When my wife read this, she said, \u0093Remember when you were working on your license?\u00a0 Every Saturday and Sunday you were out at the airfield while I sat at home with three small children.\u00a0 We never had any time for social meetings even though they only had time on weekends also.\u0094
\nTo my lovely family I can only say \u0093Thank you for your patience during that time.\u0094<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
I think that a gliding club today can no longer be operated as before.\u00a0 We should and must offer \u0093free time pleasure.\u0094\u00a0 The joy of flying is something wonderful.\u00a0 But is it attractive for a beginner?\u00a0 I have heard twice about a new system which should at least be discussed:
\nAn instructor makes an appointment with a student for a specific time.\u00a0 The instructor comes ahead of time, pulls the trainer out of the hangar, books an aero tow, etc., and then puts everything away after the lesson.\u00a0 The student comes, flies, drives home and pays the bill that he receives.\u00a0 The instructor includes his time from leaving home until he returns home in the price of instruction and that’s that.\u00a0 The assembly and disassembly of the glider is taught in a regular (paid) lesson.
\nToo expensive?\u00a0 This kind of training is not suitable for a 16 year old.\u00a0 But who thinks a 46 year old can follow a \u0093normal\u0094 series of lessons?\u00a0 Somewhere, he will lose his enthusiasm.\u00a0 And an airplane lesson is much more expensive.\u00a0 That’s the way it is!
\nWhat do you think?
\nWhat else in this connection occurs to you?<\/p>\n
5. How does one deal with the \u0093consumer\u0094?<\/h4>\n
Who among you has not seen club members who show up at the field at 2:00 p.m., complain when no assembled glider is ready to use, sit in one anyway, and fly for a couple of hours.\u00a0 When evening comes and it’s time to put the equipment away, they have conveniently disappeared.\u00a0 Naturally, such behavior is not acceptable. But what can you do?\u00a0 Throw them out of the club?\u00a0 \u0093Educate\u0094 them?\u00a0 In our club, one has to help getting the equipment out or putting it away if one expects to fly for longer periods.
\nYou could simply regulate this with money.\u00a0 He who doesn’t help, pays, he who helps a lot, flies for almost nothing.
\nWould that work?<\/p>\n
6. Helping with Repairs<\/h4>\n
This question is as old as glider clubs.\u00a0 Modern reinforced plastic gliders require less service and when something does break, it’s better to take it to a repair shop that specializes in this sort of thing.\u00a0 Unfortunately, we see in our repair shop \u0093adventurous\u0094 attempts at repairs by club workshops too often.
\nWhy not make it possible to \u0093buy out\u0094 of the requirement to do repairs and the money thus collected be used to have the gliders repaired in shop that is set up and ready to do such jobs?
\nWhat’s your opinion on that?<\/p>\n
7. How can we benefit from developments in other countries?<\/h4>\n
Fifty percent of the world’s glider pilots live and fly in Germany – an almost unbelievable situation!\u00a0 The reason for this lies way back in the Weimar Republic and also in the prohibition of airplanes in Germany after the second world war.\u00a0 But why doesn’t the relationship slowly change?
\nOther countries have weather much more conducive to gliding then we do.\u00a0 Even then, in the USA, for instance, the number of glider pilots compared to the population, is growing only very slowly.\u00a0 In many countries there is no glider activity at all.
\nWhy is that?
\nWhat can we do about it?<\/p>\n
The foregoing points are certainly sticky and warrant much discussion. – friedel weber – If you are interested to find a club to become into contact with other soaring members, may be you will find a suitable one here – <\/a> I read your thoughts on \u0093the future of gliding\u0094. They are \u00a0very interesting and in accordance with similar problems\u00a0 we are facing here in\u00a0 Brasil. Hello Mr.Weber!<\/p>\n How many people have enough time to “hang on to gliding” with current possibility\/availability to be launched? My message in general is that the society and life in general has changed but the model for educating new pilots and the possibility to perform flying in gliders has not changed much the last 30+ years. In Sweden I see a decreasing number of members in the flying clubs and also a decreasing number of flying hours in total.\u00a0Important is that this is a clear trend over many years\u00a0in Sweden.<\/p>\n I believe we have some major issues to handle: For a number of reasons\u00a0I only see one solution\u00a0to make this happen and that is SLG – Self Launching Gliders – 2-seated SLG to cover the complete education to become a glider pilot and training in general (introduction to SLG and cross country).\u00a0Unfortunately the\u00a0development of SLG is not matching the needs that I see\u00a0– same for all companies building gliders.<\/p>\n I know of your issues to support “engine concept” for DG-505 M\/MB and the decision to stay out of those issues with DG-1000. For those people\/flying clubs that want to try a 2-seater SLG track today I see … I wonder if you can comment on this and give me your view of the situation.<\/p>\n Best Regards<\/p>\n Ulf<\/p>\n Dear Mr. Lundberg Herr Weber:<\/p>\n Sehr gut. Glider pilots who are married need family support (to stay married while enjoying soaring). It took me an entire summer to get my Gold Badge. My wife, on her own, would mow the lawn while I was either landing out or unsuccessfully trying to complete a qualifying flight. Each time, I would return home to find the lawn mowed. Hi Friedel,<\/p>\n As a long time member of gliding clubs I agree with the observations related to the requirements for change and I can appreciate your providing a platform for exchanging constructive ideas. I congratulate you in exploring different avenues of promoting our sport and the quality of workmanship employed in your factories is excellent. I experience this every flying day when flying one of your factory’s products.<\/p>\n What I cannot agree with is that this requirement is also aimed at making things “easier” for people who “have no time to waste on waiting on the field for a flight etc etc”. Not to mention the fact instruction is provided free of charge by most clubs, not to mention the many members who ensured the airworthiness of equipment and the volunteer towpilots. Convenience and flying are not necessarily complimentary conditions.<\/p>\n History has it that gliding resulted from economical pressures on the average joe to do all, or most, of the tasks to run a club him\/herself AND have the privileged of using the gliders held in common ownership.