Hey Juan, your gliding video came up on my YT feed this morning. I returned to gliding after a 40 year hiatus when I retired from my airline. 4 trainers a one checkride later in the ASK-21 and I was solo once again. Best decision I ever made. Hope you continued in the sport, it only gets better. Cheers!
Thermal duration airplanes are tons of fun. Coring thermals is a real art, and when you go up the first time it's a real thrill. What a beautiful experience. Thank Juan for a great video.
I will never forget my Grob glider experience in 1988 at Indpls Terry airport. Coming in for the landing, a hawk riding off my right wing..amazing. Those steep bank angles to get into a thermal...catching that thermal, amazing. Indiana in the summer good thermals!! Nothing like turning and going up at the same time.. that's a feeling!! Certainly different than flying the Warrior II !! You did great Juan!! Your instructor Charlie was great!!
Wow!!! First time I’ve seen this vid after following you for at least a year. This is something I would love to experience at least once in my lifetime.
"you got the jet right?" I chuckled, I would have said the same thing. Funny how muscle memory works, this was awesome to watch and I looks forward to learning to fly gliders some day.
Cool glider ride. Lol - I got to ride in one once out of Truckee. I never ever used to have any problems with motion sickness when I was younger, but I almost popped my cookies from the motion sensation, seemed much different from a powered aircraft. Thank goodness disaster was averted - I would have been eternally embarrassed! Loved the ride - fabulous view of Lake Tahoe, and the amazing whoosh of the wind without an engine.
@@pj61114 Lol yeah, Sully didn't have the option to ride too many thermals that day. It's standard engine-out landing procedures that saved his life that any pilot trains for.
Hi Juan just seen this. Wonderful !! Just like being in the glider. 50 years ago I was at north essex flying club with gliders having great fun. But my new girlfriend and future wife who is still here wit me didn’t like spending all weekend on cold and windy aerodrome thus I had to chose !! Think I made the right option. Been flying high with her ever since. I do enjoy your vids so much
Excellent video Juan. It took me back 30 years or more to when I was flying a Dart 17R. The thrill of centring in a thermal and climbing just using the power of Mother Nature is awesome. Charlie was brilliant too. Just remember, a go-around is not an option. Enjoy.
I'm telling you, I just love your videos! I've never seen this type of instructional on soaring. That was fun and looked like it was, too! Thanks for sharing all that you do with us. ---Buddy, the dog
I first saw this video ~ late 2019 and loved it! It was awesome to see an experienced big jet pilot be so inquisitive and joyful about flying a simple glider. Anyway your video inspired me to go fly a glider the summer of 2020 but that never happened because of covid. So it's on my to do list for this summer.
Hi, Juan. Good job! Your knowledge of flying and the area you were in gave you lots of confidence which resulted in a great lesson. Super landing and lots of fun all around. Congrats on a new hobby. Thanks for sharing! Stay healthy!
Great video Juan. I flew a glider in Ft. William Scotland, it was an wooden tandem bench seat, open cockpit, they said it was WW11 era trainer. I was amassed at how well it flew considering the thick heavy feel on the ground. I did a stall straight ahead, and glided around by the mountains at the coast. It was terrific, very comfortable to fly. He let me land it with no input from him, just let me do my thing, the approach and landing was almost the same as any light single engine airplane. I can't remember the name of the glider, but was lucky to drive by, and see a sign saying glider rides. They allowed me to take the controls after showing my commercial pilot license...great fun! Thanks.
Marvellous Juan! I can tell that you just love flight in any of its forms. Your video took me back to 1965 or thereabouts flying the Slingsby T21 and Slingsby T49 Capstan sailplanes at Bristol Gliding Club Nympsfield in Gloucester, England (winch launch). All clear above and behind! Take up slack. All out!
Great video, Juan. I am not a pilot; but, I so enjoy your channel. I started watching when you were doing the Orville Dam situation. Very interesting and well done videos by the way. I am going through your videos and I have found so many very interesting. I am fascinated by aviation; but, I am not a real confident flyer in commercial airlines. You have pointed out the stats for flying in commercial airlines vs. cars and it gives me much more confidence in flying commercial. I would have even more confidence if you were in the cockpit, though! You are so lucky, you are doing a job that we can tell you love. Your enthusiasm of aviation is so fun and enjoyable to watch. I bet Charlie, the instructor, really enjoyed instructing you on soaring. You were a dream student.
Learning and flying gliders is a LOT cheaper than flying powered airplanes. I was in your same situation, wanting to fly, but not having the money. And then I got introduced to gliders. The rest is history.
Excellent!! Gliders are a really valuable experience. I started on gliders as a kid, and went back to do my commercial glider add-on after I upgraded captain.
What it was, was soaring. Actually on a dead air, minimally convective day, it was mostly gliding. Nevertheless, you did get enough "lift" to arrest your descent and even climb a smidgen to hook you. For your first sailplane flight you did very well! As a long time glider driver with many pleasant memories of my soaring years, I hope you will pursue this wonderfully gratifying aspect of aviation. Cross country is the ultimate challenge and source of satisfaction. Enjoy!
