Congratulations to Andrew Roos on running what, from all accounts, appears to have been a very successful Ab Initio course (see his report). Also, a big word of thanks to Paul Bailey for getting the winch operation going again.

Some of the ‘Yuppies’ in the club may well earn a phenomenal amount per hour while sitting behind desks in their 9 to 5 jobs and may well feel it is beneath their dignity to dig holes, lay concrete, sweep hangars, paint, etc, etc on Work Party Day. I feel sorry for them! In previous years jobs were identified well in advance, then categorised and a Team Leader for each section was appointed. These T/Leaders then chose their team members and co-ordinated the requirements for each particular job in their section. This was all done at least 10 days before the Work Party date and a comradie feeling of “belonging to a team” had already developed long before the actual day arrived. This year, the Work Party, which was to have been held on the 7^th October, had to be cancelled by the Committee just three days before, because the well tried and tested procedures of past years, as described above, were not yet in place!  A sad state of affairs indeed!.
However, having had my say, please read carefully the article, in this issue, which discusses some new thinking regarding the Work Party. (Not forth coming!). Perhaps a compromise solution can be found which caters for all individuals in the club. Some people enjoy working alone, some like to work in teams, some like to stand around talking and think they are working, some like to work alone but with some hired help, and some think the status quo should remain – that is, the same few dedicated members still doing all the work while they fly!
Let’s have your views on this subject for the next KK.

It was nice to have a visit from “Sammy” Samson, one of our oldest members, for a flight in the Motor Falke. Sammy suffered a stroke a few months back.

Hamba Kahle

”Beware, dear son of my heart, lest in thy new found power thou seekest even the gates of Olympus... These wings may bring thy freedom but may also come thy death."

(Daedalus to Icarus, after teaching his son to use his new wings of wax and feathers.)


“Walkabout”
Membership Matters: - Welcome to Werner Leppan, Julianne Chieppa and Allan Carson. Allan is an old WGT member and owns TWO Motor Falkes!  A welcome also to Wouter de Wit, Adraain Hepburn, Richard Cheary and Nina Grunert who joined the club after the Ab Initio course. Sebastian Siebert has become a Social Member. Brian and Sylvia Neil are back from their overseas wanderings and we hope to see them regularly.
Resignations: - We say farewell to Peter Middleton and Richard O’Molony who, both for personal reasons, have resigned. (see Richards letter to the Editor). Also Clement Johannes has decided to resign and Jonathan Jaaback has moved to Johannesburg. Colin Sanderson has had a knee operation and has decided to resign.
Club Secretary: - Quinton is doing the secretarial minutes but we are still looking for a full-time secretary to handle all aspects of this portfolio. - any volunteers?
Winch: - The Committee has given it’s full backing to the resumption of winching. Winching will take place one Saturday and one Sunday a month for the next roster period and GUU would be used solely for winching on these days. With the rising fuel costs this is good news and should attract those that felt the cost of an aerotow was becoming prohibitive.  A concrete launching strip has been cast at the 15RWY end to prevent stones being thrown up at the glider by the parachute. A dedicated radio has been made available for the winch-driver as good communication all round is imperative.  Paul Bailey is the driving force behind the winch operation - see his article ”Winch Chatter”.
Retrieve Vehicle: - A fire extinguisher has been fitted, thanks to Rien, and some over-enthusiastic Ab Initio pupil has fitted a ‘Yaw String’. The way some people drive Romeo Victor, it certainly needed one! With the warmer weather now approaching lets hope it will be efficiently used for the purpose it was designed – namely RETREIVING GLIDERS OFF THE RUNWAY – see also Duty Pilots Report.
Flight Center: - Rien is modifying the tow-out system to see if he can meet the impossible challenge of making it ‘member-proof’. Members are cunning chaps Rien – they will always find a way to break it!  
ZS- GOK: - During the LS1 inspection by Horst Mucke problems were again discovered with the wheel-box / bulkhead. Andrew Lightfoot, together with others, has spent many, many days and hours stripping and re-repairing. He is doing a splendid job and deserves our thanks for the hard work he has put in. Particular thanks to Robert and Dulcie for the hours of work they too have put in and to Horst and John Armstrong for helping Andrew with the re-assembly of the controls. To Bobby for her understanding and support.
Flying Stats: - Latest charts are on the Notice Board. Only MIV and UUA did better than budget.
Cloudbase: - The 2^nd Edition will be ready early in the New Year and will include the Chapters on Aerobatics and Wave flying. Anybody got any really good pictures we can use for the cover?
Shade-structure:  At the 15 RNY end is being moved 100m northwards. Volunteers needed.
Overweight Pilots: -The Committee has approved the use of the Twin Astir for the training and soloing of overweight pilots.
Mandatory Modifications/ Inspections:-  A.P.’s should make certain all necessary mandatory mods have been carried out . – (Item 53 of the LS1 form). Myself and Dave Starke have copies of the BGA Technical News Sheets as issued by Mike Gundry of the SSSA. This information is also available on CD. Schemp-Hirth will send technical notes by e-mail. Contact -  info@schemp-hirth.com or weinzier@schemp-hirth.com.
Annual Awards Dinner: - Date: Wednesday 15^th November. Venue: “Kelvin Grove” Grill Room. Address: Campground Rd. Newlands.  Cost: R90.00 a head. Dress: No tracksuits or sandals!  Bookings: Jacques Willig ASAP.
End of Year Camp: - 26^th Dec to 9^th Jan 2001. All single-seat gliders have been booked for this period.
Winelands Week: - 16^th Dec to 3^rd Jan 2000. Let’s make this a fun time, particularly for the instructors who work hard during the year and can look forward to some flying of their own during this period. Instruction will therefor be by arrangement between pupils and individual instructors.
Tanqua:- Alison is trying to promote an Easter Camp to this venue after attending the recent Stellenbosch Flying Club fly-in  - see her article in this issue. It sounds good. 
Pledges: - All outstanding pledge money has been repaid.
New Fuel Bay: - The concrete apron in front of the fuel bay has been completed. It was paid for by CGC as a show of goodwill to the WFC.
Fuel Price: - Price increased by 20cents to R4.40/litre.
Tug Pilots Membership Fees:- These will remain as is, namely R850 joining fee and R55/month subs..
Approved Person:-  Andrew Lightfoot has been accepted as AP. No. 20 of the SSSA.
Solo / Cleared Solo Pilots / Ratings:- Congratulations to Craig Brookson who soloed during the Ab Initio Course and also to our popular Nicola von den Heyden. Sorry I missed your Solo celebrations Nicola. Paul Baines did his power solo recently and on the flight he hit a guinea-fowl. Guess what is for dinner next week at SFC.!
Conversions: - Hans Jordan has converted to the Motor Falke – Well done Fuehrer.
Questionnaire: - It is good to see that the ‘MOP’ concept of the Vancouver Soaring Club (see KK issue 2000-05) is being put into practice. Hopefully we will also adopt their LRPC. Rob Tiffin has sent out a 24 point questionnaire to members to gauge opinions on various issues. – Please fill this in and return it as it is important. Elaborate on any other issues – the ”Keep it Short” comment should NOT put you off if you feel strongly about something!
Solo Portfolio: -  Fred Vernimmen has been asked by the Flying Panel to take on this portfolio. Pupils are asked to keep in touch with him (see his article under “Back Seat Driving”)
Badge Claims: - Congratulations to Quinton Hoole on obtaining his Gold Height and completing his Silver ‘C’. 
New Huts: - Peter Clemence has virtually completed his hut and Andrew Lightfoot, Craig Fussell and Rien de Muijnk have started on theirs.
New Club Glider:-  The Committee is considering the purchase of Rudi Schurkes’s K7 (ZS-GUZ) which he has offered to the Club at a very fair price. Hopefully this will be agreed to by the members at the forthcoming SGM.
New Syndicate Glider: - Rudi and Gerhard’s Janus has arrived from “Germany out” and it looks great. – in fact, it looks so good and flies so well that, on its maiden flight at Worcester, Horst mistook a Boeing 737 flying overhead for the Janus!
SSSA Technical Office: - In spite of decisions taken at the recent Technical Officers Meeting, there was a move afoot to hand the running of this office over to the Aero Club as a result of Jeff Harrison’s impending return to the UK. For many reasons this was bad news for all concerned, but thanks to the reactions of SSSA members, the position now is that, for the meantime at least, the status quo will remain and Peter Ashman has volunteered to take over as Chairman of the Technical Office. Peter is highly qualified for this portfolio and is currently building his own designed glider – a ‘Cheetah’.
Sliding Doors: -  Let’s have your comments on building in sliding doors at the clubhouse opening on to a patio overlooking the airfield with possibly a sun-deck.  
Committed to Landing: - Congratulation to Alison and Johnny who became engaged recently.
Spliced: - Congratulations to Hubert and Petra on their recent marriage.
Stork News: - The Stork appears to have gone on a cross-country!


