WOXIE’S WORD – Editorial

· The Winelands Week was attended by a fair number of members and visitors. It was particularly good to have Sarah and Bruce with us again. Un-seasonal wave conditions prevailed on a number of days and when the wind wasn’t blowing it was hot – bloody hot in fact! Two members suffered heat-stroke/dehydration reminding one of the need to drink plenty of water in such conditions.

· A gesture, by over 40 club members, who so willingly contributed to the needs of one of our Tug Pilots, is greatly appreciated. Your accounts will be debited with R22.00. Good to see that camaraderie exists within the club.

· We are on the brink of another AGM – (28th Feb), that is before the next issue of the KK. So lets talk about the process of recruiting Able, Interested, Responsible and Enthusiastic members to take the reigns of club management and guide our organization through the year ahead. Apart from normal committee members, this time the recruitment job is especially critical as we are looking for both a new Chairman and a new Secretary. Being Chairman is more than merely chairing meetings, and being Secretary is more than writing up the minutes! We will also need a Maintenance Officer and a Facilities / Social Manager.

It’s not easy to find members who are prepared to put in their own time and do work on the committee. Potentially it can be a lot of fun and a chance to enrich your involvement in gliding and in the club. But it’s also more than just meeting once a month to discuss club affairs. It actually IS work, sometimes quite a lot, but varying in degrees and at different times.

Members voted onto the committee who are not prepared to apply themselves are therefore worse than merely having the posts stand vacant. How often have you heard something along the lines of “I’m a professional/I have my own business, I work hard all week in order to come and enjoy myself at the club, I’m not on this committee to do a whole lot more hard work”. But because it’s so difficult to find GOOD committee material, sometimes, unwilling members are cajoled into joining the committee and the result is a weak committee and a poorly run club. You and I loose out at the end of the day.

So back to the beginning: YOU, as an Ordinary member of the CGC, are earnestly urged to think about who you would like to see on the new committee. Perhaps you yourself have something to offer – if so give your name to one of the committee members, or ask one of your buddies to propose you. Otherwise please ponder the issue and try to come up with some suggested names for office-bearers, and also try to persuade others to stand for election.

The club has grown enormously and owns and manages a lot of valuable aircraft and equipment. There’s also the whole Worcester scene to look after and also the new A.R.O. (Aviation Recreation Organisation) issues which involve greater responsibility to keep in line with. It is imperative therefore that we find a strong management team. The bottom line is that we are appealing to YOU – please come forward and offer your services.

· The results of the “MOP” make interesting reading – see rob Tiffin’s summary report on page 4 and also the detailed results in the Appendix.

· Have you ever considered how many of our glider pilots are Commercial Pilots – particularly Airline Pilots? Makes you think doesn’t? I remember Chris Langeveld, himself an airline pilot, insisting that his daughter, Rene, complete an Ab Initio course with us before even thinking of taking up a flying career. Some names that come to mind are: - Martin Brandon-Kirby (Air Namibia), Mattias Suter (Crossair), Rene Langeveld (Airlink), Paul Ireland (SAA), Lawrence Ireland (Comair ), Andre van Rensburg ( Air Maritius), Piet Truter ( SAA), ‘Bomber” Jackson (SAA retired, now flying for Searay, Frikkie Le Roux (SAA retired), There are others with Com Ratings and those working towards a Com. rating such as Dieter Schwarz who, like the Ireland brothers, was ready for solo at 14 years of age. Having finished Matric, and having a PPL, Dieter goes to a flight school for 8 months to do his Com training. (see the article “From Ab Initio to Pax Rating” for some of ‘our’ airline pilots stories – pg9)

· Dog owners should take note of Dave’s letter to the editor regarding dogs on the airfield. Also, at the camp site – one wonders whether 2 year old Donavan will ever get over the traumatic experience of being “played with’ by a dog fully his size? Also, a ‘landmine’, carefully laid by a large black dog outside my hut, was upsetting to me, particularly when the dog owner who, having been made aware of it, did absolutely nothing about removing it!

· It should not be necessary to have to say this, but if you bring guests to the clubhouse, remember it is only common courtesy to introduce them to your fellow club members. They themselves will feel more at ease and the members will feel happier when their facilities are overrun by ‘strangers’!

· Chris Gippert’s article is a must for any aspirant glider pilot thinking of attending an Ab Initio course – pg5.

· Remember, the Krautkoerant is the ‘members newsletter’ so feel welcome to contribute, either with articles or letters to the Editor.