<\/p>\n Since I witnessed, in my lifetime ,a change in earnings and the availability of more private time (in spite of those who claim not to have it!) coupled with the advent of “computerism” as the new god of spare time, the real raison d’etre of a gliding club is being diluted to the degree that the proportion of members appreciating being directly involved in the management and social life of the club has dwindled to (mostly) “grey haired” senior citizens who still value the principle of “clubs”. This, no doubt, will also change as the result of time’s swings and roundabouts when the young grow into maturity and learn to see the wisdom of the older generations.<\/p>\n Convenience is the operating word now and this has, as a direct result, negative club consequences for short term individual gains:<\/p>\n 1) The quality of airmanship suffered with the result that more accidents occurred caused by pilot negligence mainly due to his\/her not being, or feeling, part of the club\/flying safety culture. This also increased the financial burden, such as insurance rates!!!!!!<\/p>\n 2) Those willing to devote their time as volunteers in a club find little reward in spending that time on a\u00a0 larger, seemingly unappreciative membership. Why cater to selfish members and not fly yourself (?) becomes the (destructive) thought process in some members.<\/p>\n 3) The benefits of a full day’s exposure to the field operations and absorbing many discussions on flying\u00a0 techniques during socializing, are lost to the individual without time (to waste). This results in 1) above.<\/p>\n I suggest that we accept the fact that we are involved in a sport that requires devotion and loyalty in time and effort in order to excel and\/or be safe in it (reducing the accident rates). If this means loosing those who cannot find their way to make this an accepted part of their lifes, so be it! Increased risks must be weighed against benefits.<\/p>\n Many clubs, feeling the pressure for more members, do not mention to prospective members that they are entering a sport that can be very rewarding to those willing to accept its need for time, volunteering and much exposure to different flying conditions, but can be equally disappointing, or deadly, to those who don’t accept or practice this.<\/p>\n Friendly yours,,<\/p>\n John H. Bisscheroux Hi Karl… <\/a> Hi Karl, Hi,<\/p>\n I have read with interest your article “Thoughts About the Future of Gliding”<\/p>\n Inspired by your article, let me share some ideas.<\/p>\n I must admit that I am surprised that the fact that you have to spend all day long moving planes from one place to another in order to fly for half an hour or maybe two hours hasn’t taken my enthusiasm away. Having thought about it previously, I’d say that paying for some personnel to carry the gliders and clean them when needed is not a new idea. It has to be noted that hard work is social, at least in my airfield, and that while not everybody is happy all the time with it, many people including myself enjoy taking care of the planes at the end of the day.<\/p>\n I must disagree with your conclusion, though. If some pilots pay for avoiding work, you would have a few that try and avoid work without paying, which would become a point of serious argue in the club. This needs not happen so, but it is a real possibility, and if you avoid the chance, you avoid the problem.<\/p>\n I would tend to raise a little bit the price of the glider rental for everybody to have some people (possibly just one person, even sharing other tasks) in charge of the gliders. If no one or just a few want to work, then that’s fine; if they prefer to have a beer in the bar, or leave for home, then it’s fine also.<\/p>\n In my airfield (Oca\u00f1a) there are some old vehicles that are used to pull the gliders from one place to another. There is also an old motorbike to transport people, although it is usually used just by the flight boss, who needs to move between the field and the office quite frequently.<\/p>\n In your article, one word also attracts my attention: Amalgamation. I have thought about this a lot. In my airfield, three different clubs operate at the same time! What kind of economies of scale can you achieve with that? There are historic reasons as well as matters of taste and social affinity. But is it that impossible to create a single structure, even if it has to be complex, that can achieve economies of scale while maintaining some individuality on the different groups?<\/p>\n Now, about women… Well, in my airfield when we go to lunch, it is usual that about half of the pilots are computer scientists! And in the CS faculties we are also very short in women. Is that a coincidence? I don’t think so. If you know some good sociologist you could ask him the reason for this also.<\/p>\n BTW, I know of an airfield that is thinking about adding some recreation, including karts and some other attractions besides flying. This could be a smart move to attract more potential new pilots. Again, there’s the problem with concentration… Concentration leads to economy scales, which leads to being able to spend money in pursuing nice achievements.<\/p>\n One final note… One of the biggest expenses for a club (or just for a bunch of friends, for that matter) are the planes themselves. I have read your articles about the reasons why gliders are so expensive, and even though I understand that a glider manufacturer can do few about it, doing a “black box” analysis I still cannot see how can the huge price be justified. Why can the so-called world classes be so terribly cheap compared to almost any German built sailplane? There must be a way to get some of the best of the two worlds…<\/p>\n — Karl First let me tell you of my experience. I learned to fly at a Commercial operation, while it was more expensive than a club, it was six miles from my house, while the nearest club was fifty miles down a very busy highway. Clubs in the U.S. tend to be weekend only operations, while the commercial operation was a six day a week business. It was always a lot easier to schedule a block of time for lessons, or go to the glider port and rent a ship after solo, than waiting around the club, for your\u00a0 turn to come up. Unfortunately the landowners decided that a golf course of their own, would be a lot more profitable, than the rental income from a glider port, and another airport was lost to progress.