FROM THE CHAIR – Alison Hultberg
Congratulations to Andre Leeb-du Toit on his excellent first issue of the Krautkoerant. Well done Andre. I have it on good authority that it was enjoyed by all.

We are indeed fortunate to have so many members who do so much on a voluntary basis and quietly get on with it. Have you noticed how broken things (and boy, can club members break things! – Ed) are quietly mended, grounds kept in pristine condition (thanks to a Garden Service!-Ed.), various LS1’s done (thanks to AP’s -Ed.), winch equipment serviced, etc, etc (mostly other dedicated members – Ed.). So if you think that the Committee are ineffectual, think again. Once again we have the ‘Talkers’ and ‘Doers’ scenario. Before you criticize, think about how you can help your club.

Andrew Roos ran a very successful Ab Initio course and a very big thank you to the instructors and tug pilots.
A decision will be made regarding the purchase of another Ka7 at a SGM later this month.

Rudi Schurkes, Gerhard Waller and Graham Anderson are almost ready to start covering the K13 wings and Dave Starke and Horst Mucke are preparing the fuselage at Dave’s factory. Thanks to you all.

Paul Bailey and his winching team have done a splendid job of getting the winch going at the beginning of the winch season. Thanks also to Paul and Andre for laying the concrete launch pad at the 15 end of the winch runway.

The summer thermals have made their first appearance (I have first hand experience of this) so get those gliders out of their cotton-wool wrappings and join us at cloud base.

And now for Tanqua:
I have just spent another wonderful weekend in the Tanqua valley at the Tanqua Gastehuis belonging to the Burger family.
AIewyn Burger and his family have a farm called "Oudebaaskraal" approximately 105 km north of Ceres on the Calvinia road. On their farm they have a large dam with incredible bird life, a large house that looks like a fort, another guesthouse next door and a ‘hunting lodge’ at the dam.  But best of all they have an airfield right next to the house!!
The main runway is 11/29 and  is 860m long and 40 METRES WIDE! There is also very good cross-runway (16/34).580m long. Coordinates are 32deg. 24.0 min. South and 19deg. 50.7min. East. Height 1172ft
What is more there are thermals that you will only see in places like the Free state and north of the Vaal.  From the main house, as one looks across the plains, one can see no less than 10 "Dusties" at the same time!  Cloud base is normally 8 - 10000 ft.
Alewyn has specifically invited the Cape Gliding Club to pay a visit. His son, Alewyn (3), is a member of the CFC having been a pupil on a recent Ab Initio course. Alewyn (2) has offered us hospitality of the highest order as you will see later on in this article. As the runway is gravel, to keep the dust level down, he will make sure that he has a water tank to sprinkle the ground periodically before take-off and until all the launches are completed. Within soaring distance from the airfield is the Swartruggens mountain range approximately 15nm to the West and approximately 30nm East is the Roggeveldberge.. There are out-landing fields everywhere as the terrain is extremely flat and virtually nothing grows there. This particular valley was once an enormous flood-plain and is quite sandy in places. (Cenozoic Sediments – Ed!)  Anyone interested in geology or paleontology would have a wonderful time.

