Monday 20th June 2022
Posted: 22/06/2022 16:52
Monday 20th. An initial light and variable wind settled down to become a light WNW'ly so operations off runway 02 were switched to runway 24 around midday, some landings then taking place on 20. The day was essentially blue and difficult, with pilots experiencing numerous low points whether on cross countries or flying locally maximum soaring heights rising from around 2,900' asl in the morning to around 3,700' asl in the late afternoon. Steve Thompson in his Ventus bt stuggled to Staindrop via weak, low thermals but then found his best thermal which took him to 4,500' asl, at an average climb of 2.8 kts. His next leg to Pontefract reverted to weak, low thermals with potential thermal sources remaining just that, potential. A low point at Knaresborough of around 1,000' asl led to recourse to the engine and a return to site, the task distance up to engine burn being 136 km. Steve's flight time of 3:46 was the longest of the day, with a further 3 flights exceeding an hour, these all being by 3 of the 10 private owner launches on the day. Nick Gaunt in his LS7 had 1:49 during which he visited Helmsley, Thirsk and Easingwold, while Bill Payton flying his DG1000 solo had 1:17 and John Ellis in his DG800 had exactly an hour, both staying local, but both experiencing low points. Rod Brister, flying Astir DSU off the last launch of the day, and Sue Aherne flying K21 JVZ in the early afternoon shared the distinction of having the longest flight in a club glider, 44 minutes, while Guy Hartland/J Rennie had the longest flight in a club 2 seater with 32 minutes in JVZ.
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.