Hamba Kahle,

Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.
Good judgment comes from experience. Unfortunately, the experience usually comes from bad judgment.

“Walkabout”

Membership Matters: - Welcome to Irishman, Tom Heaslip, who will be visiting us annually from October - April to take up gliding again. Tom was a co-founder of the Ulster Gliding Club back in 1954. Also, a welcome to Andrew Standing.

Resignations: - Bill Maliepaard, Andre Potgieter, and D Cornelius have resigned.

AGM: - This will be held on the 28^th February.

February Braai: - Rico has invited everyone to a braai at his farm at the end of February – details later.

Ab Initio Course: - Sunday 8^th to Thursday 12^th April 2001 to avoid clashing with the clubs Easter weekend activities.

Aero Club Annual Membership: - Recently you probably received a Pro Forma Invoice for your Annual Subscription – Please do not pay this account. It will be paid by the CGC on your behalf and your account debited.

S.A. National Team: – Congratulations to Sven Olivier who has been ranked No.7 and will be the Reserve Pilot for the SA Team in the 27^th World Gliding Championships to be held in Mafikeng at the end of the year. (see also page 7). By the way, the organizers are still looking for volunteers to help with the running of the event.

“Cross-country School”: - Rob has a proposal for such a school. More later when details have been worked out.

Flying Matters / Duty Pilot: -

CDP to place early flyers back on the end of the flying list so that they get the chance for another longer flight.
Names on flying list non-transferable.
Monitoring of late arrivers and early leavers.
Visiting pilots to be supervised by a club member.

New Gliders: -

Bill Griffiths, together with Sue, have completed the rebuild of the wrecked Astir Bill bought from Underberg. Bill proudly test flew ZS-GJW (“Party Girl”) on the 4^th of January nearly 20 months after starting the re-build project. (we look forward to a promised article from Sue on rebuilding a glider from a wife’s point of view).
Rico Suter and Rien de Muijnk have bought the L- Spatz recently imported from Germany.

Hangars: -

Rudi and Gehard have done a magnificent job on their 200 sq. meter hangar.
Alison has bought Sandy’s hangar / flat (“Jonaskop”).

Huts and Caravans: -

Sandy has bought Rien’s caravan and Adrian has bought Alison’s hut.
Caravan sites are not freely transferable between club members – allocation to be based on a written application.

Site Lessor’s Agreement: - Rob is in the process of drawing this up for all site / hangar / caravan owners.

Club Equipment: -

For some time now a broken wing-dolly, for a club glider, has been lying in the hangar. It would be nice if those few people that fly this particular glider take steps to repair it. This is not the M.O. ’s responsibility – his approach would be the same as mine – i.e. do it yourself (or more likely, “do it your b….. self!). Also, a retrograde trend is creeping into our operations. Some years back I made tail-dollies and tow-out bars for all club gliders so that the gliders were not towed out on the castor wheel (for which it is not designed). Recently, when someone couldn’t be bothered to look for the tow–out bar for the Twin, in his support someone said, “but, for years we always did it that way”. So we did, but we have come a long way since those days. Why are we now going backwards? – considering all the effort some of us have made towards progress it is heartbreaking to see the attitude a few members have towards club equipment and progress.
The aluminium Universal Attitude Template, for setting up gliders for weighing, has gone missing– please return!
Thanks to Rien for his modifications to the “flight center” and to Dave Starke for arranging the new pool filter.

Chain- Saw: - Would somebody with a weed-eater or chain saw like to offer to cut down the bushes and Port Jacksons on the side of the runways. (Helmut, we miss you!)

Smoking: - In terms of the recent tobacco legislation the clubhouse and ablution blocks are “non-smoking areas’.

“SAMBA” Microlight: - The possibility of using this as a tug aircraft is being investigated. (see previous KK issue )

WCC Championships: - Currently being held in Gawler – Oz. Being plagued by poor weather. South Africa is represented by the Jonker brothers of WGT. Good luck to Uys and Attie and may the weather improve.

Tug Rates: - The fuel + oil price has gone from R3.80 to R4.20 necessitating increasing the Tug Raters to R11.25 / min.

K13 Recovering:- Progress slow or none – Herbie will be asked to manage the project. (I will undertake to fit the fin and prepare the fuselage for covering when DS has completed the machining of all the bushes).

‘Tug Pilot Only’ Joining Fee: - A reduced joining fee of R300 will be instituted for pilots who only fly tugs. Nice move!

