandwiches. We specialize in quality. 898 So. 900 E.. Salt Lake City. Utah 84102. (801) 359-7913.

• ONE SIZE FITS ALL • Complete with DOUBLE knee hangers • 100% made from SPACE AGE MATERIALS • Send $10 deposit v:ith address to: • 4320 Cummings Highway • Chattanooga, TN 37419 (615) 825-1995

VIRGINIA MANTA OF VIRGINIA - Roanoke, VA. Hang glider sales, repalrs and parts Inventory. Beginner and intermediate lessons by USHGA Instructors. Call (703) 343-4767.

TRUE FLIGHT SOUTH, the Hang Gilder Hang-Out. Dealers for Electra Ayer. Sky Sports, Ultrallte, Kondor. &

THE HANG GLIDER SHOP: uses only USHGA certified instructors training on " intermediate" kites. Most major brandsavaHable. Oklahoma's only lull service shop. (405, 946-1657. 3117 N. Portland. Oklahoma City 73112.

SUPERFLY HANG GLIDERS - Southern Oregon's Source for qualified Instruction. We represent Ultralite

WASATCH WINGS INC.. Salt Lake's Hang .Gliding Center. Conveniently located near the point of the mountain. Services Include: School of Hang Gliding (Indoor classes as well as on-the-hill training). Repalr shop (all types repalred professionally). Retall shop (everything from T-shirts to instruments). Mail order service. Distributors for Seagull, Wills and U.P. Send $1.00 for catalog and Information package. Wasatch Wings, Inc.. 892 E. 12300 S., Draper, UT 84020. (801 J 521-4044.

WASHINGTON AERONAUT HANG GLIDERS, INC. Instruction features: USHGA certified Instructors, thorough ground school, training film produced specifically for our school. two-way radios. Intermediate training gliders. and emphasis on judgment and safety. Service and accessory discounts for gilder customers. RepresentaUves (or Bennett and Manta.

Dealer inquiries welcomed. Mike Pringle, Bob Podhola.

(206) 456-5606. 4827-B Rumac SL S.E., Olympia, WA 98503.

WYOMING Dealers for Electra Flyer, parts & accessories. Ratings available. Testily the Incredible Cirrus 3. Russ Kidder, 743 St. John St., Casper, Wyo. (307) 265-7292.

Parts & Accessories MCCULLOCH MC 101 MIC engines, hubs, props and accessories. Ready to bolt on your kite. Brian Schoon-

You can build your own sails, bags, harnesses, etc. We stock a complete lin e of Bainbridge fabrics and sal lmaker's hardware. If you are lookin g for a wide selection of fabric and assistance in sewing techniques, we have what you need.

Sailrite Kits has Just published The Wing Book by Jim Grant - a complete text on the bui lding of hang g lider labrlc surfaces. It is available along w ith our Amateur Sallmaker's Catalogue for $1.50 (prepaid). Use the coupon below to order your set now.

Sailrlte. Kits, 12937 Venice Blvd., Mar Vista, Ca. 90066

S54.95 64

Please send me the Wing Book and the Amateur Sallmaker's Catalogue. I have enclosed $1.50 for each set ordered and understand that they will be sent postpaid.

Name Address - - -- - -- - - - -City _ __ _ _ __ Zip _ _ _ __

JUNE 1977

maker, 1231 S. Beach St #1060. Daytona Bch., FL 32014.

WINDSOCKS - 3\-l, ft., red nylon sock on, 2 piece 8ft. metal mast. Includes nylon rope and stakes, wh,ch form a bipod for support. Send check or money order for $40. 00 to Dan Blume!, P.O. Box 54, Eden, UT 84310. Allow 4 weeks for delivery. Includes shipping.

Publications & Organizations

f~K ~

DIP ANODISED

Serd r,,, fR[[

I 3/4

catal,1qce

TUBING

SEAMLESS

.049 X 18". 19',- 20' 2•15

5/8 X

X

.058 X 12'

LENGTHS

DRAWN

.90FT

2·15 LENGTHS

.99FT

049 X 18.5, 19.5". 20' 2·15

LENGTHS

.99FT

il!ll.