<\/p>\n Your article has me thinking, and I am going to propose a suggestion at the next Board of Directors meeting of the Greater Boston Soaring Club, that we look into a new Commercial Class of membership. Due to U.S. tax laws we are a non-profit group and are not allowed to make money, so as part of the proposal, scholarships could be given, for general membership, to High School and Collage students to avail ourselves of any profit. Like most Soaring Clubs in the world, ours has an abundance of gray haired retirees in the membership, myself included. I intend to ask that a retired instructor, tow pilot, and ground crew, make themselves available for scheduled operations late in the afternoon, 4-8 PM, on weekdays, for example, for a commercial operation. In our club this would impose one afternoon of additional work for each retired instructor, for a four day operation. One ship could be set aside for weekend scheduled commercial operations, to be used by the general membership when not scheduled. This new class of membership would pay rates comparable to other commercial operations,\u00a0 along with a membership fee of some sort to satisfy our insurance company.<\/p>\n We have a meeting scheduled for next week, and I will see if I can get this past my fellow board members. Of course here in “The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave” nothing is free and only the brave delve into our tax laws. We will probably wind up paying a Tax Lawyer a hefty fee only to find out that the government does not allow it, but nothing ventured, nothing gained.<\/p>\n Thank you again for bringing this up.<\/p>\n John Farrington “Real Legoueff”<\/p>\n I have read with great interest your article on the future of soaring it is addressing many important questions I will share with you some of my thoughts:<\/p>\n Why do we get so few members?<\/p>\n The sport of soaring does not benefit of a lot of visibility, only a minor portion of the population know it exist. If there would be as much publicity for gliding as there is for burger, pop drinks, skiing… I am sure that we would attract a lot more people. perhaps DG, Schempp Hirth, Schleicher and LS could joint together to make some publicity on TV Radio and popular magazines. The first thing is to get people to know that such a sport exist. One could even go further just imagine if gliding was an Olympic discipline, after all they do have wind surf. It would also be a very good idea to promote that sport in movies just like in “The Thomas Crown affair”. Then we have to make people understand that it is a safe sport if well done, mind you there a lot of more dangerous sports, motorcycle touring or worst racing, skiing, scuba diving, mountain climbing. Further more people must realize that gliding is not that expensive try buying a snowmobile, skiing, golf….. gliding gets expensive if one wants to buy a good glider, but for student and for older aircraft owners it is cheaper than a modern sport car. But even if it was expensive, people would still be attracted if gliding was a known activities, and there would also be more women in this sport.<\/p>\n Another factor is that clubs should be versatile and offer different plans for different type of members. There are many different personalities out here and the more flexible we are the more people we will retain or gain. the world is changing, if one wants to survive one has to adapt to the taste of people.<\/p>\n Another factor is the price of the new gliders. No matter what we say these machine’s are expensive. Fortunately I saw on your Website that you where offering possibilities of leasing. I think that it is a big plus for the DG firm, maybe this could be extended to all of your gliders<\/p>\n It is also important to try to satisfy the customers who have owned a DG for a while, in order to give them the feeling that, even if their glider are old, that someone is still designing improvement for their glider. For instance we know that the DG-400 is a great ship, why cant it be revamped, for instance would it be possible to design a new wing that would fit in the old frame, and a newer tail plane. It is very possible that someone that would like to buy a newer model but will never have that much money available will buy such a wing for a fraction of the price of a DG-800. The blunt facts are that a lot of people have a bit of money and only a few people have a lot of money. Most likely this upgrade will not impinge on the selling of the new gliders for 2 reasons: Service is a major factor that could refrain someone from buying or inadequately maintaining a glider. In Canada and USA there is one dealer. This is good but for the pilot on the East coast it may be a bit expensive and time consuming to send the aircraft far away for major repairs. I think that we have to think like the Japanese to some extent. The easier it is to own a glider the more people will own one. We have to make the sport “user friendly”.<\/p>\n In my opinion the future of gliding look very bright for instance one of the most expensive aircraft is a glider “the Space shuttle”. I thing that future development in aerodynamic, avionics, and in power unit gas or electric will improve greatly this sport, but it depends on the manufactures to some extent to insure that they will survive. Maybe the building technique should be reengineered. For instance it may be more profitable to get part of the aircraft build in eastern Europe or in Mexico or in Asia. We are in a global market, don’t wait for the Japanese to get in it. Once they will be their one cane be sure that they will learn quickly how to build good gliders and no need to worry, they will do the support. We have to look ahead. If aircraft are selling there is no reason why gliders should not sell.<\/p>\n Avionics, in my opinion, is a place where glider manufacturer could make quick improvement. At this time GPS with moving maps are available for cars it is difficult to understand that it is not available has, at least, an option for new gliders. I mean that even if there would be one available, there is no space to put one on the instrument panel. I am very happy with the philosophy of security of DG. My opinion is that it should be carried much further. The DSI for the DG-800 is a good example of what I mean, but even if is a good step forward I think that all security feature should be part of the aircraft and not as an option. I think that all modern aircraft gliders and none gliders should have fall safe equipment that could save one life, as standard equipment. I encourage DG to keep the good work and I would suggest, for instance, an instrument board that could; 1st take more instrument and 2nd benefit of a added LCD moving map display, or at least have the space available for later retrofitting. For instance Magellan is building a unit of approx 6×9 inches that could very well fit under the engine instrument. Look at my drawing at the end of the text.