Cairngorm Gliding Club

The Club was founded in 1966 by a group of ten enthusiasts including our President Bill Longstaff, and is therefore 58 years old in 2024.  Located in an area of outstanding natural beauty and breathtaking scenery within the Cairngorms National Park, our site is an ideal soaring location with superb conditions for ridge, wave, thermal and cross-country flying.

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The airfield is situated 860ft above sea level and consists of a single grass strip 900m in length, oriented 21/03, with the meandering river Feshie on the west side and forested mountain slopes to the east.  The ridge works best in north-west to south-west winds, rises to 3.600ft and can be followed for at least 10km to the south.  At the back of the ridge impressive cliffs tower over the remote Loch Einich, and these massive granite buttresses can sometimes be soared in north-easterlies.  There is also a smaller 'north bowl' which often works when we are operating from the 03 end of the runway.

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The nearby peaks including Braeriach, Ben Macdui, Cairn Toul and Cairn Gorm itself provide almost unlimited mountain soaring opportunities.  Wave can be encountered at any time of year, and in any wind direction, the current altitude record being 28,534ft.  We also run an annual Munro-Bagging competition in which pilots attempt to fly accurately over as many Munro peaks as possible.

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