3/32 7X7 STAINLESS 3/32 7X7

STAINLESS

STEEL

.14FT

STEEL WHITE

OR

NYLON COATED

!!!.£2..!. 3/32 THIMBLES WINGNUTS

~~~~~~~~-

SOARING MAGAZINE. Covers the sailplane scene with

BRIGHT

1/2

BOOKS; Books available through lJSHGA are Fly, The Complete Book of Skysai!ing, Guide to Arizona, Guide to Rogal/a F!ight - Basic, Hong f/ighl, Hong Gllding, Hong Gliding - Rapture of the Heights, Hang Gliding - The Flyingest flyjng, Log Book, Manned Kmng. Mon-Powered Flight, Simpbfied Perjomionce Tes~ng, Skysurfing, True Flight and The Comp/e!e Book of Hong Gfiding. Also available. HongGfidingond flyjng Conditions, by Dennis P"9en, and Hong Gndlng and Soaring, by James E. Mrazek. Request order form, lJSHGA, Box 66306, Los Angeles, CA 90'.l&6.

HANGING IN THERE. $6/yr. 6301 Knox Ave. South, Richfield MN 55423.

Fly the finest ... fly a u.e.f:

•'

.083,

'"

' '" ' .049, ' AVAi' .058 STOCK ALSO "' •'

BUSHING

some ultralite coverage Available with membership.

(Member $20; As.soda le member, $12/year.) Info kit Wth sample copy $1.50. Soaring Society of America, Box 66071-G, Los Angeles, CA 90066

.15FT

e....,. t::.,4P.~·-"'-----11

.07EA .09EA

LEIDING EDGE IIR FOllS

HE.&

331 S 1'TH ST. COL SPGS. CO. 8090, 303 632·4959

FREE FREE

DISCOUT HP\NG GLIDER P\CCE\IORY CP\TP\LOGUE

,~% 10-30% OFF LI\! PRICE

SOLITHLAND FL YER - Monthly puhli<'_;,tion of th" Southland Hang G~ding Association, USHGA's largest chapter. $5. per year. Write - S.H.G.A, 526 E. Manchester Terrace, Inglewood, CA 90301.

l(~D NFll'1t & ~Dt:«11 hhD -fliGHT ~NJ Mi\lL OM! (O rn \TFll'IP oi co1N 10 eo ~ox 61'2

SPECIALJ!! BACK ISSUES OF GROUND SKIMMER MAGAZINE #19-34, .40¢e.,ch: current issues at the regular price of $1.00 each. USHG\, Box 66306, Los Angeles, CA 90066.

Arrington, 11626 E.D. Ave., Richland, Michigan 49083.

:_::rr

l;ji/

TYPE: New Cirrus Ill. SAIL PATTERN: Keel out; dk. blue, It. blue, red, orange, yellow, with It. blue leading edges. TYPE: Seagull Ill. SAIL PATTERN: KE'E'I out; purple, red, orange, 2 yellow. WHERE & WHEN: Winnemucca, Nev. in January, 1977. CONT ACT: Brad Jenkins, 1155 S.W. 11th St, Ontario, Oregon (5031 889-3484.

Miscellaneous BlJMPERST!CKERS- Tell 'emwhereit's happening 11 I'd rather be flying. 2) Go fly a kite. 3) Hang gliding is free 4) Get prone with a friend. 5) Fly like a bird-Hang G~de.

6) Soaring is believing Your choice in red, orange, yellow, green, $UXl; any 3 for $2.00: all 6 for $3.00. The Krte Shop, 898 So. 900 E., Salt Lake City, Utah 84102.

CUSTOM CLOlSONNE PINS AND MEDALLIONS: YOUR EXCLUSIVE GLIDER DESIGN, CLUB INS!GNIA, OR COMPANY LOGO reproduced ln fited enamel Jewehy. Trade them with other p'lots. Prnmotewith them I A great gift Idea! Sizes '¥4' 83'" Any shape No color limit Minimum order only 25 pieces. Check our prices - {501" medallions only 95-¢@). Fiee price list and brochure or send $1 for sample. TAlJRlJS ENTERPRISES, Box 446, Mt. Prospect, IL 60056.

PATCHES & DECALS - USHGA sew-on emblems 3" dia. Full color - $1. Decals, 3\/,"' dia lnslde or outside app~c,,tion. 25t each. lndude 13¢ for postage and handling with each order Box 66306. Los Angeles. CA 90066.

TEE-SHIRTS with USHGA emblem $5.50 including postage and handling. Californians add6· tax. Men'sslzes S. M. L XL. Orange only. lJSHGA, BOX 66306, Los Angeles, CA 90066.

METAL LICENSE PLATE FRAMES- "FD RATHER BE HANG GLIDING" White lettering on a blue background. $4.00 including postage and handling. Californians add & tax. USHGA, BOX 66306, Los Angeles, CA 90066.