<\/p>\n I have one suggestion on problem solving. Its some time very frustrating to see how difficult it may be to find a simple solution for a problem. It has happen to me more than once to think for a long time to try to find a solution for a problem, and someone came up and, within minutes had found a simple solution for what appeared to be a difficult problem. What do I mean by that: Well there are a lot of brains out there that are eager to help in problem solving or in suggesting improvement. I think that it would be good to take advantage of this. For instance you have a problem on how to solve problem (x), send the problem on the web to enable glider enthusiast to give there input, and see if a workable solution come out of it. It could be a lot cheaper than having to spend a lot of time on a small thing. Money wise it could be a good move to use a few hundred of people that are to think a few hours than to use a few people to think hundreds of hours on a problem. Even if people are not all engineers you never know what can come out of a mind that think with different value. I think that some form of retribution should be involve but of what type I don’t know.<\/p>\n I don’t think I have solve many problem today, and I know that thing are a lot more complicated than what I make them appear to be. But still my comments added to the comments of others and added to what you may already have in mind may spur up new solutions and ideas to improve our sport. In that sense I will be very happy in having participated in the future of gliding.<\/p>\n Keep up the good work, the road to excellence is a never ending one.<\/p>\n I also have another improvement suggestion aside from the instrument panel. I would suggest to your engineers to make a winglets to the propeller this would reduce the size of it, which in turns could permit a smaller boom and less drag. Or if the propeller was to be kept at the present size it could reduce the RPM and sound emissions. R\u00e9al Le Gou\u00ebff<\/p>\n Jim Kellett Karl, what a timely article!\u00a0 Our club (US) is one of the more successful small clubs (ca. 60 members), with many issues resulting from rapid growth.\u00a0 We are now developing our first real strategic plan, and we certainly agree with the major areas of interest that you’ve identified.<\/p>\n One of those involves women.\u00a0 We spent a lot of time over the last few years on this topic, and reluctantly came to the conclusion that “that’s the way God made us”.\u00a0 And a LOT of that conclusion came from the very active female pilots (also very few!) in our Club, who themselves would frequently express frustration as to why their sisters didn’t get as excited about soaring as they did.\u00a0 It seems that soaring is one of those activities that’s going to appeal ONLY to the “alpha females” in our society, and we should go after those and accept that we’re NOT going to get the majority of that half of the population into soaring.<\/p>\n Finally, a stereotypically American observation – – I’ve been VERY impressed with my limited exposure to non-US sites, primarily in Switzerland and the UK, and their size, organization, and particularly their attention to non-flying (e.g., social) activities that can capture the attention of non-flying family members.\u00a0 We don’t’ do that in this country very well at all, and I’m a little surprised to see how you, as a European, described what thought was a VERY progressive program that we ought to copy here!!<\/p>\n — “If Flying Were the Language of Man, Soaring would be its Poetry”<\/p>\n Comments about Future of Soaring, Mr.Marvin\/Publisher Hello to our friends in Germany and Soaring…… That all private aircraft should be directly under the control of the federal aviation controllers. Now you may think what does any of this have to do with soaring of any type. In California we have several airports where both glider and powered aircraft share the same operational landing areas. Ultra light powered flight is a mixed in between. As I travel to Europe several times each year I see the impact of similar problems. It is very important that the concept of “open sky” for private pilots in every country. But what is creeping into the overall political fabric in almost every country is this idea that people who fly any type of aircraft, are part of “special” and “mavric” class of society. That aviation is only safe if it is commercial transport.<\/p>\n I think this the part of the reason that the hang glider and para glider movements are attracting those who feel pushed out of traditional soaring and aviation. The second is of course higher cost of flying.<\/p>\n We see on a global basis that insurance is one of the biggest reasons for cost of ownership going sky high. I do not know how insurance is priced in Germany for soaring but in the USA many programs are based on a cost per hour operated. Also the liability issue in the USA is at the base of these problems. Our goal at my publication is to try and create a way for more people to make contact with all levels of flying, and to show each of these levels in any country where coverage for events is possible. We currently can not afford to pay people to produce articles on every small competition or owners group. However we are trying to provide a platform so that if a story and photos is of quality, we will try and make space to show a story that helps reflect the common enjoyment of soaring or powered flight for any “web reader” world wide.<\/p>\n Also “Sky Guys” is will son be releasing “free classified” advertising for international distribution in all areas of aircraft from rotorcraft to paragliders. While my memo may not seem to have any clear importance, it is to say that we see your concern and it is on target, about the lack of younger new pilots who are willing to step up to pay the cost to learn. Soaring is such a clean and pleasing Please feel free to send any suggestions you\u00a0 have if we can help as over 1\/3 of our readers now come from Europe.<\/p>\n ALL THE BEST……<\/p>\n Laurance Marvin Greetings Herr Weber,<\/p>\n I have some comments, personal opinions and hopefully some worthy advice.\u00a0 I first became interested in gliding when I would watch my uncle Helmut, in Rheinfelden Baden, take festival goes on rides in a primary glider during our yearly harvest festivals.\u00a0 He would build balsa wood models with me and try to explain the concept of flight.\u00a0 My parents came to the United States in 1958 when I had just turned 10 years old.\u00a0 I had built several models until I was in my early twenties. My wonderful wife of 33 years, knowing how important flight has always been to me, bought me a $65 dollar introductory flight in an ASK-21 at Harris Hill.\u00a0 I was so excited after that flight I decided to visit that same club again and I was immediately accepted as a member and have been taking lessons ever since.\u00a0 I did find that the club rules have changed quite a bit and they now offer a wonderful youth program ( not something available when I was growing up).\u00a0 As I look back I realize too that had I been accepted the first time I tried I probably would have had to give it up when my children were born where I had to work many more hours to make ends meet. If not my wife and I might not be together today.