This is glorious, Juan! I used to see gliders all the time in the skies around my local airport, and even getting towed down the highway. It seems I never see them any more. Maybe the rampant suburbification subdued glider activity; maybe AOPA moved in and needed room to park their big executive jet, and couldn't abide these low sex appeal craft anyway; or, maybe some guy ran a very successful glider service until he retired, and nobody replaced him. Or, gliding is just an archaic diversion that has no place in our "everything fast and now" world. Either way, this is a great way to fly. Thanks for the inspiration! p.s. only correct for torque when you're on a torque-y A/C!
When I got my pilots license, there was sign on the wall that said..."There are old pilots...and there are bold pilots...but there are no old bold pilots! But Mr. Brown... I would fly with you anytime, anywhere, because you put safety first, and your smart!
Reminds me of my time fling gliders in the UK but in those day they were more wood and best Irish linen than glass fibre but they would thermal just as well. The tow planes were powered by good old 140 hp (on a good day!) Gispy engines.
Wonderful video sir: I've shared it with friends. When I was stationed at Ft. Carson, Colorado and flying at the Butts Army Airfield club they had me take 10 hours of glider training before turning me loose in a fixed wing bird .. the best training ever and I had a blast just like you did. I hope you went on and got your rating, the best pilots are those who can successfully fly a sailplane. Thank you for posting.
Every prospective pilot should have some hours of glider flying before progressing to private/commercial/military flying. It teaches the basics of flying. It is by far the best risk mitigant in emergency situations. Great video Juan and greetings from AUS.
Purpose build gliders are not really relevant demonstrations of emergency power out gliding, and gliding with the power at idle (including troubleshooting then locating and approaching a suitable landing site) is part of the PP certificate test in the USA. Beside that the best risk mitigation is to do a good job on maintenance, preflight inspection, and flight planning.
Looks like Charlie is a good instructor, loved the show. There is a little glide port near me at North Plains, Oregon and I'm determined to get up in one now.
Hi Juan - this clip took me back 40 years or so - welcome to the world of real flying. I was grinning with you as you made your first thermal height gain. What a wonderful way to spend a day - you launch - not sure where you are going - fight for 2, 3 , 4 , 5 maybe 6 hours and get back to the field not being quite sure where you've been. If I had any say in the matter, all pilots should first have to get a GPL and about 20 hours of X-country flying under their belt before being allowed to transition to a PPL. That way you KNOW that it's the wings that keep you airborne - so losing the engine is just a minor inconvenience. Once a year the club used to head off north to hold a gliding camp at another airfield ~ 800 km from Cape Town. Our SuperCub towplane would come along too. The tug pilots drawing straws for the fun of some sight-seeing. Coming back from the one camp the pilots realised that the headwind had been stronger than forecast and had made a huge hole in their fuel reserve. No matter how they fiddled the calcs they weren't going to make it to the next airfield and their planned refuel stop. Luckily, Club policy was that the tuggies had to have soloed in a glider so that they knew what a thermal felt like and could position their 'tow' directly into a thermal. Anyway being quasi-glider pilots, low fuel wasn't really a problem for them, they hooked up with a several decent thermals, putting a cumulative extra 9000' of height into the fuel tank which enabled them to stretch their looong final and comfortably make the airport. (SuperCubs thermal quite well.) On another occasion I was towed into wave, released at ~ 6000" and set myself up for the elevator ride. When approaching 9000' I found myself with company - a madly grinning SuperCub pilot was formating with me and climbing at well above the SuperCub's max climb rate. Show off. After another few hundred feet or so he left me to return to the airfield while I continued. Watching the sunset from 19 500' was fun. However a twilight landing was bit dicey - grey concrete runway, grey light, no shadows, no depth perception - just kept flying until the wheel started rolling. Maybe my second best landing. Google the Gimli Glider for another nice save by Captain Robert Pearson also a glider pilot. Every landing in a sailplane is a forced landing - the novelty wears off pretty quickly. enjoy edi.
@@carlwilliams6977 Sailplanes have either a wingtip wheel (less common today, unless retrofitted) or more commonly a steel wingtip skid. It’s very small, so hard to see in a photo or video. After landing, you are taught to “fly” the glider until you lose control authority and can no longer keep the wingtip off the ground. So by the time it touches, you’re going pretty slow and will be on the wheel brake at that point to stop the rollout. Also, while wing runners are often available to hold your wingtip off the ground during the takeoff roll, it is also pretty common, when no wing runner is available, to take off with the the wingtip on the ground (on the skid), and use aileron to pick it up and level the wings as soon as possible. In a sailplane, that happens pretty quickly, so the wingtip isn’t dragging on the ground very long. The primary downside to this option is that when you move the stick opposite to the down wingtip, the aileron on that side pivots downward, which can cause it to drag on any tall weeds or even rocks. All the more reason to pick the wingtip up quickly.
As a long-time glider pilot, I agree 1000%. The biggest benefit to learning to fly sailplanes is the overall level of judgment that you have to exercise. You can’t just set cruise power, engage the autopilot, and tune out for a while. You’re always actively flying, as well as constantly evaluating invisible sources of lift, continuously computing on the fly things like sink or climb rate and their effects on effective glide ratio and your ability to reach a specific distant point at a safe altitude. You become an expert at energy management and flying efficiently, skills incidentally that are really crucial in determining whether you survive something like a sudden engine failure on takeoff. That split-second decision of whether to turn back to the runway (yes, it can be done if high enough and perfectly coordinated on the controls) or to land ahead or to the side is much more likely to end in success if you are highly experienced at landing with no power and can make turns without slipping, or worse, skidding. A decision to turn back at too low an altitude, with the nose too high (trying to avoid the ground) and trying to hurry the turn with rudder, causing a skid, is how so many pilots end up stalling and spinning in that situation. Glider experience would go a long way toward preventing those fatal reactions.
