Lewis Lang, 13 Aug 2011
When I posted the application form into the post-box for the Guild Young Members (GYM) 2011 Gliding Scholarship, I never thought I would be fortunate enough to actually be selected for interview, let alone be awarded this brand new scholarship.
I had been a PPL holder for a little over 2 years and whilst my passion for aviation had always involved flying machines with engines, gliding had been something I had always wanted to experience but never got around to doing. So when I read the email from the GAPAN office stating that they were going to award me the scholarship I could not believe it.
The course was a residential five night stay at Lasham Gliding Society located near Alton, Hampshire. The first day I arrived early to meet the other lucky scholarship winner, Tom Baldock, in the main reception where we completed the inevitable paperwork and met our lively and humorous instructor for the week, Merv Saunders, who had over 20 years of gliding instruction under his belt. Being teamed up with just the one instructor meant for a great student/instructor ratio. After quickly unpacking in our rooms it was time to head straight to the briefing room for an initial background into the course, the airfield and of course, safety. Tom was at an advantage having some 50 glider flights beforehand where I had never even sat in a glider. My assumption of gliding being a mellow and easy sport would soon go out the window...
The first flight was an aerotow behind a Robin DR400 Tug in which Merv took control for the ground run and climb out. It was a unique experience for me being so close to another powered aircraft only 200ft in front of me. After climbing to approximately 2000ft feet we released the cable and then near silence fell upon us with only the sound of wind-noise rushing over the canopy. I was immediately offered to take the controls. It was surprising how light the aircraft felt compared to the Cessna’s I’m used to flying. I initially found it a real struggle trying to keep the glider flying efficiently through the airflow, maintaining a good lookout and well as following Merv’s advice looking out for thermals and lift. It became apparent this type of flying takes real skill! After 15 minutes it was time to return to terra firma where I followed through on the controls to bring the glider to a stop on the grass parallel to Lasham’s main runway.
Then it was Tom’s turn to hit the sky. After his return, I was back up in the air again. This continued well throughout the day stopping only for a short lunch break. Once evening began to settle in I was exhausted and went straight for an early night.
The next two days were building up on what we had learnt from day one to now include stalling and spins as well as cable launch failures. The winch launch system at Lasham uses over 3000ft of steel cable pulled in by an 8 litre V8 engine located at the far end of the airfield which can pull gliders from 0-2000ft in under 45 seconds, which puts a lot of rides at Thorpe Park to shame. Certainly the first few winch launches I found quite nerve-wracking.
I managed several flights which lasted over 1 ½ hours which enabled us to fly a good length away from the airfield. Excellent soaring conditions were soon to deteriorate and Thursday morning we awoke to a rather rainy wet morning. Flying was postponed until later in the afternoon which meant into the classroom for a healthy dose of ground school where we went over some of the interesting principles of flight as well as airspace regulations and the different badges available to the glider pilot through the British Gliding Association (BGA).
Fortunately the rain passed through and it was back in the air again! Being the only glider flying it meant we could continually be winched back into the air again once we had landed. However poor thermal activity meant the flights lasted only around five to ten minutes which enabled us to just practice our winch launches, emergency cable launch failures and landings.
Gliding is very much a team sport with almost all of the club members helping each other out collecting the gliders from their landing point and getting them ready to fly again.
I found it great fun to drive a Hilux pickup truck up and down the 6000ft runway to retrieve the winch cables and assist other gliders in their launch.
Our final day of flying on the Friday consisted of condensing all our knowledge gained over the week and relentlessly practising our launches and circuit flying complete with a lot of walking after many practice cable launch failures. Tom and I were soon to be greeted by our scholarship organiser, Kat Hodge, late in the afternoon. At the same time we were to be sent for our first solo flights which was a bit of a shock. It didn’t take long for the nerves to set in. Tom had his first and performed a perfect circuit and landing. This was soon followed by me. With Tom completing a textbook first solo and then a 2nd, all eyes were now on me. No pressure then...
After being strapped in and running through my pre-flight checks I was ready for the launch. With my hand firmly placed on the cable release I gave a nod and was hurtled into the air. The acceleration and climb-out felt much faster with no instructor onboard but within seconds I was up to around 1900ft and released the cable just before entering cloud. I had made it up solo! After 7 minutes in the air having a blast it was time to judge my circuit and make a return landing to the field. I had joined the ranks of glider pilots and another personal aviation first completed!
After a few hands shakes and congratulations from everyone, it was time to hit the bar and then once again to bed for an early night. It’s amazing how much flying can physically drain you when you’ve spent the good part of eight hours in the air and helping out on the ground.
The final day was a social event organised by the GYM and provided a great chance to meet other young members and let them experience a taste of what we had just done throughout the week, by letting them experience some trial glider flights along with a great BBQ. It wasn’t long before the evening was rolling in and it was time to head home and back to the joys of the day job!
The scholarship proved to be an excellent week and I am extremely grateful to GAPAN, the GYM and everyone involved to help make it happen. Being able to fly every single day was a real privilege and the sport of gliding will definitely be something I will take up alongside powered flying as I rise to my aspirations of becoming a commercial airline pilot. It has greatly improved my raw flying skills I would encourage any PPL or CPL pilot who hasn’t experienced gliding to take at least one flight. I guarantee you will find a new challenge in flying something without an engine and a new appreciation for the atmosphere in which we fly in!
Happy Landings!