The accommodation in total sleeps 45 people and you would be able to tie your glider down right next to the house. Two long tie-down cables will keep your glider safe when unattended. In the quadrangle in the center of the main house is a heated swimming pool and patio area to relax with sundowners at the end of the day. A real oasis.  Ester's food is something to be experienced and near the end near of the weekend you are virtually begging her to stop! (really?-Ed.). Breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks etc. seem to be never-ending, but that just goes hand-in-hand with her unsurpassed kind of hospitality.
I would like the club to consider visiting Tanqua on a long weekend – perhaps at Easter. A list of the accommodation costs and map of how to get there is available on request. (too big to attach. Ed.) Alewyn would organize transporting fuel in drums for the tugs.
Cell phones do not work there and actually stop working as you leave Ceres. What Bliss! It is a two hour drive from Ceres of which about 70km is on a dirt road.
I will be putting a list on the board for interested parties and would like to secure the Easter weekend with deposits so that we don’t have the scenario where last minute arrangements have to be made to fit people in. The normal weekend tariff from pre-dinner Friday to post breakfast Sunday is R170.00.
We do not go away nearly enough as a club and this venue is almost right on our doorstep. Let’s get motivated and go there and enjoy ourselves.

Contact me for further information. Location map on the Notice Board – also Faxed on request.
Alison.


WAAIHOEK – Sven Olivier (Safety Officer)
STALL SYMPTOMS: -
The ink was not yet dry and I had the first response to my meandering on the symptoms of stalls. Thank you Mike for your response and, as undertaken, a further and more elaborate discussion on the stall, with some direct quotes from Mike's response.

Excessive back-pressure:  "Some gliders as they near the stall get lighter stick pressures and often at the stall itself the pressure on the stick gets very light because little airflow.  Thus a far back stick is often a better indicator than excessive stick pressure." To this I only wish to add that it is also important to assure that the glider is trimmed correctly. Put differently, if the glider is not trimmed correctly you will not be able to tell whether the stick is too far back.
Nose high attitude: "Higher nose - yes usually but a secondary stall can result from a very nose low attitude.  This can happen easily if the glider is stalled, as the nose drops through the horizon and the pilot moves the stick back to maintain a normal attitude before flying speed is regained. A secondary stall results with a normal or even nose low attitude." Personally I believe that this is one of the most common (and least understood) causes of low level stall and spin accidents. The (experienced / inexperienced / tired / dehydrated) pilot believes that he is fully recovered from the stall and that the wings are unstalled, and he then completes the stall recovery by raising the nose with a view to turn onto finals (or because the ground is now really rushing towards him. He is, however, not "recovered", as one or both of the wings are again stalled in the recovery, and he spins in.
Lower than usual airspeed: "Lower than usual airspeed is again the common situation but in the secondary stall or a stall in a steep turn or pull up (say at the end of the forbidden beat up) then a stall can occur at quite a high speed."
Lack of noise: "Lack of noise is a truism only.  Some gliders have a marked change in noise but not necessarily less.  The ASW 20  I am told does this - the LS3 certainly gets more noisy.  I would say, note a change in sound, rather than less sound."
Effectiveness of controls: "Some gliders have controls that stay effective down to just on the stall and give no warning - these gliders often get a reputation as being "spin prone" as the Cirrus has in some circles.  This is because good design allows one to fly very close to the stall without much in the way of symptoms.  Then, when the glider stalls, it is pretty well without warning and may scare people."
Mike ended on the following note: "I fully agree that we can't emphasize the stall recognition too much and the only way to do this is to practice, demonstrate, and practice with our pupils.  However they should also be warned that the symptoms may differ in different aircraft, so that they should try the stall at safe altitude in any glider they fly to learn to recognize the symptoms in that aircraft." PLEASE think about the aforegoing, agree or disagree, go out and try it, and PLEASE do not have any unplanned stalls or spins.

And on the DI:-
To those of you who depend on others to have done the D.I. (or rigging of gliders) think again. If I were you I would check any glider VERY carefully before I fly it. Most certainly if I were to do any vaguely aerobatic maneuvers I would do a very careful D.I. myself. To those of you who rig gliders and who do D.I.'s (including those who oversee these processes), could you please see to it that they are done meticulously. You owe it to the people (including yourself) who are going to be flying that glider.  FLY SAFELY


BACK-SEAT DRIVING - Andrew Roos (CFI)
My sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to a very successful ab initio course. In particular I would like to thank Andre, Fred, Hans, Martin, Nicky, Paul, Peter and Rika for volunteering their free time to instruct on the course; Rien, Barry, Frans, Rico, and Rickus for tugging despite the antics of the pilots on aerotow behind them; Alison for another superb performance as the duty pilot; Nanja and Peter for their delicious catering; and Ed for his contribution behind the bar. A very special word of thanks to Rudi who lent the club his Ka-7 for the duration of the course without charge.