<\/p>\n Now that I am close to retirement and my children are all grown this wonderful activity seems to fit so nicely into my lifestyle. Our club appears to function quite well with several trainers available (2-33’s, L-13, and a ASK-21), including two golf carts used for runway retrievals, two tow planes and three single place ships.<\/p>\n Our normal instructional weekends consist of calling your assigned primary instructor during the week and then calling to reserve a trainer of his choosing for a time that is available.\u00a0 Instructional flights take precedence over all other before 1pm and sometimes there is time for more instruction in the afternoon if an instructor is available.\u00a0 When our members are scheduled for line duty or Operation Manager they are expected to be there for the entire day beginning with the Line set up with the trainers and the tie downs of all other club aircraft prior to the start of the day’s operation. If a member who is scheduled for duty does not show up he\/she will be fined accordingly. Members are allowed to switch with others for their duty days.\u00a0 Our system seems to work quite well with few people abusing it.<\/p>\n I often talk excitedly with my friends and coworkers about my exciting new hobby but most have no idea what I’m talking about. (Most think I’m talking about Hang gliding or Ultralights).\u00a0 The general public is not informed well enough to understand or even realize that the sport of soaring exists.\u00a0 I rarely ever see a sailplane in the news or on TV or even at the movies.\u00a0 Most aviation events don’t feature sailplanes (I presume because someone doesn’t want to give up a flying day). There are no sailplane related magazines on most US shelves and the magazine “Soaring” published by the Soaring Society of America only goes to members.\u00a0 If more information were available to the general public I believe we would also see more people visit the glider ports.\u00a0 I’ve gotten two people interested in the sport.\u00a0 Both of these people had no idea what it was about and had considered buying Ultralights with no previous flight experience.<\/p>\n Recently our club’s insurance policy became due and we found out that the insurance companies in the US are reluctant to insure clubs and would rather insure the more lucrative individual pilot.\u00a0 After much negotiation we were able to secure another year’s of insurance but with many stipulations attached.\u00a0 (No more glider rides to the public), an interested party would have to become a member to get a ride.\u00a0 More Tow Pilot experience and accumulated hours made half of our tow pilots ineligible.<\/p>\n I will be looking forward to a few more productive years as a glider pilot but I will be purchasing a motorized version just in case.<\/p>\n Thank You,
\nThese are my personal opinions and I would like to read your reactions and ideas concerning them.
\nPlease write to me!
\nweber@dg-flugzeugbau.de<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.dg-aviation.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/RTEmagicC_8a9f11280f.jpg.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n
\nin Germany: http:\/\/www.segelflug.de\/segelflug_de.html
\nin Europe: http:\/\/www.segelflug.de\/segelflug_eu.html
\nworldwide:http:\/\/www.segelflug.de\/segelflug_world.html<\/p>\n
\n
\nThis picture has been taken 1929 at my “home airfield” Oerlinghausen .
\nI have the strong feeling that it will be hard to find such an enthusiasm today.
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.dg-aviation.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/RTEmagicC_ef112243f6.jpg.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n<\/a>A Message from Brasil:<\/h6>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The future of gliding<\/h4>\n
\nI learned to fly gliders on the years \u00a060\u0092s ( I\u0092m 71) in a gliding club set up in 1937 (\u0093Kranich\u0094, \u0093Hol\u0092s der Teufel\u0094, \u0093Grunau 9\u0094, \u0093Grunau II\u0094 etc.- a lot of german influence, indeed)\u00a0 \u00a0My training glider was a Brazilian made biplace, similar to the \u0093Schleicher Ka 4\u0094and I flew\u00a0 \u0093Grunau IIa\u0094 and \u0093Wolf G\u00f6ppingen I\u0094. The towing planes were a \u00a0\u0093Stinson Sentinel\u0094 and a \u0093Tiger Moth\u0094.
\nThe maintenance of the fleet was mainly carried out by the club members, under supervision of qualified technicians. Engines maintenance were\u00a0 taken \u00a0in authorized workshops.
\nThe gliding club owns today two \u0093Blaniks L-23\u0094 and four \u0093Quero-Queros\u0094 monoplaces ( wood and fabric)made in Brasil. The tug is an \u0093Aeroboero\u0094 , made in Argentina (tubes, wood and fabric.). There are some local workshops and technicians qualified to maintain the fleet , although the Blaniks present some repair difficulties.
\nSome brazilian gliding clubs are flying with \u00a0brazilan made biplaces ( \u0093wood, tubes and fabric\u0094). Unfortunately these sailplanes have a very poor performance. Some gliding clubs imported second hand reinforced plastic sailplanes and \u00a0only a few were already able to fly them, mainly due to \u0093bureaucracy\u0094 problems.
\nIn my opinion the main problem isn\u0092t solely\u00a0 the lack of \u0093new blood\u0094. The instruction sailplanes are ageing and they will soon need to be replaced.
\nTo buy a new modern reinforced plastic biplace is quite impossible:
\n-Very high price (around euros 100.000 FOB , will arrive in Brasil at a final cost around 170.000 euros or 510.000 in brazilian currency). I don\u00b4t believe that our government will reduce or delete the import duties and taxes.
\n-With such new gliders the hourly flying rates will be hardly increased, frightening away new students.
\n-Probably and depending on the type, model and make of the sailplane, there will be additional costs for registry.
\n-Here in Brasil even\u00a0 the repair of minor reinforced plastic damages will be a problem, due to the lack of specialized labour and well equipped workshops (it will be very easy to find\u00a0 \u0093adventurer applicants\u0094\u00a0 to do the repairs, surely\u00a0 with unreliable results or worst, with hidden faults).
\nWhat is the solution? It is a very difficult question to be answered. Maybe a \u0093return to the past\u0094 could be \u00a0one answer.
\nI read somewhere that the astonishing development of the sailplanes (higher velocities, higher wing loads, higher aspect ratios with less and less induced drag and higher glide ratios) lead to the need of costly materials, higher and higher manufacturing costs, resulting in higher sale prices. A great number of gliding clubs are not in position to renew their fleets due such higher prices and also to the need of very specialized\u00a0 maintenance .\u00a0 Is it \u00a0the sailplane progress that is killing the sport???.