Annual Checks : - See the CFI’s report regarding the Flying Panels requirements for Annual checks for ‘septenarians’.

I. N.C.A.S.A. (ex Satra): - I have some Application forms for Radio Station Licences. Annual Fee is R48.00. (get in before the pending handling fee is charged!)

“Let’s be more professional” - Radio Phraseology:

The accepted R/T language is English!
Traffic on Victoria Peak or in the Quarry area should use 124.8MHz and not the chat frequency. If you have to use the chat frequency you should QSY back to 124.8 immediately afterwards.

Stork News: - I believe the Stork has been thermalling over the Worcester airfield and also over Wynberg.

FROM THE CHAIR – Alison Hultberg

Happy New Year to all our members and I hope that this year will be both a good soaring year as well as a healthy and prosperous year for everyone.

This is the last time that I will be writing to you from the Chair and I would like to say that indeed it was an honour and privilege to serve the Cape Gliding Club albeit during a very difficult year for me personally.

I would like to thank the outgoing Committee and the Flying Panel for their support and hard work. Also my thanks to those members without portfolio who helped the club run as smoothly as it did.

I would like to urge members that when they nominate the new committee members for 2001, that they are to bear in mind that there is an inordinate amount of responsibility that goes with each portfolio and they should try and elect members who they know are willing to do the work and take on these responsibilities. Electing a committee is not a popularity poll and the most popular person may not be the right person to do the job.

Let us try to make this a safe and fun gliding year and good luck to the new committee.

BACK-SEAT DRIVING - Andrew Roos (CFI)

Compliments of the season to everyone and I wish you a year of enjoyable and safe soaring. My thanks to Nicky Oberhofer for the very successful GPL lectures which he organized at the end of last year, and congratulations to all those who wrote and passed the examinations. Congratulations also to Peter Wooley for the organizing a most successful club competition, which inspired enthusiasm for some good cross-country performances in December. Please, sir, could we have some more?

One of the nicest aspects of our sport is that there is no age limit; however we need to ensure that this does not open up any safety loopholes. In this regard, the Flying Panel has decided that club member aged 70 and older should have an “annual check” twice per year as from January 2001. (For the pedantic, this means that the annual check will become a biannual check; however the procedure and forms will be the same as for an annual check.) So if you fall into this category, and have not have a check ride in the past six months, then please arrange one with an instructor.

Also on safety, I have received reports of gliders performing aerobatics within the circuit area. This is bad airmanship as well as being explicitly prohibited by the Civil Aviation Regulations. Please ensure that all aerobatics are performed well clear of the circuit and of any other high-traffic areas. (Aerobatic area is over the dam -Ed.)

Finally just a reminder to instructors, pupils and solo pilots to implement the “Emergency Procedures” item on the preflight checklist. By consciously thinking through your actions in the event of a rope or cable break you greatly increase your chance of responding correctly. Have fun and fly safe.

MAINLY FOR TUG PILOTS – Rien de Muijnk. (CTP)

Recently I was hauled over the coals for allowing a tug pilot to carry out a test flight. It is of course not normally necessary to carry out test flights and I personally do not partake in such a practice. I will however support the need for a test flight if there is doubt as to the serviceability of the aircraft. – this was definitely the case in this instance. The pilot concerned showed his responsibility and good airmanship by taking care of his own and the glider pilot’s safety. Note however, that a Test flight must not be a Pax flight! Also, take-off and landing times of test flights to be recorded on the time sheet.

It is regrettable that glider pilots and ground crew take so much time getting ready to be pushed onto the runway after the tug has landed. Expensive fuel, as well as engine hours, are wasted. In the end the pilot, and in fact every member, has to pay more. Tug pilots please fill in the flight folio properly and remember to sign them.

My thanks to those tug pilots who gave up there time to tow gliders during the festive season.

SUMMARY OF THE RESULTS OF THE ‘MOP’ SURVEY – Rob Tiffin

We received 41(34% of members) responses, with a strong showing from syndicate pilots, pupils and instructors. A reasonable conclusion is that most of the active members replied.

Looking at the results I have come to certain conclusions, but I would encourage you to draw your own from the detailed results on page 14. The findings seem to be as follows:

1. We need to encourage more young pilots to join the club. 29 respondents are 40 or older, while just 12 are under 40.

2. We are not flying enough. International estimates are that 50 hours a year is the minimum for a safe pilot, with 180 hours necessary to be a good competition pilot. Factors limiting flying included cost (32% find cost restricts their flying) and lack of time or other activities (the balance). 30% are flying more than twice a month, while 50% are only flying once or twice, with 15% flying less then that.