We had 13 pupils on the course, eight of whom were new to gliding. We were fortunate with the weather – although Monday was somewhat windy and we had to stop flying at 4:30 P.M., the rest of the week was fine. There was wave on Monday, ridge lift on Tuesday and thermic conditions on Thursday and Friday, giving us the opportunity to introduce the students to all three types of lift. During the course we flew a total of 67.8 hours – 48.4 on the two Ka-7s and 19.4 hours on the Motor Falke, which should contribute to getting the Motor Falke’s utilization figures back on budget.

But more important than any statistics was the wonderful mood of the course – from the formation of the GPU (“Glider Pusher’s Union”), the “exhibition” of digital photographs taken during the course by Adriaan Hepburn, to the impromptu recital by Chris Gippert and Julian Chieppa on the Thursday evening. It really was a great bunch of students, and the good news is that at four of them – Adriaan Hepburn, Nina Grunert, Wouter de Wit and Richard Cheary – have since joined the club. Finally, congratulations to Craig Brookson who soloed during the course.

For those who will be taking the GPL examinations in the near future, Nicky Oberhofer has organized a series of GPL lectures happening every Wednesday evening. The first one was held on 11 October, when Craig gave an excellent talk on “Airmanship and General” which was enjoyed with considerable quantities of beer, pizza and biltong. Thanks to Nicky for the organization, and I trust that the lectures to come will meet the same high standard (especially since I’m giving one of them…)

Finally I would like to mention a great initiative which is being put together by Peter Wooley with Nicky’s able assistance – a relaxed club competition which will be happening at Worcester in the near future. I think this is an excellent initiative to encourage cross-country goal-oriented flying, and Peter has gone to great lengths to ensure a competition format in which pilots of all different skill levels will be able to participate.

See you all at the competition!


Solo  Portfolio:- (compiled from notes sent to the Editor by Fred Vernimmen).  Fred would like to place more emphasis on the supervision of training and checking on pupils progress or lack of it. Initially he would like to ask pupils to report back to him, preferably by e-mail, so that he can centralize their reports and thereby give a full report at the Instructors Meetings for the benefit of all Instructors. We want to know how pupils feel about the progress of their training. This will be on a trial basis and, depending on the response received, Fred will create a database and hopefully send a status report to the Duty Instructors for each weekend so that specific problem areas, as seen by the pupil and instructors can be identified. This will not replace, but will substantiate comments in the ‘Pupil’s  Logbook’ ”.


WINCH CHATTER - Paul Bailey (Chief Winch Instructor)
Sunday 8th Oct saw the first winch day of the season and was a most successful winch day as the following statistics for the day show: - Two Instructors carried out seventeen launches amongst four pupils with height gains up to 4200’ and average flight of 10mins off average launches  to 2600’. Total flying time was 165 minutes with only one cable break on the last launch just as Andrew Lightfoot was about to be sent solo.(Very good value for money! – Ed.)

The new concrete launch pavement, 1.4 metres wide and 48 metres in length, worked fantastically well. The K7 was airborne BEFORE the end of the runway in NO wind conditions. By the end of the day, with a good 30km/hr wind, we were getting 3300” ASL launch heights.
No more stones being thrown up by the parachute against the canopy. This now paves (excuse the pun!- Ed) the way for syndicated pilots to winch as well.
The winch performed well, with not one single overrun, due to the new concept of the glider start position on the winch runway. A bed of builders stone the length of the ‘snake’ restricts overrun on taking up slack - The ‘chute is on the edge of the concrete and the glider on the stone bed.
All in all, the day went very smoothly, with first launch before 10am, and last launch at 6pm

From now until the end of January, we will be winching one Saturday and one Sunday a month, usually equally spaced in the month on a trail basis. On this day, most of the instruction, conversion and maybe even Paxes will be done on the winch. GOK will still be available with one instructor on duty on the normal aerotow.

Operational Procedures
1) All first time solo's must be checked and sent solo by designated winch instructors.
2) Re-Solo's work the same as aerotow, i.e. check flight for the 1st 5 solo's.
3) A syndicate pilot MUST be cleared solo by a senior winch instructor BEFORE being allowed to launch his glider/single  seater.
4) Do not forget to transmit blind calls before a launch. The winch now has a radio as well, so he is also warned of the impending launch. The blind call is as follows…

“Worcester Traffic, Glider GUU commencing winch launch, winch runway 15, Glider K7, two up”.

5) A winch driver-in-training must first have at least 10 winch launches BEFORE being cleared to drive the winch solo.
6) A briefing with all concerned BEFORE flying commences works well, with a complete rundown on the day's procedures. This also includes how to retrieve the wire.

Winch Duties
1) Should there be any folk who would prefer to be a winch driver, rather than doing a normal aerotow duty, please let Paul Bailey (paul@cirrlus.co.za) know so we can slot you in on the roster. This means you can now do a winch driver duty instead of an aerotow duty.
2) When 2 aerotow duty pilots are rostered on a winch day, one of these duties must be done on the winch on the respective winch days.

We look forward to a bumper season of flying this year. Please remember that especially with winch launching, safety is of utmost important. When in doubt, DON’T.
The flying panel has insisted on a high safety standard, and we have put all these things in place to keep it that way.

Happy winching,  PAUL


CHIEF DUTY PILOT’S REPORT – Louis Moore
The Retrieve Vehicle should be used primarily for improving the efficiency and safety of gliding operations. To this end it comes under the control of the Duty Pilot. The Duty Pilot should direct its usage. At the start and end of the day, by all means use it for towing club gliders to and from the launch point, but once flying commences make sure it is parked at the Flight Centre and is ready to be used to retrieve gliders from the runway.  See also my instructions in the Flight Centre.