I've had glider on the brain for the last year and a half. It looks like a lot of fun. You were up for quite a while considering it was in the winter. I'm about 3 hours from Moriarity, NM and located in the Four Corners. There's probably places to fly in UT and CO. Guess I need to start looking
Hello Juan! Well I made it to your neck of the woods, but I'm afraid a sailplane ride is out of the question on this trip. I'm having transmission issues here in Yuba City. I was coming down from Oregon through the Redwoods, and it started acting up. I made it to Yuba City and am camping out on the BLM land near Smartsville. I had hoped SO bad to be able to get up to the dam while I'm so close, but I can't risk driving this van right now. Hopefully, I can get all of this sorted out and can still get up there and see that. If not, I'll just stay in the loop by watching your videos. Thanks and keep up the great work, Eric Cox
Great! Tysm for the journey! I always wanted to fly gliders, even when a nervous flyer. I'm too old and things, to do it on a real hobby basis, but I should at least look into a ride/lesson and do it at least once! I am a sailor, so relate to the strings. Incredibly important low tech gear when you ride the wind!
I did a ride in 1 years ago because a friend owned one so she took me up once and another rifle I paid for when a group of us from work went out to take an introductory flight and it was a lot of fun but I didn't go for the certificate.
Juan - this was great seeing this kind of video. For many reasons. I was in your position when I began soaring. Already a commercial pilot and wanted to try something new and exciting. Holy cow am I now addicted. 😬 If you ever want to go for a flight with me out of Vero Beach, FL let me know. We're just a few clicks from the TRV (formerly the VRB) VOR. Fly that 310 like I would 😁 take care Juan. -Jason
That is so cool my friend I was wondering if you was ever going to be in a glider I love gliders to they are cool kind of different with no motor on them it's awful quiet for sure way to go that was good between you and Charlie I enjoyed watching you guys alright will take care of my friend and God bless way2go🙏🛩👍
Hey great to see you flying a Sailplane/Glider Juan. I learnt to fly a Sailplane/Glider after learning to fly powered aircraft. I felt it helped my overall confidence in flying and honed my flying skills as once you're committed to land on final approach, there's no thrust leavers/throttles to go around on a missed approach.
Apart from a taster lesson in a Cessna, I fly RC but I am passionate about aviation and maybe one day before I hit 80 I will go for my PPL. As to where on the planet, i rest my bones in the soil of the Emerald Isle - Ireland 😄
My limited glider time was the most peaceful time flying, ever. I could not stay behind the tow plane without instructor intervention, but then I only flew a glider twice.
Great video. I just started flying again after a 27 year hiatus and since I watched your video I’m thinking about taking a glider lesson. There’s a glider club near Benton, TN. close to where I live. Enjoy your channel.
My grandfather on my mom's side was good friends with a chap by the name of Hawley Bolus who lived with his family in the north side of the San Fernando Valley here in L.A. Hawley was credited with some of the design of the Spirit of St. Louis and had his own passion for gliders & paragliding, so much so he built his own line of gliders out of wood and they were gorgeous. I inherited the pictures that grand dad took being a amateur photographer and they are nice, B & W 8 x 10 glossy's that I need to find a home for. Maybe the Bolus family is still around.
At 7:50, that's a roll on a point. a Dutch roll is different. Well done, BTW. Most students take a while to get this right. Unlike most sailplanes, the ASK21 is reluctant to stall (mushes, mostly) and spin. Since we spend a lot of time close to stall speed, inadvertent stalls/spins are sometimes inevitable. We take our students up in a Blanik L23 or Puchacz SZD 50 to show how most sailplanes behave.
Great! Thank you for sharing. I was just at our airport yesterday, there will be a fly in next month that is always fun even if your on the ground. I've been up once in south Florida can't wait to do it here in Pa.
I am about 1.5 hrs from Williamsport, Pa where they make the Lycoming engines and also about 2 hrs from Lock Haven, Pa where the Piper's were use to be made.
Winch Launch, the only way to travel! Back home in the UK Gliding is not so heavily regulated as it appears in the US. It fairly common for folks to clock up 20-25 hours on Gliders and then transition to powered to lower the cost of a PPL. Been a few years since I last flew but personally I don't like powered as I don't have the visibility I get in a glider, it feels claustrophobic but each to their own.
I'm a paragliding pilot and definitively recommend you to give it a try. Sure is slower, but freedom is incredible and thermal catching awesome. Once you do 8m/s up at 30km/h all rollercoasters looks like for kids xD
Thanks, Juan. I recently saw this video and had been on the fence about going for my add-on to my PP ASEL. I had my first lesson with Ben at Williams today. I showed him and the staff the link to this video.
Real Flying at last. There is nothing else like going up at 2000'/minute in wave lift. Stubble fires in the UK would produce some incredible lift but required 40+ degrees of bank to stay in the tight vortex from the fire. New farming regs. have all but eliminated stubble fires.