\nSailplanes with welded tubes fuselages , wooden wings and fabric coverings are easy, quick and cheap to repair and most of the simple repairs can\u00a0 be done by gliding club members. Somebody said \u0093in fact some clubs have sold their expensive glass fiber machines and gone back to old ones\u0094. I guess they are buying old non \u0093glass fiber\u0094 sailplanes and refurbishing them.
\nSuch old biplace sailplanes do not have such a performance like the modern fiber and plastic ones, but most models are able to withstand the \u0093roughness\u0094 of \u00a0\u0093teaching\u0094 new pupils. And besides that they are easily repairable, with bearable costs. It is better to have a less performing sailplane than stay \u0093grounded\u0094.
\nCould\u00a0 a \u0093glider flight simulator\u0094 attract \u0093new blood\u0094? I think yes. Young people is getting more and more involved with videogames, computers, smartphones, etc etc. and are spending a lot of unproductive time in such activities. A \u0093first class\u0094 sailplane simulator (like the BGA one, for instance) will undoubtedly attract future pilots, besides giving a training activity to glider students during bad weather days.
\nThese are my thoughts. I will appreciate if\u00a0 I \u00a0could have some comments or even some new inputs that will make me more confident on the future of gliding.
\nBest regards
\nJorge R. Gonz\u00e1lez<\/p>\n
\n
\nI see a\u00a0big problem for the gliding society\u00a0in the next 5-10 years time frame. Of course it differs between different countries and continents but …<\/p>\n
\n– More efficient training for new pilots a) calendar time to get the glider license and b) total time spent at the airport to get the glider license.
\n– Create a more convenient\/attractive situation for glider instructors – basically a possibility to “have a normal life” in parallel with being glider instructor
\n– Cross country training for new pilots – needed development of skills to continue and NOT STOP flying after 1-2 years
\n– In general – much more easy to get launched – 7 days per week – when we have weather and when the pilots have time to enjoy this fantastic sport<\/p>\n
\nRotax is not any more in this business and SOLO is still here for a somewhat special reason with interests from the owner (rumor says).
\nThe small series of engines sold today makes development costs high … they will be relatively small even if every new sold glider will be equipped with an engine …<\/p>\n
\n– not many alternatives of possible SLG’s on the market today
\n– need of skilled technicians with proper training to handle the motor installation
\n– proper budget planning for unforeseen costs.<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\nWell I know your thoughts from other pilots too.
\nWe definitely have the problem of the long time to get a license and a pilot’s frustration to fly around the own airfield only.
\n<\/span>
\nFor the second class of pilots the DG-1000T is the best glider\u00a0available. With that one you can fly wherever you like and always you are able to come back in the evening. The Turbo-System is easy to handle and you do not need to have a specialized mechanic.<\/span>
\nBut for the first group of pilots we in the moment do not have any solution.\u00a0<\/span>
\nAccording to our experience the Solo company will produce engines also in future for decades. They even have established a special company for that business.<\/span>
\nBut there is a technical problem:
\nIn the moment self launching gliders with retractable engines are not\u00a0reliable enough for the stressful flying with glider students always around the airfield. When you are making 50 take offs and landings during one weekend you will not have much pleasure with your self launching engine.\u00a0That is the only reason why we have stopped producing the DG-505MB.<\/span>
\nSince years we are looking for a better engine on the world market. In the moment when we have found one, we will design a DG-1000M.<\/span>
\nThese days we even see a chance for a new development of an engine and it\u00a0might – really “might” – be possible that in 2010 you can get a DG-1000M. But is is to early to talk about that glider.<\/span>
\nThis is the situation I can tell you.<\/span>
\n\u00a0—
\nAlways happy landings
\n<\/span>
\nFriedel Weber
\n– Gesch\u00e4ftsf\u00fchrer\/Managing Dir –<\/span><\/p>\n
\n
\nYour thoughts, and those of Ulf Lundberg, showed a lot of deep attention.<\/p>\n
\nEven when I thanked her and asked her to be patient, and even when I told her that I would mow the lawn, she would still do it for me. She knew how much soaring meant to me. Women are not supposed to mow the lawn, but she did it for us. When I reflect on that summer, and on her selfless work, it brings tears to my eyes every time.
\nMy father was an ME-262 test and combat pilot; of course, he had to learn to fly gliders before advancing to powered flight. He taught me to fly, and he always told me two things about gliders: 1) If you can fly a plane without an engine, then you can fly one with an engine, and 2) All airplanes are potentially gliders.
\nPerhaps an answer to finding new students lies in my father’s second thought: All airplanes are potentially gliders.
\nI was a power-plane pilot before discovering soaring. Now, soaring is a huge part of my life. Maybe we should focus more on licensed power-plane pilots; when you compare two pilots, one being only a power-plane pilot and the other being both a power-plane and glider pilot, the better pilot is usually the one who can fly gliders.
\nSoaring improves a power-plane pilot’s skills.
\nWith respect,
\nRaul Boerner
\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\n
\nMSC Hawkesbury, ON. Canada
\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\n
\nCaught your \u0091Future of Gliding\u0092 comments\/stats in DG\u0092s recent Newsletter No 77.
\nI just got back from my first visit to New Zealand (Auckland to Christchurch; 4,000 km on brand new BMW bikes provided by Edelweiss Bike Travel).
\nLovely Country; good people!
\nQuickly, I started flying sailplanes at Hawkesbury (Ontario Canada) while still in knee pants; I was the proverbial \u0091camp brat\u0092.