PUBLIC RELATIONS, PUPIL LIASION and ADVERTISING – Rob Tiffin
It is very important for the club to get publicity in the local media to try to raise the awareness of gliding as a sport. This we hope will attract new members.

Last month we released a press statement to the local newspapers regarding the Ab Initio course, and we believe that the publicity we got contributed to filling the course.

We also planned a press-day during the course, but the journalists had problems and could not attend. We will explore this possibility for latter on during the year.  We are presently negotiating with the SAAF to be able to exhibit a glider at the open day at the end of October at Ysterplaat AFB.

We also intend using the email to publicise more activities to the members and we are presently working with the South Africa Weather Service on a gliding weather page.

The brochure that we have had for the past five years is to be updated and distributed in Cape Town. We also want to print a large poster publicising gliding that can be put up in all the schools and clubs.

A survey questionnaire has been mailed to members. This will give the committee vital feedback with regard to members’ feelings on issues.


CLUB AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE
 (All gliders except the K13 are serviceable.
Trailer damage to some gliders is of concern. In future members will be charged for damage due to negligence while transporting gliders and cross-country pilots are to ensure they are ofay with all aspects of de-rigging, rigging and trailer handling.
The covering of the K13 is progressing well under the direction of Rudi and Graham with Peter How providing technical advice. – Hopefully it will be ready to fly in November.
The tug, MIV, will need a frame inspection and recovering next summer. An amount of approximately R70 000 will be budgeted. Ed.)


What’s on earth is a “Wind Talker”?
Sunday 10^th September was indeed a fine NW wave day.  Early rain almost caused the cancellation of flying, as had been done on the previous day by a cautious instructor due to a strong wind.(a decision which caused some hot debate by those who had wished to fly).  Back to Sunday… thanks to the arrival of an enthusiastic Quinton Hoole, we finally got the show on the road in bitterly cold and windy conditions, as it had snowed on the Du Toits range during the night.  This eventually proved to be a very successful wave-flying day with Quinton flying GJJ to Swellendam for his Gold Height and Silver Distance, as well as a number of  “Paxes” and members enjoying lengthy and high flights in the Twin Astir.  The club is not quite dead yet, just see what you missed!

So what’s this about a “Wind Talker”?

Amongst the Sunday “Paxes” were father and daughter Adrian and Kylie Hepburn of Wilderness Paragliding Adventures (http://flywilderness.co.za).  Adrian is a dyed in the wool aviation nut and told us of his club’s revolutionary “Wind Talker” situated at their “home site” at the top of Sir Lowry’s Pass (SP) above Gordon’s Bay.  The “Wind Talker” can be reached by anybody, simply by dialing 859 5855, and can be remotely programmed to give the caller any message, but in it’s basic read-out form it gives, on a continuously updated basis, the current temperature, average wind speed and direction, as well as average wind speed and direction for the previous 20, 40 and 60 minutes.  All the resultant information gives some idea of the developing wind trend and the caller can, using local knowledge, make some assumption as to whether the air is likely to be inverted or unstable.

The installation of the “Wind Talker” cost about R10000 and was sponsored by Hunter’s Gold – perhaps if sponsorship could be a possibility in our own case, club management could look into obtaining something like this for FAWC. This way fruitless and expensive trips to a blown-out airfield could sometimes be avoided.  Alternatively, if we knew the actual ground temp and wind details, and  had the forecast predicted max, it would give “some” indication of whether the day would be soarable or not.


Bombing around Bedford - Marisa Levitt
Hi there Kkers. It has been a while since you have heard anything from the Levitts. It is also not the usual Graham Levitt writing this article, but the better half. Some time back it was Graham that did just about all the flying in the Levitt household. Well now it is my turn. While my poor husband has been strapped to his desk, I have been out flying at Sackville Gliding Club.

The club is just about 20 miles North of Cranfield on the other side of Bedford. It is still in Bedfordshire, and is situated on a farm. The club is small and informal, with an active flying membership of  approximately 20 members. The club does not encourage Pax flights. It works somewhat differently to what we are used to at the Cape Gliding Club. Membership fees are £300 per year for the whole family. Thereafter it costs about £21 for a launch up to 2000ft. The glider is free. There is no flying list and no duty pilot. The only rules that apply are safety rules. Everybody pitches in to make the flying fun for all. If all the club gliders are airborne, a syndicate glider is easily rigged. Once you are in the air you can keep the glider for as long as you like unless you made an arrangement with another pilot to have it back.

The club equipment is archaic, comprising two trainers (K2 and Bocian) and two singles (K8 and Mucha).. Then there is a host of syndicate gliders none of them younger than 25 years old. Walking into this club is like taking a step 30 years back into history. Its members are lazy and flying usually does not get off to an early start. The club also has a tug as well as a winch, but in the months I have been here I only saw the winch used once (a familiar scenario¼).

We came across this club on the BGA website. At first we thought it was a one man band and that is just what it turned out to be. When we phoned the number on the web site we did not expect much, so it was quite a surprise to hear that it was a winch as well as an aerotow club. So it was that in early spring the Levitts set off to Sackville Gliding Club. When you start off at the club you take out a months membership. In that month you fly as much as you like and at the end of it if you want to stay on you just pay the balance of your £300 for the full year.

I had 3 check flights with the CFI and was then sent off on my own in the K8. On my first flight out I thought I was not going to make it back to the field, but I did. I got a slight bit lost because the landscape can be pretty confusing. My first few take-offs and landings were also an experience to remember. They call their field flat, but I have never seen such a wobbly field in my life. In the beginning I did not know whether I should follow the rise and falls in the runway or not. I was amazed that it only took 3 check flights to go solo again. At Worcester we learned to cut the mountains while we turn and you get used that as they make distinctive landmarks. Here it is as flat as you will get and in the haze I found it very difficult to do controlled turns. How do you cut the horizon when you can’t really be sure where it is? So my first couple of solo flights were spent within easy reach of the airfield, specifically after my near miss first solo. By my 5^th solo flight the chief flying instructor decided I could take the Mucha for a flight. I managed to stay up for one hour. The Mucha has a downward sloping canopy so you get the impression that you are flying too fast. I stayed close to the airfield on this flight.