Did yeah get to meet Rex and his 2 son's while you were there? Great people ive been friend's for years. I used to spend my summers on strike teams all over the state battling wildfires with those boys. lotta fun
Nice video Juan. I took sailplane flying lessons in my college years but not flown one since. Make me think that owning some of the current motor gliders, such as a Pipestrel Sinus, might be a nice compromise between a sailplane and a touring plane, as I believe it has better than a 30 :1 glide ratio and has extendable wing tips. Thanks!
I know this is an older video, but thanks for the information and tips from your instructor. My home flight sim has the same glider that you flew. This video answered a lot of questions I had, ie, what airspeeds to fly and traffic pattern goals. I was hoping you'd give some ideas when it was time to start back to the field when the lift goes away.
Great fun isn't it? I never quite got my rating concentrated on my PPL but enjoyed all my flights, many at Napa doing ridge soaring, that was cool as it gets and another excuse to go to wine country. Had enough glider time to feel comfortable about an engine out situation in powered flight.
Juan thank you so much for the tutorial. As a young adult my dad took us kids up a few times in the Illini Glider Clubs Swietzer 232 quit a few years back. You made me feel like I was flying with him again. Dads gone now but you put a glow in my day. Thanks again. ps did you get your glider certificate? I hope so.
Here's hoping you can soon. As my dad said all the time ; those darn jet jockeys should learn in gliders first then they will never wonder whats under their good side. LOL. Thanks.
Juan looked like a lot of fun soaring around up there in the sail plane . Have you soloed & had sail planes added to your pilots license by now in July 2019 ?
Corporate pilot here...I’ve always wanted to learn to do this! It was actually a glider flight ride near Tahoe that got me into aviation many years ago. Its so crazy to see how quiet it is in there and then look at the panel and see that the altimeter is not unwinding!!! As a normal pilot those two things seem really unnatural! Man this video got me thinking maybe it’s time to work on that rating too! 🤙 PS. So did you end up getting the rating?
Hey Juan Did you do any more gliding? I take it you didn't get hooked ?! Wait till you experience a 1000ft/min climb and a big cross country, that will get you hooked!!!
Man, that was awesome! I can totally see you covering the reconstruction of the spillway from a sailplane! Do they offer charter services there? I'm going to be in that part of the country later this year. I think I've just added something to my bucket list.
I just looked at the prices. This is a done deal! I figured it was a lot more expensive than that. I'll probably go for the Glider Aerobatic Ride. There was something in the description about getting wild. That sound like I'd like. I've chartered a plane a couple of times and a helicopter over NYC once. I can't imagine how cool it is to not have engine noise.
Juan: Dug your channel for a long time now. Great content! Did you keep this up and get your certification? I'd love to see more sailplane content if you did and are still interested in this. Personally, I'm serious about doing this and eventually getting one of my own... It is how I want to spend my retirement. This feels like the most pure (and most affordable) way to fly. I've always loved flying since I grew up with my dad flying a single-engine Piper Palo Alto to Truckee every weekend, much of the summers and winters, (destination Northstar) - the 70's ... when that was all more affordable!
Hey Juan, your gliding video came up on my YT feed this morning. I returned to gliding after a 40 year hiatus when I retired from my airline. 4 trainers a one checkride later in the ASK-21 and I was solo once again. Best decision I ever made.
Hope you continued in the sport, it only gets better.
Cheers!
Heyyyyyy 😂 cool to see you on here! This just popped up on my YT feed also lol
Thermal duration airplanes are tons of fun. Coring thermals is a real art, and when you go up the first time it's a real thrill. What a beautiful experience. Thank Juan for a great video.
I will never forget my Grob glider experience in 1988 at Indpls Terry airport. Coming in for the landing, a hawk riding off my right wing..amazing.
Those steep bank angles to get into a thermal...catching that thermal, amazing.
Indiana in the summer good thermals!!
Nothing like turning and going up at the same time.. that's a feeling!! Certainly different than flying the Warrior II !!
You did great Juan!!
Your instructor Charlie was great!!
Wow!!! First time I’ve seen this vid after following you for at least a year.
This is something I would love to experience at least once in my lifetime.
Living your life and taking "us" along for the ride! Thanks Juan Browne
"you got the jet right?" I chuckled, I would have said the same thing. Funny how muscle memory works, this was awesome to watch and I looks forward to learning to fly gliders some day.
Cool glider ride. Lol - I got to ride in one once out of Truckee. I never ever used to have any problems with motion sickness when I was younger, but I almost popped my cookies from the motion sensation, seemed much different from a powered aircraft. Thank goodness disaster was averted - I would have been eternally embarrassed! Loved the ride - fabulous view of Lake Tahoe, and the amazing whoosh of the wind without an engine.
When the Airbus Sully flew became a glider his experience as a glider pilot saved the day, along with everyone's life. Nice video.
He was asked that at Oshkosh. Sully said flying gliders had NOTHING to do with landing on the Hudson.
@@pj61114 Lol yeah, Sully didn't have the option to ride too many thermals that day. It's standard engine-out landing procedures that saved his life that any pilot trains for.
Hi Juan just seen this. Wonderful !! Just like being in the glider. 50 years ago I was at north essex flying club with gliders having great fun. But my new girlfriend and future wife who is still here wit me didn’t like spending all weekend on cold and windy aerodrome thus I had to chose !! Think I made the right option. Been flying high with her ever since. I do enjoy your vids so much
Excellent video Juan. It took me back 30 years or more to when I was flying a Dart 17R. The thrill of centring in a thermal and climbing just using the power of Mother Nature is awesome. Charlie was brilliant too. Just remember, a go-around is not an option. Enjoy.
