Monday 14th to Thursday 31st August.
Posted: 03/09/2023 10:56
Your reporter was away for most of the above period and was not able to collect the usual amount of data/information on flying/soaring at Sutton. Therefore the following report will be a more general summary with a few highlights gleaned from the BGA Ladder/OLC and personal emails.
Monday 14th. A day of low cloud and rain so there was no flying.
Tuesday 15th. A light to moderate W'ly slowly veered into the N with rain arriving later. 31 ATs were flown off runway 24, 5 by private owners with flying extending into the evening courtesy of the Tuesday evening group. There were 9 flights of over 30 minutes with 4 over an hour, one of which was the 141km flown by Guy Hartland/Duncan Pask in the DG1000, their intention to fly the club 200km task forestalled by the rain, which wasn't evident in this photo taken earlier in the flight.
Wednesday 16th. The light to moderate N/NNE'ly brought in a lot of cloud, which was low at times. Nevertheless, 27 ATs were flown, plus 3 flights by the Falke, but the cloudy conditions meant that only 1 flight exceeded an hour, that by Bob Calvert in his Discus 2ct.
Thursday 17th. Another overcast day as a light to moderate ESE'ly slowly backed into the E. 21 ATs were flown off runway 06, but there were no flights of over 30 minutes, while the Falke contributed another 3 flights.
Friday 18th. The light to moderate E'ly flow continued, but this time accompanied by low cloud and rain to there was no flying.
Saturday 19th. A moderate S'ly that veered into the SW led to 14 ATs off runways 24 or 20, with 7 Private owners launching and contributing to the 11 flights of over 30 minutes, 9 of which were over an hour. One of these was by Fred Brown in his Ventus ct, who climbed to 12,500' asl in wave.
Sunday 20th. A similar day to Saturday with a moderate S'ly again veering, this time into the WSW and more broken skies leading to 14 flights of over 30 minutes, including 10 of over an hour from the day's 26 ATs. 2 of the soaring flights were by Adam Sayer and Amelia Forrester in Astir DSU, Adam flying 59 km locally and Amelia 48 km.
Monday 21st. The moderate SSW'ly continued to blow accompanied by broken cloud, with the conditions tempting 4 private owners to fly and contribute to the 9 flights of over 30 minutes, with 6 of these being over an hour from the day's 17 ATs. Bob Calvert in his Discus 2ct contacted wave and climbed to 11,500' asl between Hawes and Harrogate climbing over a weak trough that crossed the area during the flight as shown in the following photos.
Tuesday 22nd. The WSW'ly wind had increased in strength to become moderate to fresh, resulting in a mix of winch and AT launches, 13 of the former and 15 of the latter. 20 of the day's launches resulted in flights of over 30 minutes with 15 of over an hour, with Martyn Johnson in his DG600 and Fred Brown in his Ventus ct both climbing in wave to 11,500' asl and 12,800' asl respectfully. Guy Harland/Amelia Forrester flying in the DG1000 also had a climb to around 8,000' asl as they did some spinning and indulged in a short XC, visiting Tontine and Castle Howard as well as providing the following photo.
Wednesday 23rd. A light to moderate SW'ly blew all day, bringing in a few showers from generally cloudy skies although the conditions did tempt 4 private owners to a launch on a day when 30 ATs were flown off runway 24. 8 flights of over 30 minutes resulted, with 4 of these over an hour with local flying being the norm for the day except for Tomer Altman who, attempting an O/R to Market Weighton, had his first land out some 21 km down track as the following photo shows.
Thursday 24th. A light SSW'ly slowly veered into the W and strengthened to moderate as a front brought rain and low cloud. The clearance arrived too late for most people but Jesper Mjels took a late self launch in his DG400 to have over an hour's soaring and the Falke also had a flight.
Friday 25th. A light to moderate SW'ly continued to blow bringing in essentially cloudy skies and a few showers. The day's 11 ATs off runway 24 generally led to extended circuits with only 2 flights exceding 30 minutes and none over an hour.
Saturday 26th. A light to moderate N'ly that backed into the N brought in generally cloudy skies and some showers. Available data suggests only 3 ATs were flown but Tony Drury and friends visited in their microlights as the following photo shows.
Sunday 27th. Overcast skies and a light SW'ly wind did not encourage too many to fly, a launch total of 9 ATs off runway 24 and no flights of over 30 minutes reflecting the quiet conditions.
Monday 28th. A moderate WNW'ly blew all day which was busy with 37 ATs off runway 24 and 6 Falke flights, the conditions persuading 8 private owners to launch and the day's flights including 9 lasting over 30 minutes with 6 over an hour.
Tuesday 29th. A light to moderate S'ly soon veered into the W and strengthened to moderate, resulting in a mix of 13 ATs and 14 winch launches, The 7 private owners who launched contributed to the day's 14 flights of over 30 minutes, including 6 of over an hour, while the Falke had 3 flights.
Wednesday 30th. A moderate WNW'ly led to 15 winch and 7 ATs off runway 24, 13 of these leading to flights of over 30 minutes with 9 of these over an hour. The 10 private owners who launched also posted 4 cross countries on the BGA Ladder with Darren Lodge in his LS8-18, Chris Teagle in his Kestrel 19 and Martyn Johnson in his DG600 all flying the Sutton/Pocklington/ Rufforth/Sutton 100 km triangle while Rob Bailey in his ASG29t, flew a 308 km task with TPs at Tontine and Horncastle.
Thursday 31st. Another good soaring day from a mixture of 13 ATs and 26 winch launches that led to 14 private owner launches, 21 flights of over 30 minutes of which 15 were over an hour and 7 XC posted on the BGA ladder. Darren Lodge in his LS8-18 flew 148 km with TPs at Market Weighton, Thirsk and Pocklington, Chris Teagle visited Beverley and Carlton Bank in his Kestrel, covering 164 km and Toby Wilson flew 200 km in his Std Cirrus while turned Carlton Bank. Beverley and Tontine. Les Rayment in his DG800 flew 209 km with TPs at Kirton in Lindsey and Pickering, Fred Brown in his Ventus ct flew 225 km visiting Tontine, Humber Bridge and Carlton Bank and Chris Handzlik in his DG300 covered 226 km with TPs at Tontine and Kirton in Lindsey. Finally, Rob Bailey in his ASG29t, flew a similar but slightly shorter task that the one he flew on Wednesday to cover 281 km.
This blog describes a snippet of life at the Yorkshire Gliding Club. Why not take a flight and try it yourself, or we can teach you to fly as a full club member.