Some flights later, a lot braver, I took the Mucha out again. This time I flew further away from the field, keeping note of where I was going and finding lift every where, I decided to keep going. All of a sudden, out of reach of the airfield and height, the lift dried out. So I chose a row of possible fields, checked them out and then attempted to find some lift again. At about 900ft I decided to give it up and setoff to do my first ever field landing. I felt  extremely chuffed with myself after wards. Once down in the field I setoff  to the nearest house to make that all important call. At Sackville they do not  do road retrieves if they can help it. Some hours later the tug and a more experienced pilot arrived, a passer by was asked to run the wing and off we went. At some point I felt the glider release and we carried on to the air field. The glider that day had two out landings, for the more experienced pilot never made it back to the field. He had to out land about two fields short of the airfield. It felt strange to be congratulated on a perfect out landing, which just helped to make the whole experience more special.

On one of my more successful flights at Sackville in the K8 I pulled off at 1500ft climbed to 4000ft and setoff for Cranfield, from there I went to various other turning points. I kept my entire flight between 3000ft and 4000ft 3 hours later I landed back at Sackville. An analysis of that flight on the map indicated that I covered approximately 80km. Not bad for poor English conditions, wouldn’t you agree? This gave me hope for the future and I decided to make an attempt at flying to Husbands Bosworth (not yet accomplished). So now it is the end of August and I have been flying at Sackville since May. I have 11 solo flights in as many hours with 3 out landings under my belt.
The Levitt family hopes to see you all at Worcester in Feb. We wish you all good flying till then.


KNOW YOUR FELLOW CLUB MEMBER
“Woxie” talks to Fred Vernimmen

Pencil sketch by Sebastian Siebert

“How, and when, did it all begin Fred?”
It all began at a very early age. As is the case with most of us in gliding, I was already from an early age suffering from “avionitis”. I collected pictures, read magazines and books, and spent my spare time hanging around the local airfield in Ghent (Belgium). To fulfill my ambitions I joined the Air Cadets at the spring chicken age of 15. This was back in 19 67

Tell us more about the Air Cadets and your time spent with them.
Basically it is a ‘boy scout’ type of organization and is financially fully supported by the Air Force. Both England and the Netherlands have similar organizations. We had two years of ground school, which involved going every alternate weekend to an air force base not far from Gent. Here we were given theoretical instruction in navigation, meteorology, aerodynamics, etc. We had to write exams every year and a pass was needed to move on to the second year. We were also “military trained” with drills and drops in the countryside and salute to the flag. All in all, very militaristic and the obvious purpose of all of this was to recruit future pilots for the air force. The beauty of it was that it was for free and that the training was very thorough. These 2 years culminated then in a practical training camp of 3 weeks during the summer. These camps were very similar to the Ab Initio courses we have at our club, but they lasted 3 weeks and the pupils were expected to go solo during the camp or you were out!

When did you go Solo?.
I did my first solo flight in August 1969. Our tugs were the SV4 Stampe, very similar to the Tiger Moth. As a bi-plane they made for very good tugs as with the double wings it was easy to keep your position on tow. After these summer camps there was the opportunity to go and fly for free every weekend, weather permitting. Unfortunately the airfield where the camps were held was a bit far from home and this together with the Belgian weather meant that most of my gliding was done during the summer school holidays. At this stage I converted to winch launching as well and did most of my subsequent flying from the winch.
The air force usually checked up on you when you were in Matric to see if you were going to join up. In my case they forgot to do so and I kept on flying during my first year in varsity.
As is common among students, money was short so my gliding came to a standstill during my years at varsity. I did however do some power flying with the university club where I got a bursary to get my PPL. Unfortunately this was also the time that the Arabs decided to close the taps a bit and the fuel prices went up and we had ‘car-free’ Sunday’s. This put an end to my power flying.

You mentioned Varsity. This is obviously when you studied medicine.
Yes, I studied medicine in Belgium at the University of Ghent. After graduating I married Ginette and we emigrated to South Africa where I practiced medicine at Addington Hospital in Durban

When did you take up gliding again?
After a break of 13 years I picked up gliding again in 1984. Living in Durban, I became a member of the Howick Gliding Club and all flying was done from the winch. I really enjoyed my flying and the people at the club there. Gliding conditions were not very good - although I did manage almost to do my 5 hours from a winch launch in weak thermals. I flew just four minutes short of the 5 hours and had to repeat this task many years later. I had the same experience Fred – five minutes short!.

You then moved to Cape Town and took up a post as radiation oncologist at Tygerberg hospital. I believe that also at the National Accelerator Centre in Faure you developed the stereotatic proton beam irradiation project.
Yes, that is correct - but back to gliding…..
I flew in Howick until 1987 and joined the CGC when I moved to Cape Town. I converted again to aerotow and became an Assistant instructor in 1990, and a Full Brevet instructor in 1991. (yes, I remember- I first met you when we attended the same Instructors Course at CGC in September 1990) During that year I also completed my Silver ‘C’ with a flight in thermals to Ashton and a height gain at Vic peak. This Height Gain flight was made in a club K6 and my maximum height was around 7000 ft. The reason that I still managed my height gain was that I descended in front of Victoria Peak to about 1800 ft, based on a slight misunderstanding on what the dip on the barograph actually was supposed to be and also due to poor radio communication with my mentor-instructor who shall remain anonymous! I can assure you that Vic peak looks mighty impressive if you scrape around at the bottom of it and it takes you about a half hour to gain 1000 f//t!
During a flying camp at Calvinia I managed to get my Diamond Goal and became utterly bored cruising over the Karoo for 5.5 hrs.

