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Aviation History
1955
1955 - 0180.PDF
180 FLIGHT 11 Feb. 1955 At an R.A.F.G.S.A. inter-club rally at Lyneham last summer. A Gull IV, Weihe, Tandem Tutor and Sky are among the aircraft. SERVICE GLIDING and SOARING —as a Sport: Some Thoughts on the R.A.F.G.S.A. By KENNETH OWEN AN air-minded visitor from another planet—or fromFrance—would certainly be surprised on arrival inL this country at the lack of financial encouragement given to any form of flying as a sport. If he were sufficiently naive as to expect enthusiasm for the sport in the Ministries and Services concerned with the air, then the wall of official apathy—or, at best, of toleration—against which British enthusiasts have banged their heads so often, would come as a great shock. The object of this article, however, is not to discuss the meritsand demerits of possible Government support for gliding or powered flying, interesting as that subject is, nor to point to thelack of logic in the present national situation. It is to look at sporting gliding in the R.A.F. in relation to the national picture,to discuss some of the activities of the member-clubs of the R.A.F. Gliding and Soaring Association, and to add a few personal com-ments on the present position of sporting flying in a flying Service. There are three forms of gliding which take place under R.A.F.auspices. Under Home Command comes Air Training Corps gliding, in which A.T.C. cadets receive elementary training ongliders owned by the Service and financed from public funds. The stimulation of recruiting appears to be the main purpose ofthis scheme, under which a large number of cadets are each given a small amount of training. Secondly, the gliding hours flownby Service cadets and apprentices at Cranwell and Halton are also performed in R.A.F. machines and at public expense.The third aspect of Service gliding, the sporting aspect, is the responsibility of the member-clubs of the R.A.F. Gliding andSoaring Association, which is financed entirely from non-public funds and the pockets of club members. The Association itselfreceives a small annual payment from the R.A.F. Sports Board, plus membership fees from clubs and individuals. From themoney provided by the Sports Board an annual subsidy is paid by the Association to each club in this country, broadly on thebasis of the number of hours flown by the club during the previous year.There are at present eight U.K. clubs belonging to the Associa- tion, at Middleton St. George, Feltwell, Lyneham, St. Athan,Biggin Hill, Boscombe Down (now moving to Andover), Scamp- ton and Little Rissington. (The last three of these are to enterteams for this year's National Gliding Championships, the Little Rissington entry being captained by A. Cdrc. G. J. C. Paul,D.F.C., the Association's chairman.) In addition there are clubs at R.A.F. stations in the Middle East, while the R.A.F. in Germanyhas its own Association of 2nd T.A.F. Gliding Clubs, in both cases associated with the R.A.F.G.S.A. An indication of the extent of the Association's activities wasgiven at its annual meeting in London last month. Statistics showed that last year some 9,500 launches were logged, an increaseof 2,000 over 1953, and average membership over the year had increased to 500. In addition the 2nd T.A.F. clubs in Germanyhad achieved over 15,000 launches. The enthusiasm of the members of the G.S.A. clubs needs noexplanation for anyone who has himself known the unique feeling of soaring flight. But what of the philosophy behind the encour-agement of such activities in the R.A.F.? Why is it necessarily a good thing to have Service gliding clubs?Again, to those bitten by the gliding bug, the answer is obvious. But it is as well to mention a few aspects of this philosophywhich do not depend on personal experience and which are relevant and important. The fact that they are so often ignoredby those who regard flying and gliding as things apart—and who really should know better—is a matter of extreme concern. The acute problem facing the R.A.F. today, and which is doubt-less a major cause of recruiting difficulties, is that the technical and administrative manpower required to operate and maintainaircraft is so great that the persons who fill these posts can see no connection between their duties and flying. In the past, whenthe Service flew simpler and less expensive aircraft, it was com- mon for every man on the station to have the opportunity to fly.Nowadays Service flying is a formal and costly operation involving much preparation and complicated machinery and, inevitably,many R.A.F. men are out of touch with it. To correct this lack of contact between flying and those who areairmen only in name is the primary purpose of the Gliding and A visitor to the R.A.F.G.S.A. Lyneham rally was the E.T.P.S. Sky, which headed the team class in the 1953 British Nationals.
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