I'm telling you, I just love your videos! I've never seen this type of instructional on soaring. That was fun and looked like it was, too! Thanks for sharing all that you do with us. ---Buddy, the dog
one of my ideas...get a glider rating and do a video update of each lesson like this one...get some sponsorship to help pay for it all....
Amen to all that!
Thanks for the ride Juan. Really enjoyed it!!
I first saw this video ~ late 2019 and loved it! It was awesome to see an experienced big jet pilot be so inquisitive and joyful about flying a simple glider. Anyway your video inspired me to go fly a glider the summer of 2020 but that never happened because of covid. So it's on my to do list for this summer.
Hi, Juan. Good job! Your knowledge of flying and the area you were in gave you lots of confidence which resulted in a great lesson. Super landing and lots of fun all around. Congrats on a new hobby. Thanks for sharing! Stay healthy!
Great video Juan. I flew a glider in Ft. William Scotland, it was an wooden tandem bench seat, open cockpit, they said it was WW11 era trainer. I was amassed at how well it flew considering the thick heavy feel on the ground. I did a stall straight ahead, and glided around by the mountains at the coast. It was terrific, very comfortable to fly. He let me land it with no input from him, just let me do my thing, the approach and landing was almost the same as any light single engine airplane. I can't remember the name of the glider, but was lucky to drive by, and see a sign saying glider rides. They allowed me to take the controls after showing my commercial pilot license...great fun! Thanks.
Marvellous Juan! I can tell that you just love flight in any of its forms.
Your video took me back to 1965 or thereabouts flying the Slingsby T21 and Slingsby T49 Capstan sailplanes at Bristol Gliding Club Nympsfield in Gloucester, England (winch launch).
All clear above and behind! Take up slack. All out!
Great video, Juan. I am not a pilot; but, I so enjoy your channel. I started watching when you were doing the Orville Dam situation. Very interesting and well done videos by the way. I am going through your videos and I have found so many very interesting. I am fascinated by aviation; but, I am not a real confident flyer in commercial airlines. You have pointed out the stats for flying in commercial airlines vs. cars and it gives me much more confidence in flying commercial. I would have even more confidence if you were in the cockpit, though! You are so lucky, you are doing a job that we can tell you love. Your enthusiasm of aviation is so fun and enjoyable to watch. I bet Charlie, the instructor, really enjoyed instructing you on soaring. You were a dream student.
Never had the money to fly but always wanted to, so the next best thing I flew with you today. I look forward to your next lessons. Thanks!
Learning and flying gliders is a LOT cheaper than flying powered airplanes. I was in your same situation, wanting to fly, but not having the money. And then I got introduced to gliders. The rest is history.
Far Out!! had a blast following along like I was going to be a glider pilot someday baaahah - thanks again for the ride along Juan
I love it! A military/airline pilot who has not become complacent... still learning
That looks like alot of GREAT FUN, and you DON'T have to stop at the Pump!
loved the minumal edit and camera work on the fly! well done! felt like I was there. also appresh the long edit! thank you
If I was younger and had the funds this would a great thing to pursue. Used to fly RC but, had to give that up. Nice video Juan.
Excellent!! Gliders are a really valuable experience. I started on gliders as a kid, and went back to do my commercial glider add-on after I upgraded captain.
What it was, was soaring. Actually on a dead air, minimally convective day, it was mostly gliding. Nevertheless, you did get enough "lift" to arrest your descent and even climb a smidgen to hook you. For your first sailplane flight you did very well! As a long time glider driver with many pleasant memories of my soaring years, I hope you will pursue this wonderfully gratifying aspect of aviation. Cross country is the ultimate challenge and source of satisfaction. Enjoy!
that little bit of lift was very enticing....
This is glorious, Juan! I used to see gliders all the time in the skies around my local airport, and even getting towed down the highway. It seems I never see them any more. Maybe the rampant suburbification subdued glider activity; maybe AOPA moved in and needed room to park their big executive jet, and couldn't abide these low sex appeal craft anyway; or, maybe some guy ran a very successful glider service until he retired, and nobody replaced him. Or, gliding is just an archaic diversion that has no place in our "everything fast and now" world.
Either way, this is a great way to fly. Thanks for the inspiration!
p.s. only correct for torque when you're on a torque-y A/C!
When I got my pilots license, there was sign on the wall that said..."There are old pilots...and there are bold pilots...but there are no old bold pilots! But Mr. Brown... I would fly with you anytime, anywhere, because you put safety first, and your smart!
great ride, and "thermals" keep the bank good and enjoy the ride. Great job
Reminds me of my time fling gliders in the UK but in those day they were more wood and best Irish linen than glass fibre but they would thermal just as well. The tow planes were powered by good old 140 hp (on a good day!) Gispy engines.
Wonderful video sir: I've shared it with friends. When I was stationed at Ft. Carson, Colorado and flying at the Butts Army Airfield club they had me take 10 hours of glider training before turning me loose in a fixed wing bird .. the best training ever and I had a blast just like you did. I hope you went on and got your rating, the best pilots are those who can successfully fly a sailplane. Thank you for posting.
Every prospective pilot should have some hours of glider flying before progressing to private/commercial/military flying. It teaches the basics of flying. It is by far the best risk mitigant in emergency situations. Great video Juan and greetings from AUS.
