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Aviation History
1962
1962 - 0872.PDF
870 *< FLIGHT International, 31 May 1%2 GLIDING 1962 "Is it practical to operate gliders and aeroplanes from the same airfield ?..." Private View BY ANN WELCH l S it practical to operate gliders and aeroplanes from the same airfield ? Is it really acceptable to have aeroplane first soloists flying about with winch wires sticking up in the air? Is it sensible to give a gliding club a lease on an airfield from which someone might want to run a charter or regular service at a later date? These are real problems in any small country where land is expensive, but they can be overcome if a proper system is beaten out in advance, and if there is genuine co-operation between the two operators. The Swiss, with the same problems, fly gliders and light aeroplanes from smaller fields and at a greater density than we would be likely to want here, and manage to remain safely at peace. It is, of course, necessary for both parties to understand what the other is trying to achieve, and to remember that restrictions on flying mean, quite simply, reduced income. Unneccesary restric tions cause nothing but friction and intolerance. For instance, if an aeroplane—even one carrying fare-paying passengers—is coming into a field where continuous winching is going on, it is not nec essary to stop winching 20min before the scheduled time of arrival of the aircraft. To do so is almost to guarantee that the aircraft will arrive late and fray tempers all round. If co-operation is good, and the gliding people know that the aeroplane operators wish to reduce interference to the minimum, it is enough to signal to them when the aeroplane actually appears, whereupon they can do whatever has been agreed with the minimum delay. At one site, where irregular aeroplane arrivals use the same runway as the gliders, this system works perfectly well—the runway is com pletely cleared before the aeroplane can complete its circuit, and the gliders have started again before the aeroplane has taxied to its park and shut down. If both are doing training from the same site, then it is necessary to divide the airfield. If possible the gliding club should be given the choice of precise take-off direction, as the requirements of a winch-line are probably more critical than the needs of light aero planes. If the line is slightly out of wind, then the aeroplanes should operate on the upwind side, so that they are not interfered with by descending cables. If both sides are clubs, there is money to be saved and made by running joint ground facilities. If the density of traffic is really high, then it is obviously better to have only one sort of flying from the site; but, if both units are small, or if one flies a lot and the other only a little, then the only real difficulty in combined operations is the human one. The enthusiasm for gliding competitions is remarkable and rather extraordinary. Anyone would have thought that there is quite enough of a challenge and competition with the elements in trying to get the glider to a goal, without wanting to do it in close company with dozens of others. After all, one of the charms of gliding is supposed to be the solitude—high and alone in the air, peering down at the insignificance of the human race from a lofty perch, etc, etc. Not a bit of it; find 20 gliders and the prospect of a good day, and they won't spread far and wide in solitude. Not they; all of them will troop round and round in the same thermals, constantly in danger of scraping off each other's lovingly polished paint. Things have, in fact, reached such a pitch that the National Championships are swamped. Last year 92 gliders were accepted and 96 turned up, the top of the waiting list still forlornly waiting. It is hard to discover the reason for this enormous interest. People do not do it because it is the sign of an active and healthy state of affairs in a sport; they do not work that way. For only a relatively small proportion is there any hope of getting into the British team. It is expensive. Why, then ? The answer undoubtedly is that competitions are fun. There is good flying to be had: fun (although sometimes exhausting) for the retrieve crews; and rivalry which is fierce but friendly. It is not that the charm of flying in solitude has departed, but that there is an excitement in endeavouring to extract more out of each thermal, and to obtain a finer liaison between mind, body, tool and the elements than the other man. It is not a question of the biggest engine or the most expensive ship. Even today, in gliding, the machine is less important than the man—and he can enjoy a good party.
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