Latest news from the Club

Weekend of 1st & 2nd March

Members of the Club are currently in the process of building a full sized gliding simulator. Many of the larger Gliding Clubs have them, and they quickly become a useful tool for the instructors when teaching new student pilots. Remarkably we now have at least seven new members who are under 18, and we need to keep them enthused regardless of the weather.

We recognise two potentially big advantages of using a simulator, which are ~ firstly, a significant reduction in the number of flying hours (and therefore the cost) before the student reaches the solo flying stage, and secondly, the ability to provide basic lessons for new members even if they are dogged by successive weekends of bad weather.

The basic idea is to start with a written-off glider fuselage without wings, and to find a realistic space in which to install it. The fuselage is equipped with electrical step motors to detect control movements, which are linked to a computer using flight simulator software. This projects realistic views of flying from Feshie airfield onto screens surrounding the installation. We are using a large re-furbished caravan to contain the system, which should provide space for pre-lesson briefings, spectators and document storage as well as the pilots themselves.

The system isn't yet finished but the elements are slowly coming together and it should be working within the next few months. Many members have contributed their time and effort, and donated materials etc, but we would particularly like to thank Nick Norman for leading the techie side of it with computer wizardry, and Tony Cresswell for leading the team re-furbishing the old caravan. The photos will give some idea of the challenges they faced. Photos by Tony Cresswell and John Smyth.

Initially somewhat dilapidated, "The Hilton" as it was affectionately known, has been completely stripped down and rebuilt without windows to provide a perfect darkroom inside which the simulated flight views will be projected. Here at the very beginning of the project, club members are assessing the problem of shoring up the bank, trimming trees and clearing debris from the interior.

An inside view of the "Simulator Hall" with the reconstruction work well under way. The floor, walls and roof have been extensively repaired and strengthened as required, and most of the windows have already been blocked off. A whole new interior shell has been made with studding and insulated panels. When the glider fuselage is installed, the remaining windows will be covered, creating a pitch-black auditorium space.

The basic shell, from an insurance write-off. The wings were damaged beyond repair but the cockpit, seats and instrument panels will become the core of the simulator. One of the original push-rods can be seen sticking out of the truncated fuselage on the left. This and other controls were linked via step motors to a computer running flight simulator software.

A temporary scaffold frame has been built to assist with the manhandling job of "posting" the glider fuselage sideways through the window.

The old glider "PK" is safely installed. The team members on that day included Tony, Stewart, Nick, Craig, Stephen, Howard, Mike and Gaby, but many others have contributed to this essential project.

Weekend of 18/19 January

We don't normally expect January to be any good for gliding, but there was one notable weekend this year. We share two of the best photos here, from Saturday 18th, although the following day was brilliantly sunny too.

In the first photo by Stewart Hills we see the afternoon shadows falling across Glen Einich from about 4,500 feet looking east. Almost all of the loch is in shadow, and we can see low cloud encroaching from the southern side of the mountains.

New member Rhona Paton (14) from Aviemore, who attends Grantown Grammar school, was lucky enough to hitch a ride in the mighty ASH two-seater with Nick Norman for a memorable trip around the Cairngorms. She took the second photo, showing the low cloud hugging the southern slopes of the mountains.

She writes: "Everyone at the club was really welcoming and even managed to make Mum feel (slightly) comfortable with letting me go flying! I was spoiled rotten with the blue skies and stunning views. It's amazing how small everything looks from 6,700ft! It was fantastic to fly almost as far as Braemar. I loved every moment I spent up in the gliders or at the club itself, and I am well and truly hooked!"

Later the same day, Rhona had an instructional flight in one of our two-seat trainers, and apparently enjoyed learning the basics for herself. See you again soon, Rhona!