WINGS OF THE \.VIND'", an award winning 16mm Hang Gliding film, is ideal for shCM'ing at dub meetings, for promotional use and entertainment. Re purchase. rental, information, contact GibCo F'dms, 12814 Col~ns St., North Hollywood, CA 91607, or telephone (213) 766-3489.

The rah;! fordassified adva1islng:1$ 20¢ per word (or group of characters). Minimum charge, $2.00. A fee of $5. Is charged for each photograph. Art discount forclsplay ads does not appt,, to dassifleds. Please make clllll:b payatw

to USHGA:

Classified Advertising Dept.

HANG GLIDER MAGll.zrNE Box 66306, Los Angeles, CA !KX:>66 HANG GLIDING

GRt~T R;%R NY 117JQ

TYPE: LEAF World Cup Stnd. 16'/,-15, Serial #5500. SAIL PATTERN: Keel out; dk. blue, yellow, orange. dk. blue. TYPE: LEAF World Cup Stnd. 20-18, 244 sq. ft. SAIL PATTERN: White SJ ii with blue applied sleeves and keel pocket.

DISTINGUISHING FEATURE: Blue control bJr and kingpost, wheel,. WHERE & WHEN: December 16, Col Spgs, Col. CONT ACT: Leading Edge Air Foil,, 331 S. 14th St. Col. Spgs., Col. 80904.

TYPE: UP Spyder prototype, 154 sq.ft. SAIL PATTERN: keel out; light blue, yellow, gold, gold, gold. Orange with white UP inserts. Orange -~~--applied leading edges. WHERE & WHEN: Soboba, TYPE: Seagull Ill Z-19 SAIL PATTERN: Yellow Calif. in April. CONTACT: Ultralite Product5, sail with black keel panel and black leading Box 582, Rancho, Calif. 92390. (714) 676-5652. edges. WHERE & WHEN: December, Wells, Nevada. CONT ACT: Freedom Sport,, 516 Idaho St., Elko, Nevada 89801 TYPE: Cumulus 10. SAIL PATTERN: Yellow sail -~-with black leading edges. TYPE: Olympus. SAIL TYPE: Wills Wing SST, #807, without rnntrol PATTERN: All yellow on one side and gold, bar. SAIL PATTERN: All white with orange and orange, red, purple, dark blue, light blue, yellow panel. WHERE & WHEN: Sept. 27th, white, white on second side. WHERE & WHEN: Sandy, Utah. CONTACT: W<1satch Wings, Both kites were stolen out of John Dunham's (801) 266-2922. truck while in San Diego in early March. $100 TYPE: Phantom prototype. SAIL PATTERN: reward offered by Electra Flyer for the return of Keel out: light blue, thin panel of black, white the Olympus. CONTACT: Eipper-Formance, pane1s to the tips, black German cross on each Electra Flyer, or John Dunham, Reno Hang side. TYPE: Phantom Scorpion. SAIL PATTERN: Gliders, %0 Matley Lane, Reno, NV 89502. Keel out: Yelfow, gold, orange, red, purple, (702) 323-3456. with white leading edges. WHERE & WHEN: TYPE: Seagull IV, #6435. SAIL PATTERN: Keel out; blue, white, blue, white, blue. WHERE & WHEN: Stolen from Windhaven in Van Nuys, Calif. in early March. CONTACT:Windhaven Sky School, 7530 Woodley, Van Nuys, CA 91406.

Cash reward.

~-·----

--------

TYPE: Seagull IV. SAIL PATTERN: Purple lead. ing edges, Keel out; white keel pocket, yellow, orange, lite blue. Patches, 2ft, in length on the leading edges near nose plate. CONT ACT: Ray

Burlingame, CA. Stolen off CM in May '76.

CONTACT: Brian Fallon & Jack Jones, 609 Trowbridge, Santa Rosa, CA 95401. 1707) 528-8760.

As a sef\/ice to the hang gliding commumly, HANG CUD/NC Magazine is publishing (free) information on s!olen gliders. If your glider is missing, send us a comp/eie description along with your address and phone number to: US HCA, Box 66306, Los Angeles, CA 90066.

65

PIiots Please Protect Yourselves With A

-WNDHAVEN EMERGENCY PARACHUTE The Best Available!