Where else have you flown?
Two years ago I was on sabbatical leave at a place called Regina in Saskatchewan and did some gliding in the Canadian Prairies. Navigation here is utterly confusing for the novice, as all fields are rectangular and all look the same. The few dams and grain elevators also all look the same, but the locals seem to have developed a keen eye to identify these grain elevators (ever flown in the Free State Fred? – same problem!). Gliding conditions in summer are very good there, but occasionally you have to avoid the tornadoes although there is a good early warning system in operation.

You are a Cape Gliding Club instructor and in fact in 1991 you were awarded ‘Instructor of the Year’. In 1989 you were both Secretary of the Club and Editor of the Krautkoerant and now you are our ‘Badge Officer’ 
I have always enjoyed being an instructor mainly because I don’t like the flight to be to long, I usually get uncomfortable (I know the feeling, a bloody sore bum after half an hour in the back seat of a K7)  and bored, so I am quite happy cruising along in the valley around Worcester.

And your plans for the future?
Work commitments, both at Tygerberg and Faure, have, so far, prevented me from becoming more involved in the gliding activities. Once I retire (hopefully early) in about 7 years time I would very much like to carry on with instructing and might even go back to Europe, more specifically France to experience gliding in the French Alps.

Fred, thanks for the interview and thanks for your dedicated attitude both as Instructor and Club member.  Hopefully your children, Vanessa and Steven, will also one day actively take up the sport. I remember, as young kids, some years back they helped us on an Ab Initio course.


LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dear Editor,                                                                                                                          
Re:- Low Flying/Competition Finishes/Inspection Passes

In response to the CFI’s article in last month’s KK I would like to raise a few issues.

Firstly there is no regulation in place that prohibits flying over an airfield below 200 ft a.g.l. or any other altitude. Part 104 is not in place yet, it is a proposal, and even if it is adopted it does not prohibit flight below 200 feet over an airfield unless this is specified separately by the owner/operator of the airfield. (Confirmed with the Director, Aviation Safety, Civil Aviation Authority.)

Secondly the contention is that it constitutes an unnecessary risk to the pilot and bystanders. If you do not accept this risk do not fly aeroplanes of any kind or go near airfields. This is the nature of our sport and flying in general. In order to get off the ground and stay airborne you have to be flying at speed so whenever you land or take off you are at risk of colliding with something. In fact, because of the forward motion, you are at risk for the entire time that you are flying, both from collision and, if you do not maintain enough forward speed, from falling out of the sky.

This brings me to the requirement that low passes will only be permitted down wind.
In general this is the wrong direction because you will be pulling up away from the wind shear instead of into it and therefore risk losing airspeed and stalling. This is the reason we take off and land into the wind and it should also apply to low passes. Of course, if done with sufficient airspeed it is completely safe to do a low pass in any direction, but, if done into wind it sets the pilot up to join the normal down wind circuit and is therefore less risky traffic wise. If done down wind the pilot is flying with his back to any other traffic in the circuit except for aircraft on finals (head on) which is also not very safe.

I have been a gliding instructor and committee member, Chairman of a parachute club and Club Captain of a squash club so I can understand the tendency for committees and panels to keep on introducing new rules and regulations to control members. However in this twenty years of club and aviation experience I have come to agree with the sentiment expressed by Mike Pascoe at the last safety meeting. We need to be creating an attitude towards safety, not more regulations. At times it may even be necessary to break the rules to be safe. In addition to this, by legislating against competition finishes, we are removing the opportunity to develop and train competition pilots. At the world championships last year Alan and I were at times one of up to twenty gliders all on competition finishes at the same time. Where would we learn this crucial aspect of competition flying if not allowed to practice it at our own club?

A final thought to leave with you. What attracts people to gliding?  A lot of the time it’s the majestic beauty of a sailplane flying low over the airfield at high speed and then pulling up to convert that kinetic energy into altitude (potential energy) which is the actual essence of powerless flight. My first Pax flight was with an instructor called Bill Bean at Visantekraal in the Twin Astir. It featured thermalling, several loops and wing-overs and culminated in a low pass into wind along the active runway. I was hooked for life!

Have you ever seen any promotional gliding video that does not feature competition finishes, low passes, beat ups or whatever you want to call them?  Lets keep the fun and safety in our sport, not kill it through over regulating it.

Chris Way.
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Dear Editor,
Re:- Ab Initio Course – September 2000

I would like to convey a very special thankyou to all the instructors and organizers of the recent Ab Initio course, which proved to be a resounding success.  The high level of camaraderie between fellow students and the excellent interaction of the students with the instructors made the week most enjoyable. 

Of the many good things that came from the course was the establishment of the G.P.U. (Glider Pushers Union) by the student pilots.  Besides briefings in the mornings the G.P.U. members would have their own meeting to discuss covert operations and special motivational tactics for those students who were not pulling their weight.

Alison ran a tight ship from the ground station or Death Star as it was known by the G.P.U. –( this due to the fact that Alison was affectionately named “Darth Vader” by the G.P.U. members because of the unique way in which her radio transmissions were made - with well timed static interruptions!) and everybody knew exactly where they were supposed to be and when.  A vital factor in the success of the ground operations was the Runway Retrieve Vehicle. This was the first time the RV had been used on a course and it has more than proved its worth. Many thanks to the designers and builders of ‘Romeo Victor’.  A special thanks to the tug pilots for hauling us all up there over and over again, sometimes with some interesting aerotow aerobatics by the students. 