USAF academy in Colorado Springs has a glider school. I don't know if it is required training for aeronautical majors.
Purpose build gliders are not really relevant demonstrations of emergency power out gliding, and gliding with the power at idle (including troubleshooting then locating and approaching a suitable landing site) is part of the PP certificate test in the USA.
Beside that the best risk mitigation is to do a good job on maintenance, preflight inspection, and flight planning.
Looks like Charlie is a good instructor, loved the show. There is a little glide port near me at North Plains, Oregon and I'm determined to get up in one now.
What a great video. Reminds me of the good ole days at Penn State. They have a great glider club there.
Lol!!... love the look of joy on your face Juan.... it must be so fun for you to fly free!!
Hi Juan - this clip took me back 40 years or so - welcome to the world of real flying. I was grinning with you as you made your first thermal height gain. What a wonderful way to spend a day - you launch - not sure where you are going - fight for 2, 3 , 4 , 5 maybe 6 hours and get back to the field not being quite sure where you've been.
If I had any say in the matter, all pilots should first have to get a GPL and about 20 hours of X-country flying under their belt before being allowed to transition to a PPL.
That way you KNOW that it's the wings that keep you airborne - so losing the engine is just a minor inconvenience.
Once a year the club used to head off north to hold a gliding camp at another airfield ~ 800 km from Cape Town. Our SuperCub towplane would come along too. The tug pilots drawing straws for the fun of some sight-seeing. Coming back from the one camp the pilots realised that the headwind had been stronger than forecast and had made a huge hole in their fuel reserve. No matter how they fiddled the calcs they weren't going to make it to the next airfield and their planned refuel stop.
Luckily, Club policy was that the tuggies had to have soloed in a glider so that they knew what a thermal felt like and could position their 'tow' directly into a thermal. Anyway being quasi-glider pilots, low fuel wasn't really a problem for them, they hooked up with a several decent thermals, putting a cumulative extra 9000' of height into the fuel tank which enabled them to stretch their looong final and comfortably make the airport. (SuperCubs thermal quite well.)
On another occasion I was towed into wave, released at ~ 6000" and set myself up for the elevator ride. When approaching 9000' I found myself with company - a madly grinning SuperCub pilot was formating with me and climbing at well above the SuperCub's max climb rate. Show off. After another few hundred feet or so he left me to return to the airfield while I continued. Watching the sunset from 19 500' was fun. However a twilight landing was bit dicey - grey concrete runway, grey light, no shadows, no depth perception - just kept flying until the wheel started rolling. Maybe my second best landing.
Google the Gimli Glider for another nice save by Captain Robert Pearson also a glider pilot.
Every landing in a sailplane is a forced landing - the novelty wears off pretty quickly.
enjoy edi.
Yes! I need to get this rating. Thanks!
Hi Juan. I have been flying glideres for the last 28 years. I really look forward to follow your experiences flying gliders.
When the wing does touch down on the runway, what protects it? He seemed to still be moving pretty good when it touched.
@@carlwilliams6977 Sailplanes have either a wingtip wheel (less common today, unless retrofitted) or more commonly a steel wingtip skid. It’s very small, so hard to see in a photo or video. After landing, you are taught to “fly” the glider until you lose control authority and can no longer keep the wingtip off the ground. So by the time it touches, you’re going pretty slow and will be on the wheel brake at that point to stop the rollout. Also, while wing runners are often available to hold your wingtip off the ground during the takeoff roll, it is also pretty common, when no wing runner is available, to take off with the the wingtip on the ground (on the skid), and use aileron to pick it up and level the wings as soon as possible. In a sailplane, that happens pretty quickly, so the wingtip isn’t dragging on the ground very long. The primary downside to this option is that when you move the stick opposite to the down wingtip, the aileron on that side pivots downward, which can cause it to drag on any tall weeds or even rocks. All the more reason to pick the wingtip up quickly.
that was sweet AND i relived my 20 minutes in the front of a 2-33 over enfield NY in '78
Loving your channel Juan. Perth, Western Australia.
Had no idea that a glider could go that long ! lol
great video JB !
Every pilot should get some glider time. After all when that noise maker goes silent you are in a glider.
Thanks
As a long-time glider pilot, I agree 1000%. The biggest benefit to learning to fly sailplanes is the overall level of judgment that you have to exercise. You can’t just set cruise power, engage the autopilot, and tune out for a while. You’re always actively flying, as well as constantly evaluating invisible sources of lift, continuously computing on the fly things like sink or climb rate and their effects on effective glide ratio and your ability to reach a specific distant point at a safe altitude. You become an expert at energy management and flying efficiently, skills incidentally that are really crucial in determining whether you survive something like a sudden engine failure on takeoff. That split-second decision of whether to turn back to the runway (yes, it can be done if high enough and perfectly coordinated on the controls) or to land ahead or to the side is much more likely to end in success if you are highly experienced at landing with no power and can make turns without slipping, or worse, skidding. A decision to turn back at too low an altitude, with the nose too high (trying to avoid the ground) and trying to hurry the turn with rudder, causing a skid, is how so many pilots end up stalling and spinning in that situation. Glider experience would go a long way toward preventing those fatal reactions.