TSO'ed with the FAA • • • • •

Canopy size - 24 ft. - special low sink rate design Canopy Material - .75 oz. double-coated nylon 3 ft. Apex for low oscillation - safer landings V-tabs on ski rt for added strength at opening shock Reinforcement tape thru each panel & canopy skirt for added canopy strength • Positive canopy opening system - low opening capabilities • Adaptable to your hammock harness & glider • Container & canopy weigh 5.2 lbs. Super flat pack!

PROVIDES YOU WITH MAXIMUM COMFORT, FREEDOM, & SAFETY Ask pilots like Trip Mellinger, C.H. Beane, Chris Price, Gene Blythe, Mike and Dave Arrambide, and Larry Newman. They'll tell you that they trust their lives with the Windhaven Erner· gency Parachute System.

TESTED BY TRIP MELLINGER & C.H. BEANE

DON'T TAKE THE RISK! CONTACT OUR NEAREST DEALER OR WRITE FOR FREE DETAILS. IMMEDIATE DELIVERY. If your dealer doesn't have them, contact us and we'll ship yours immediately!

-w.NDHAVEN • 7530 WOODLEY AVENUE, VAN NUYS, CA 91406 • PHONE: (213) 989-1814

FLYING IULL

BY BILL ALLEN

AN INDEPENDENT COLUMN \\ ilton, N.H. ( \l :\~ Howdvl The Los Angeles area has been gdting tnrnadm:'S. and l\ew Engl:in<l had snO\\ Ma\' - lO inches in \Vestern \hhs. But here's another column: neither rain, nor snow, nm goorl lhmg weather . TREES & DEFLEXERS-Befort> the ,110\\ storm hit. lour wmgs (incl11cling two 1977 designs) didn't make it to the :\It. Ke;usarge landing field and were eaten by trees The ll'"on is th,1t dcflexers catch easily in the branches, destroying lt·ad111.g edges, hut ,lowing anv fall. LIGHT BLUES- Hear tell that l11.d1t blue 3.4-nz sailcloth seem., to shvtch abnormally with age (not indudi11g t>nmuntcrs with tree suck\ mmpare<l to other c.'Olors i\n}one Pbewhere noticed this:' BAD WEEK - LSHGA Dir Don \kCahe mis~ecl ,1 bad turn in a road and had to have intensive care and facial ph,tic s11rger). He's doing OK no,,. A fe\\ days later, Phil Harne~ hit t11rhulenC'e on tukc-offat Haines Hill. Claremont, l\ H., and flt·\\ hack into the diH: suffering numerous inJmies. In hii. e,u-ly .5ll's, Phil', enthusiasm (he cleared his own hill of trees for flying) and skill ha, e been inspirational to New England flyer~. He also required i11 lt'nsiq• can• but word is he\ coming through OK too \\'I~ATH ER SEUVlCE - By the time you read this. The Hanger should h,1\ l' 111 orx· ralm11 a reeorclt'd hang gliding weather and news sen ice- for :'.\,·w England at (fi03J 654-6.101 CB RADIO - Rick Roclke uses CB ratio for towing, fairh eliminating air-to-ground eo11f11,io11. T.,lkmg al ,out X-C CB use, w·f' hit on the idea of the sport dedaring dianm'I 1-+ as our universal cul l-up frequency. similar to d1a1111el 19 fo, eH·nda~ CB acti, it). The rc'a.son is that most pilots are 11\1111); \\,Jk1l'•talk1e ,ets which come ~t,u1dard \\ith 14 \Ve might later w,111t to chome something other thrn1 9, 14, 19, and trucking eh,unwls to arnid intl'rft•R•net• and misun<lerstrn1ding, but fi>r now 14 1s ,·en· c~lll\'CnlPnt and may not lw crowded unacceptably. HANG BALLO~S- \ fc,\,· l,alloonists are working on one-man crnft un<ler11 .. ath whieh the pilot h,mgs. some 111 hang glider supine h:m1esscs. (\\'In , I'd ,till prefi.. r pront', myself.) ThE> idea is to have integral to the balloon a hack pack. sleeping hag, and tent. \/ceding no crew to launch you can fl} or thumb bac:k home, or sleep where you land 1 ('\Jo 11110 kit\, plans, Ptc· aYailahl.. ~et i RATING KUDOS - \Vas s.u<l to me recenth. "~o one knows anvmore "ho started the Hang Rating,." \\'l'll , Frank C:ohec·r \\rot<' the first ones, called " Hang Badge<' for tlw old So. Calif. Hang Glider .\ssn (now USHGA) in 1973. Chns Pnce did eonside rable work to upgrade these m 1971.