Andrew Roos and the instructors ran an excellent operation – their patience and effort is very much appreciated by all the students.    

My special thanks to Nicky Oberhofer, Hans Jordan and Martin Grünert for that final “push out of the nest” so to speak and some very important wake-up calls in the last few flights before solo.  The solo was quite unexpected- thanks to Nicky who nonchalantly hopped out of the glider just after we had pushed onto the runway.  I don’t think there is a faster way to drain all the blood from your face or to turn it quite so cold, but once you’re up there the hours of drilling takes effect and you just fly the bird.  Although your stomach is in your throat most of the time, the feeling is fantastic and, as I was later told, there will never be another flight like the first one.

Last but not least, a big thank you to Nanja for the excellent catering during the week. (the roast I had on Tuesday evening was almost as good as  my mothers Sunday roasts! – Ed.)     

Craig Brookson


“Darth Vader”  calls the pupils to attention while the Fuehrer (Hans Jordan) takes the salute at a DI parade.     (Cartoon by ‘Boet” )

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Re: - Resignation R. O’Molony

Dear Editor,
My personal commitments and overseas travel requirements are not compatible with giving the club the attention it deserves, nor being able to fly regularly enough to warrant remaining a member. I will continue to promote the club and hope to visit from time to time.
Please thank all for the wonderful comradie I have enjoyed and hope the Club goes from strength to strength in the future.
Regards,
Richard O’Molony


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            1) Magellan MAP 7000 GPS Receiver

• Cartographic map displays aircraft position, controlled and special use airspace and complete Jeppesen database of airports, VORs, NDBs, DMEs and Intersections. Accepts optional regional cartridges for enhanced terrestrial data. Easy-to-use, menu-driven user interface. 10-channel Magellan GPS receiver. Alpha or nearest database search functions. 10 reversible, editable flight plans of 20 legs each. 100 user waypoints. Flight plans can be viewed on summary page or graphically on map display. Nearest / Emergency Search for 10 nearest airports, VOR’s, NDB’s, intersections and user waypoints.

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2) ASW 19B
Model: 1978. Construction Number: 19280. Total Hours: 985,   Launches:  655.  Condition: top
Equipment: Standard instruments, Club SC& Vario, Radio: Dittel ATR 72c,
Bohli Compass 46 MFK, Solar Panels, Oxygen system, new Wedekind-L hotelier  locks, new water tanks, parachute, closed trailer, ground transport equipment, valid LS 1.
Price: N$ 130 000.00 negotiable. Contact: Heidi Snyman Tel: (+) 264 64 400331 Fax: (+) 264 64 405850.
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 3) Scheibe SF 34 B
Double Seater for training and performance.
Model: 1982 . Wingspan: 15,8m Condition: top. Equipment: Standard instruments, Club SB10 Vario, Radio: Dittel ATR 720A, Oxygen System for both pilots, turn and bank instrument, ground transport equipment, closed trailer, valid LS 1, all modifications have been carried out. Price: N$ 160 000,00 negotiable. Contact: Hilmar or Christa Knupp. Tel:(+) 264 64 400202 W or 402443 H    Fax: (+) 264 64 400253

4) ASW 19B. ZS-GNE
 Works No. 19339. Instruments – full house. Alison Hultberg  (021) 854 4094,  082 726 7386.

5) HANGAR
T-Hangar , Concrete floor, electricity. R50 000. Contact Sandy Hultberg.

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1970 Model, Construction No. 46143, Hoffmann propeller,  Stamo 1500cc Engine, R100 000. Contact Allan Carson on 083 302 1998

 7. The Best and only Janus C in South Africa – ZS-GMR
Janus C.  Serial No.119. 20m Wingspan. Manufactured 08-10-1980. New Fuselage. Retractable wheel mod 295-21 fitted November 1984. Nose-hook. Re-sprayed with two-pack system. 1690Hours. Launches 1030.

In both cockpits: ASI in KPH. Altimeters (Ft. / m). Metric Vario. Compass. SR 800 flight computer. Oxygen. Dittel FSG40 720 . Comet trailer. Tow out gear for Airfield.
Always Hangared & rigged since new. Price R 280,000.00
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8. Schleicher Ka 6 - CR - 1965, ZS-GDJ.
Recently re-sprayed white and blue. Open trailer, wing supports, tail dolly, wheel dolly, tail tow hitch, canopy and wing covers. Instruments:- Audio variometer plus mechanical variometer, Dittel multi-channel radio, ASI and altimeter, Oxygen complete. New parachute and canopy. Set of plans. Hangered at Bloemfontein Gliding Club.LS1 September 2000. Price R45 000-00.Contact Len Hattingh at 051- 436 1946 or Danie van Niekerk at 051 4461762 or 082 852 4430 (Chairman: Bloemfontein Gliding Club)

ELECTRONIC PAYMENT OF ACCOUNTS
Accounts should always be in credit – if not you may find yourself grounded!  Should you wish to pay your account directly into the club account at ABSA, please get the details from Barbara Anderson at 976 5154. PUT YOUR NAME ON THE DEPOSIT SLIP IN THE SPACE HEADED “REFERENCE”.

NEXT KRAUTKOERANT – JANUARY 2001
My sincere thanks to Alison Hultberg, Sven Olivier, Andrew Roos, Rob Tiffin, Paul Bailey, Fred Vernimmen, Marisa Levitt, Craig Brookson and ‘Boet’ Coetsee for their contributions to this issue of the Krautkoerant. The next Krautkoerant should appear mid-January 2001 and the deadline for copy is 15^th December.