I've had glider on the brain for the last year and a half. It looks like a lot of fun. You were up for quite a while considering it was in the winter. I'm about 3 hours from Moriarity, NM and located in the Four Corners. There's probably places to fly in UT and CO. Guess I need to start looking
Thanks for the lesson Juan. I have always wanted to try a sailplane. I hunt thermals all the time in my experimental.
enjoyed....great video and shared experience
Very cool Juan! I took a glider lesson out at Minden in Nov 0f 08. Flew out over Lake Tahoe. Beautiful way to fly!
Hello Juan!
Well I made it to your neck of the woods, but I'm afraid a sailplane ride is out of the question on this trip.
I'm having transmission issues here in Yuba City. I was coming down from Oregon through the Redwoods, and it started acting up. I made it to Yuba City and am camping out on the BLM land near Smartsville. I had hoped SO bad to be able to get up to the dam while I'm so close, but I can't risk driving this van right now.
Hopefully, I can get all of this sorted out and can still get up there and see that.
If not, I'll just stay in the loop by watching your videos.
Thanks and keep up the great work,
Eric Cox
That is a nice glider port, I took my dad there for his first glider flight also
Great! Tysm for the journey! I always wanted to fly gliders, even when a nervous flyer. I'm too old and things, to do it on a real hobby basis, but I should at least look into a ride/lesson and do it at least once! I am a sailor, so relate to the strings. Incredibly important low tech gear when you ride the wind!
DANG!!! that is SO cool! I gotta find a place to get some stick time! Great video! thanks man!
I did a ride in 1 years ago because a friend owned one so she took me up once and another rifle I paid for when a group of us from work went out to take an introductory flight and it was a lot of fun but I didn't go for the certificate.
Yes Juan, lead any roll with the rudder. Lots of adverse yaw with a high aspect ratio wing and no slipstream going past your rudder.
Very well done Juan. Thanks 🎸
Not sure if I could get comfortable in a sailplane. But I would give it a try.
Wish my paint job was that glossy on my Varieze. Good flight.
I know the people who can make it shin like that. But it is not cheap.
Juan - this was great seeing this kind of video. For many reasons. I was in your position when I began soaring. Already a commercial pilot and wanted to try something new and exciting. Holy cow am I now addicted. 😬 If you ever want to go for a flight with me out of Vero Beach, FL let me know. We're just a few clicks from the TRV (formerly the VRB) VOR. Fly that 310 like I would 😁 take care Juan.
-Jason
That is so cool my friend I was wondering if you was ever going to be in a glider I love gliders to they are cool kind of different with no motor on them it's awful quiet for sure way to go that was good between you and Charlie I enjoyed watching you guys alright will take care of my friend and God bless way2go🙏🛩👍
I love gliders. Keep flying the-beautiful and quiet-who needs a motor?
That was a fun ride along. Yah string, that was interesting.
Thats awesome! Amazing that you can stay aloft that long on a basic day(and i'm sure you can find more). Looks fun!
I took my rides and lessons at Wonder Valley near Fresno back in 1975 or so. Glider flight is the best.
Hey great to see you flying a Sailplane/Glider Juan. I learnt to fly a Sailplane/Glider after learning to fly powered aircraft. I felt it helped my overall confidence in flying and honed my flying skills as once you're committed to land on final approach, there's no thrust leavers/throttles to go around on a missed approach.
You will make a great glider pilot, I can’t wait.
Such a beautiful thing, gliding 👍😎
For an RC pilot this was very interesting - I learned a lot. Thanks
What do you fly Moira and where are you on the planet?
Roger (Lake District, England)
Apart from a taster lesson in a Cessna, I fly RC but I am passionate about aviation and maybe one day before I hit 80 I will go for my PPL. As to where on the planet, i rest my bones in the soil of the Emerald Isle - Ireland 😄
I also fly RC Moira. Electric Sailplanes and Slope aircraft. What do you fly?
My limited glider time was the most peaceful time flying, ever. I could not stay behind the tow plane without instructor intervention, but then I only flew a glider twice.
Great video. I just started flying again after a 27 year hiatus and since I watched your video I’m thinking about taking a glider lesson. There’s a glider club near Benton, TN. close to where I live. Enjoy your channel.
My grandfather on my mom's side was good friends with a chap by the name of Hawley Bolus who lived with his family in the north side of the San Fernando Valley here in L.A. Hawley was credited with some of the design of the Spirit of St. Louis and had his own passion for gliders & paragliding, so much so he built his own line of gliders out of wood and they were gorgeous. I inherited the pictures that grand dad took being a amateur photographer and they are nice, B & W 8 x 10 glossy's that I need to find a home for. Maybe the Bolus family is still around.
It's the fan in front that keeps the pilot cool and calm.
0:18...strong dog pushing that glider all by himself!
At 7:50, that's a roll on a point. a Dutch roll is different. Well done, BTW. Most students take a while to get this right. Unlike most sailplanes, the ASK21 is reluctant to stall (mushes, mostly) and spin. Since we spend a lot of time close to stall speed, inadvertent stalls/spins are sometimes inevitable. We take our students up in a Blanik L23 or Puchacz SZD 50 to show how most sailplanes behave.
Flew in one glider flight in Utah and great lifting thermals along the uenta mountain range
This is Great!! I am thinking of getting my glider add on also!!! Welll Done!!
Glad to see you are moving closer to real flying from machine operator, final step hang glider :)
This was very interesting. Thanks Juan!👍
Brings back my own first glider flights. Thanks!