John Lake \\Tott' mo,t of. and ovenaw the proces\ of implementing th,• I Jang Ratmgs in their prest•nt form in 197.5. L'nder Dennis Pagen ,w nu,, ,t·t;> the Hating, maturing in their usage, still evolving gradual!~ . and lwc~m1i11g nniwrsall) accepted. These were the responsible SCHG.\/l'SHCA eommittee chairmen. Ofcoursf' others had inputs. mo,t notably 1\/1•\\ End.me! dubs. who had the "'.'Jortheastem system." .md thl' (de fund) Profr·ssional Flyers Assn .. whose ratings were adopted m se,·eral plact•s SEATED SAFETY - Continuing thi, cliscu,sion lrom last 111011th. I'd like to recognize the positive side Pliable \luo,e has lung had glider control frames \\-ith crossbar hPnt suth that it onl) touches tlw gru11nd at the corners Franklin \la11ufacturirui\ wheels arf' big, yet light and aerodynamic, also 11nlwlie, able strong Low pric-e ,mcl fairh eas~ adaptation c:;m make sl•att-d lly111g a lot safer. Dic:k Gilmartm's I-fang Glider Distributors through its dealt>rs offer, a wheeled, rabcd-bar C'ontrol frame as a standard option on its Starship intermediate llex \\ing. It also can he retrofitted to othn l.{liders with Sk, Sports-type control frame

in

HANG GLIDING

(.5x5x5-ft. with elbow fittings} C'MON - Was admiring a shiny new Phoenix 8 when someone introduced a note of discord: "Look, the cables aren't coated." Surely this was a rare factory mistake? I thought all responsible manufucturers eliminated "cheese-knife" cables long ago. KANSAS CITY-John Weaver reports that"newsites and new wings" are making 30-min. !lights "fairly regular now."

There· s a 200-fl. site near the city, and over by Russel, Kansas there· s a "225-300"-ft. site that has been soared for 3-plus hours.

COLORADO COMMENTS- Denver Fellow Feathers' pres. John Coyne in their Jan /Feb newsletter quoted an anonymous pilot about rnsty flying: "I crashed recently and even though I have a perfectly reasonable explanation (the wind was out to get me!) the trnth of the matter is - I've only been getting (a few flights) ..

I'm not in shape nor am I paying attention to fundamentals that were second nature to me last full." He advocates rusty experienced fliers spending some time on training hills doing lots of take-offs and landings. "There is no substitute for conditioned response . . that feeling of instinctual beha"ior in a crisis (It) is not easy to develop, and most importantly, is - by definition - conditioned.

You must continually prn.ctic.-e, add to it, and allow it to grow and become automatic." This pilot, identified only as "somebody really good," c.'Oncludes, "lfit means you spend some time hiking . (god forbid) . and relieving yourself ... without public conveniences . . and getting sled rides, then it also means growing into better, finer. more beautilul pilots - and after all - tliat was the original idPa." GOOD GOOD DAY SHOW- Boston's "Good Day" morning TV program, after repeated tries, finally got pilots and weather together for a spot on motorized hang gliding. Jonathan (Livingston?)