\nA sympathetic Member would pick me up at the corner of my street early in the morning and someone would drop me off on the way home (to Montreal) at the end of the day.
\nI\u0092ve since amassed thousands of hours (as a private pilot) on all types of powered aircraft ranging from Piper-Cubs to Extra 300L\u0092s to Citation Jets.
\nI own, among other businesses, a jet charter service and a Regional Airline.
\nHowever, I have seldom returned to Hawkesbury, other than to drop-in (very) occasionally in my Decathlon or whatever (to, I should add, a generally frosty reception).
\nBut I HAVE regularly paid for gliding \u0091vacations\u0092 with commercial operators in the USA such as Arizona Soaring Estrella etc.
\nI do so because I\u0092ve NEVER been able to handle the dead-time commitment so typical of \u0091club\u0092 soaring activities.
\nThis fact was driven home to me while touring New Zealand.
\nI had adjusted our posted itinerary to enable an afternoon at Omerama to do some soaring.
\nBut this was no USA type \u0091commercial enterprise\u0092; it was just another spend-an-entire-day-to-fly-a-bit club in drag!
\nSo I left after a \u0091slow-motion\u0092 half-hour of chit-chat without flying!
\nThat\u0092s THE PROBLEM with gliding, Karl.
\nThose of us with active businesses and multiple outside interests don\u0092t have either the time or the patience to deal with all of the inactive rituals associated with soaring clubs.
\nI know they\u0092re a great escape for (nice) nerds with lot\u0092s of time on their hands but, as your stats clearly demonstrate, the sport is terribly out-of-touch with it\u0092s competition in a world of limited free-time and a proliferation of recreational options.
\nMy (personal) solution?
\nBuy a Stemme (or a DG MotorGlider) and fly from home WHENEVER I want to.
\nAnd continue to utilize commercial operations to broaden my horizons.
\nFortunately, I can afford it.
\nMost of us cannot!
\nFrankly, I think the dilemma is close to unsolvable.
\nOn the other hand, look at what the EAA has managed to do working with essentially the same demographics.
\nGood luck Karl…
\nSalut!!!
\nPeter Overing<\/p>\n
\n
\nDear Mr. Weber,
\nregarding “future of gliding” a few comments. Whatever can be said for gliding it is not a “spectator sport” likely to attract an audience. Yes, the final glides are beautiful with the water exhausting in a steep climb, but most of the time one waits. A few years ago in Poland I saw much activity at an abandoned military airport near Warsaw: Here were many families having picnics, children playing, all having a good time outside. Overhead circled paragliders, some very high. They were towed aloft by a small winch. Even an “off field landing” could be handled with ease with a hitchhike back. This must be the ultimate of getting into the air with best expense\/enjoyment ratio!
\nBicycling in Ireland, I discovered the Dingle Penninsula extending into the Atlantic and dominated by 3000 foot St. Brendon mountain, a walk up climb. There is always a sea breeze and the view is beautiful.
\nThere are many such treeless mountains in Ireland easily accessible to solo paragliders.
\nI have let my life slip by, but always a memory of the beautiful Dingle and the possibilities.
\nThe soaring glider is a great achievement for a great expense. Perhaps we need to return to a simpler form of flight thrill such as provided by paragliding. Remember your first flight!
\nAndrew Ross, New Lebanon, New York
\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\n
\nYour thoughts on gliding’s future ask some interesting questions. I understand you would not necessarily agree with all the proposed solutions mentioned, but it does highlight several avenues for exploration.
\nI learnt to fly in England in a club environment, much as you describe.
\nCertain tasks during the day (and year) were expected to be done by club members.
\nI now live in the United States, and have flown with one club and three commercial operators in several states. What I’ve come to strongly believe is that if it’s done right, a club adds much more to the recreation of flying than just cheaper flights.
\nMy wife has been learning to fly while we were with both a club and commercial operators. Her feelings and my observations were that in the club there is more interaction with student pilots of the same level. This helps confirm that others are experiencing the same successes and difficulties as oneself, boosts confidence and encourages perseverance.
\nOn the other hand, getting regular lessons with a consistent instructor can be the hardest challenge in this environment.
\nIn the commercial operations, due to the scheduled nature of the lessons this is easier. The interaction with other students is much harder to gain. As I was usually flying my glider the same days she took lessons, Daniella was hanging around the site much more than the average ‘pay-to-play’ student. During this time, it was painfully apparent why spouses do not accompany their flying partners to the airfield. It can be a lonely place.
\nWhat a club with some facilities offers is an environment where the social meetings you referred to in your piece can occur all weekend AND you get to go flying! I believe in specific reference to the area I fly in now, the climate is an issue. Although pilots rarely complain about 40 degrees C or\u00a0 15,000 ft cloud base, those left on the ground tend to wilt.
\nThere is a club operating some gliders at the commercial site I fly from, but they appear to suffer from the worst of both worlds, it’s hard to find an instructor AND there’s nobody else about. At least if there’s twenty club members and no instructors around you can complain about them!
\nI’m working on getting my instructors certificate so I guess I’ll have to see what happens. Instructors wilt too if they can’t find students to fly with!
\nI suspect a solution for this dilemma exists. It might be that the people with no time and too much money subsidize the people with the reverse problem. This can translate to a bi-level club with different fees. Another solution which many UK clubs seem to have gravitated towards is that members of the public paying for one-off ‘rides’ subsidize the members. A good side effect is that some of the public might come back and become members. There is a position to take that you shouldn’t expect this to be a large percentage if you just sell rides, not the sport.
\nI guess the US commercial operators could rightly point out that without rides, our one aero tow a week would have to be more expensive.
\nThe conditions in much of the US are good, but those areas where one can really stretch out and fly long distances are not near population centers.