Great! Thank you for sharing. I was just at our airport yesterday, there will be a fly in next month that is always fun even if your on the ground. I've been up once in south Florida can't wait to do it here in Pa.
I am about 1.5 hrs from Williamsport, Pa where they make the Lycoming engines and also about 2 hrs from Lock Haven, Pa where the Piper's were use to be made.
Winch Launch, the only way to travel! Back home in the UK Gliding is not so heavily regulated as it appears in the US. It fairly common for folks to clock up 20-25 hours on Gliders and then transition to powered to lower the cost of a PPL. Been a few years since I last flew but personally I don't like powered as I don't have the visibility I get in a glider, it feels claustrophobic but each to their own.
When do you get to buzz the tower? Another excellent video. Thank you!
I'm a paragliding pilot and definitively recommend you to give it a try. Sure is slower, but freedom is incredible and thermal catching awesome. Once you do 8m/s up at 30km/h all rollercoasters looks like for kids xD
Thanks, Juan. I recently saw this video and had been on the fence about going for my add-on to my PP ASEL. I had my first lesson with Ben at Williams today. I showed him and the staff the link to this video.
Real Flying at last.
There is nothing else like going up at 2000'/minute in wave lift. Stubble fires in the UK would produce some incredible lift but required 40+ degrees of bank to stay in the tight vortex from the fire. New farming regs. have all but eliminated stubble fires.
gliders every year @Marfa. Tx...... love your channel Jaun
Did yeah get to meet Rex and his 2 son's while you were there? Great people ive been friend's for years. I used to spend my summers on strike teams all over the state battling wildfires with those boys. lotta fun
Nice video Juan. I took sailplane flying lessons in my college years but not flown one since. Make me think that owning some of the current motor gliders, such as a Pipestrel Sinus, might be a nice compromise between a sailplane and a touring plane, as I believe it has better than a 30 :1 glide ratio and has extendable wing tips. Thanks!
I know this is an older video, but thanks for the information and tips from your instructor. My home flight sim has the same glider that you flew. This video answered a lot of questions I had, ie, what airspeeds to fly and traffic pattern goals. I was hoping you'd give some ideas when it was time to start back to the field when the lift goes away.
Nice to have seen you fly a glider!
The ASK21 is a wonderful glider.
Very cool video, loved everything about it.
Great fun isn't it? I never quite got my rating concentrated on my PPL but enjoyed all my flights, many at Napa doing ridge soaring, that was cool as it gets and another excuse to go to wine country. Had enough glider time to feel comfortable about an engine out situation in powered flight.
Nice job Juan ! I LOVE gliders ! I'm looking at buying a GROB G109.......a bit different than the Learjets I fly for a living !!
Take the 109b its the better one.
Regards from Germany
That was fun, I'm glad I found this video.
Juan thank you so much for the tutorial. As a young adult my dad took us kids up a few times in the Illini Glider Clubs Swietzer 232 quit a few years back. You made me feel like I was flying with him again. Dads gone now but you put a glow in my day. Thanks again. ps did you get your glider certificate? I hope so.
Thanks Doug!...not yet.
Here's hoping you can soon. As my dad said all the time ; those darn jet jockeys should learn in gliders first then they will never wonder whats under their good side. LOL. Thanks.
@@blancolirio Did you get your rating yet?
I’ve been to the Swietzer factory above Elmira NY. My father would tow gliders with his Maule M7
That was awesome! Thanks for sharing.
I joined your channel after Oroville Dam, so I completely missed this early video.
Juan looked like a lot of fun soaring around up there in the sail plane . Have you soloed & had sail planes added to your pilots license by now in July 2019 ?
Corporate pilot here...I’ve always wanted to learn to do this! It was actually a glider flight ride near Tahoe that got me into aviation many years ago. Its so crazy to see how quiet it is in there and then look at the panel and see that the altimeter is not unwinding!!! As a normal pilot those two things seem really unnatural!
Man this video got me thinking maybe it’s time to work on that rating too! 🤙
PS. So did you end up getting the rating?
👍👍 way too cool!!!!! I have a fish farm here in Arkansas, are those fish ponds you were soaring over. Have sent fish to CA in the past.
Hey Juan
Did you do any more gliding?
I take it you didn't get hooked ?!
Wait till you experience a 1000ft/min climb and a big cross country, that will get you hooked!!!
Man, that was awesome! I can totally see you covering the reconstruction of the spillway from a sailplane!
Do they offer charter services there? I'm going to be in that part of the country later this year. I think I've just added something to my bucket list.
Do it!
I just looked at the prices. This is a done deal! I figured it was a lot more expensive than that.
I'll probably go for the Glider Aerobatic Ride. There was something in the description about getting wild. That sound like I'd like. I've chartered a plane a couple of times and a helicopter over NYC once. I can't imagine how cool it is to not have engine noise.
Juan: Dug your channel for a long time now. Great content! Did you keep this up and get your certification? I'd love to see more sailplane content if you did and are still interested in this. Personally, I'm serious about doing this and eventually getting one of my own... It is how I want to spend my retirement. This feels like the most pure (and most affordable) way to fly. I've always loved flying since I grew up with my dad flying a single-engine Piper Palo Alto to Truckee every weekend, much of the summers and winters, (destination Northstar) - the 70's ... when that was all more affordable!