Winsor with Merlin. and Bob Albright and Pete Snyder with Icarus Il were the performers. It was shown April 14th and syndicated all over the east coast. CLEAN SAILS - In the May New England H.G.A. Ridge Rider. Joe Jaena, a hang glider pilot who works for Howe & Bainbridge. the primary supplier of hang glider sailcloth. advises that "dirt can he removed" from your sail by using a plain bar of soap and some water. Use a clean sponge and lay your sail out flat and ruh in one direction. Be sure to rinse .. thoroughly with fresh water a few times. Dry your sail out before you roll it up. Storing a wet sail will cause dye to run - from dark panels to light panels.

The tighter the roll the greater the bleeding of the colors ... Tar, grease and oil are the hardest to remove. (Dip) ... the cloth in mineral spirits. Swirl the fabric around in the solvent to speed up the cleaning process. If yellowish stains remain, you can remove them by bleaching with Oxalic acid. Be sure to bleach only the stained area. \her this, rinse thoroughly with fresh water, wash with soap and water, and finally, give it a good fresh water rinse." CONN. SITES -The Conn. l'a11kee Flyer for May reports two key sites, Meriden Mtn. and Ski Sundown, both will be closed for the summer Check with CHGA Flight Dir Russ Lord (20, "'33-5666 for more information. NORTHEASTERN X-C'S - Stua,, Soule and Al Cupertino, about 11 miles in Kestrels from Haines Hill and Mt. Kearsarge, N. H. Conn. Hyers George Emerthal and John McNeily with Dragonfly l lB and Phoenix 6B Jr , 13 and 11..5 miles from Ellenville, N. Y And Long Islander Harry Sudwischer wit.h \ferlin from Ellenville out 11 miles. Anymore? Please send a 9 ¢ penny postcard to me c/o Flight Resource~ Co-op, Wilton, N. H. 03086.

67

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Photography by Steve McCartoil

CUMULUS 10 and Eipper Pres. Steve Wilson (top) share the sky with 1975 Nat' I Champ. Dave

Photo by Bettina Gray

Meuhl on the new FLEXI Ill Intermediate high pert. flex wing.

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TltE ARRAMbidE bRoTIIERS WANT TO ln you kNow TIIAT "AfTER AN UNbdiEvAbly Good wiNTER of flyiNG, TIIE EippER CuMulus 10 CAN bE pRONOUNCEd AS soMnltiNG mE TIIERMAlliNG piloT juST IIAs TO npERiENCE, "ldully spukiNG, you WANT A GlidER TIIAT IIAs Good pERfoRMANCE foR TIIE luST AMOUNT of pllysicAl woRk bECAUSE TIIERMAl flyiNG is GENERAlly ROUGII, TURbulENT flyiNG, To STAY up foR LONG pERiods of TiME iN AccoMplislliNG ApARTiculAR GOAl, you NEEd AGlidER TIIAT will CONSERVE youR ENERGY· "You doN'T WANT ONE so SENsiTivE iN piTcll TIIAT you'RE coNSTANTly CORRECTiNG, TltE CuMulus 10 IIAs dAMpENEd piTCII TO MiNiMiu pllysiCAl ENERGY EXERTEd TIIROUGII CONSTANT piTcll AdjusTMENTS, by viRTUE of AsliGIITly LONGER TIIAN COMMON ROOT clloRd. "TltE lO's STAbiliTy ANd TURNiNG dficiENCY iN STEEply-bANkEd TURNS is A dREAM. TltERE's NO TENdENCY TO spud up OR fAll off iN EXTREMEiy STEEP TJJRNS, ANd foR TIIERMAls TIIAT's idEAl. TIIERE ARE so MANY TiMES TIIAT A 60°- To n°-bANkEd TURN will doublE YOUR siNk RATE, "Cood pERfoRMANCE ANd IIANdliNG iN STEEP TURNS is ESpEciAlly iMpORTANT wllEN TIIERMAlliNG cloSE TO TIIE GROUNd wllERE TIIERMAls ARE ALwAys SMAll. Rully, if you doN'T coRE TIIE TIIERMAls cloSE To TIIE GROUNd, llow do you GET TO TIIE lliGIIER, URGER-diAMETER ONES? "WiTII TIIE EippER CuMulus lO's snEp-bANkEd TURNiNG dficiENcy lNd sTAbiliTy, coupLEd wiTII A dAMpENE.d, pREdicTAblE piTclliNG MOMENT, you will fiNd TIIE CONfidENCE you WANT AT fflOSE low, low AhiTUdES."

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