\nThis again splits the interests of active X-country pilots and those who wish to learn to glide. A 40 minute flight at an airfield 2 hours drive away from home will hardly convince someone it is worth dedicating 50%+ of their free-time (if there is such a thing) to gliding. On the other hand, a qualified pilot may drive longer than that to a sight for the whole weekend and get 9 hours of flying in over two days.
\nUnfortunately, the payoff for money (time) invested in either a commercial (club) school is very much delayed. How long is it until someone can enjoy the thrill of flying for a three hours in a single without being crippled financially or physically by other club members?
\nThis means there MUST be something else to attract and maintain enthusiasm for this period.
\nWhat is that? Well, maybe it’s different for everyone.
\nIt would be much easier if the glider pilots from Germany were re-distributed fairly amongst the other nations. This would of course lead to exactly the opposite of what the Treaty of Versailles intended. \ud83d\ude42
\nChris Ashburn<\/p>\n
\n
\nAlfredo Sola
\nAdministrator del sistema
\nP.D.: In “The secret of Thomas Crown”, the main character flies a Duo Discus (and at one point, without belts -ouch!).
\nI hope to see a DG-1000 in the next film!<\/p>\n
\n
\nThank you for the thought provoking article on how do we get more young people into the sport.<\/p>\n
\nASW-24\u00a0 PI\u00a0 ( sorry a fixed income does not allow a nice new motor-glider )<\/p>\n
\n
\nFirst the people that will never have enough money to buy a new aircraft will never buy one, and second the ones that will buy new aircraft will be very pleased to know that their aircraft will most likely benefit from future development, they will know that some time down the road there will be a new wing and tail plane. For instance there could be a 20m wing with the according tail plane available for the DG-800 the (DG-820) in 5 to 10 years from now that would stretch the life of the present planes. This could also be done for the DG-200. We know for a fact that improvement of the frame of these gliders lead to very little noticeable gain in performance, since the (DG-200, DG-400, DG-300, DG-600) are all very\u00a0 good\u00a0 frames, the availability of a new wing for some of these would be a good marketing move. The key word in all that is to transmit to the buyers that the DG firm is behind them to back them up with ongoing development for their aircraft. Of course we have to understand that there is a limit to improvement, but as I said the DG-200, 300, 400, 600 are very good aircraft and there life extension would benefit everybody. One more thing about revamping is that you know right off the bat how many of these aircraft are on the market. I think you would benefit from making a mini survey, for instance on the Net or by mail to present owners to see if they would by a more performing wing at a calculated price for their aircraft.<\/p>\n
\nAlso winglets on the lower part of the tail plane could permit a reduction in the tail plane size and therefore less drag.<\/p>\nMay I give some comments to this interesting article:<\/h4>\n
Public relation is absolute important. Also this web-site is a part of PR!<\/h4>\n
The price for new gliders is a real problem. Please have a look at our special article.<\/h4>\n
To make a new wing and tailplane for an old glider means, to make a new glider. It cost about 1,000,000.00 USD to design and build a new wing only. Sorry, it is fact!<\/h4>\n
Unfortunately a DG-820 is impossible.<\/h4>\n
We are in discussions about another representative at the US-East-Coast.<\/h4>\n
I do not think that Japanese are able to manufacture gliders. And they are not interested because of the small quantities.<\/h4>\n
Instrument Panel, Moving Map etc. will be checked by our engineers. It can be a good idea.<\/h4>\n
And all of you are invited, to give suggestions for improvements every day!<\/h4>\n
\n
\nSkyline Soaring Club http:\/\/www.ssl.umd.edu\/Skyline\/<\/p>\n
\nJim Kellett<\/p>\n
\n
\nMillard Marvin<\/p>\n
\nI was visiting your site again today as it is one of my favorites and thought I would like to add my view and maybe suggest how our magazine could try to help. I see the question about the future of soaring as a larger issue about the future of private pilots of all types in every country.\u00a0 First is that in America we see a trend for the non-flying public to be increasingly targeted with the idea that aircraft are really no different than a car on the freeway. That flying now is a low skill that does not require any serious effort to develop. That powered aircraft are only safe “if” on auto pilot!!<\/p>\n
\nAlso we find that many manufactures have some strange idea that keeping people interested takes little or no work. Our program is to help use learning as the backbone for entertaining those who thirst for more understanding of flight.<\/p>\n
\nsport just to watch it is a shame to see those who do not understand what they are missing. We hope that we can help the soaring community with higher visibility to a group of young people and outsiders, via our school program about flying.<\/p>\n
\nwww.skyguys.org<\/p>\n
\n
\nWhen I was 23 years old I bought a piece of land for camping and found that there is a Glider Field near-by.\u00a0 After visiting the club I was told that if I helped with\u00a0 the flight line I would eventually get a ride but that there was no room for new members since they wanted to limit the memberships to a total of 32.\u00a0 I worked the flight line for 4 Saturdays in a row but never got a ride and couldn’t afford to pay out-right for lessons.\u00a0 It seemed hopeless for someone of my means and I gave up trying until last year at age 51.<\/p>\n
\nMy wife is very understanding when I visit the club and doesn’t expect to see me until after dark. ( I also give my wife equal time during the week).\u00a0 My club does offer a few social gatherings during the year and she enjoys those also.<\/p>\n
\nPeter Eberhart
\nFinger Lakes Soaring
\nDansville, NY
\n“Peter Eberhart”
\n<\/a><\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.dg-aviation.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/RTEmagicC_37865fbb04.jpg.jpg\")
<\/td>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.dg-aviation.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/RTEmagicC_f091c84a61.gif.gif\")
<\/p>\n