3. Members think the club is being financially well managed. Even though a majority of members understood the accounts, we need to make them more understandable.

4. The selling of aircraft is self-explanatory. Even through I inadvertently did not include the Citabria in the survey, many members wrote it in.

5. Flying – half of respondents fly cross-country regularly; 29 members would be interested in a cross-country program and 8 members are willing to help with it. 36% are keen to keep and use the winch. 85% believe that we run a safe operation with 60% believing that a safety seminar will help in this regard. 68% were happy with the instructors.

6. The airfield – seven people would like space for a hut and 63% believed that the people living on the airfield should pay rent. Almost everyone wanted a lease to be signed. 73% of respondents are happy to have dogs. Most members where happy with the bar, but the barman should perhaps make more of an effort, as 9 members are unhappy. The respondents were split 50-50 about members running the bar again. The majority wanted more social activities.

7. The majority of members are happy with animals staying over at the club.

The committee has taken note of member’s responses and will report back in a later issue of the Krautkoerant on a plan of action to deal with issues raised. I would like to thank all those who responded. Your time and effort has been appreciated. (See also the Appendix – Ed.)

Mid-air Collisions Revisited - Mike Pascoe.

Recently a mid-air collision was reported in the KK that had taken place at a club in the UK. This accident was of particular interest to us at CGC since one of our members was one of the pilots involved. Both the pilots are to be congratulated on escaping this occurrence unhurt. Such an accident should of course, be used by us all as a learning experience so that we do not repeat the sequence of events that led to this potentially fatal accident. One mid-air is one too many.

A well-known physician once said. “History is a vast early warning system” (Norman Cousins). I understand this to mean that we must learn the lessons of the past so that we do not repeat those mistakes. What then can we all learn from the sequence of events reported in the KK ?

Firstly we should review the sensible guidelines published by the BGA & the OSTIV instructors panel in regard to thermalling safety. Most pilots are well aware of these rules and guidelines, and for those who are not familiar with these rules learn them now. Pilots should especially notice point 3 under “Sharing a Thermal” in regard to the series of events described. This point states: -

Leave the thermal if, in your judgment, you cannot guarantee adequate separation.

This should be extended to read “or if you loose sight of another glider that is in the same thermal.”

Possibly the congratulations to the CGC instructors in teaching spin recovery should be tempered with a reminder to teach “Look out – Look out and more Look out” and if you loose sight of an aircraft that is close at hand in a thermal then straighten up and fly away. Once you have reoriented yourself, and found the other aircraft then you can rejoin the thermal.

In gliding where we frequently share a rather small piece of airspace in a thermal common prudence dictates that the use of a parachute should also be seriously considered as a vital piece of your personal “life support system.”

Fly Safely and have fun

Joining a Thermal

· Gliders established in a thermal have the right of way.

· All pilots shall circle in the same directions as any gliders already established in an area of lift.

· If there are gliders thermalling in opposite directions, the joining glider shall turn in the same direction as the nearest glider (least vertical separation).

· The entry to the turn should be planned so as to keep continual visual contact with all other aircraft at or near the planned entry height.

· The entry should be flown at a tangent to the circle so that no aircraft already turning will be required to manoeuvre in order to avoid the joining aircraft.

Sharing a Thermal

· Pilots should adhere (keep) to the principle of “see and be seen”

· When at a similar level, never turn inside, point at, or ahead of another aircraft unless you intend to overtake and can guarantee safe separation.

· Leave the thermal if, in your judgment, you cannot guarantee adequate separation.

· Lookout for other aircraft joining or converging in height.

Leaving a Thermal

· Look inside the turn and behind before straightening

· Do not manoeuvre sharply unless clear of all other aircraft.

None of the above absolves a pilot from the responsibility to take any necessary action to avoid a collision

Thanks to the BGA for this poster.

Getting to Grips with Gliding – Chris Gippert

Flying is something I have always wanted to try, so when the opportunity presented itself, I decided to do it. The Cape Gliding Club at Worcester was offering a beginners course known as an Ab Initio Gliding course. The duration of which is five days beginning on a Monday morning. Meals are included and the total cost is approximately R3 100.00 depending on the amount of flying you actually do. Accommodation is not included but you can pitch a tent or park a caravan on the lawns surrounding the clubhouse. I arrived a day early to orientate myself and to find a good place to camp. This allowed me to find a sheltered spot conveniently close to the clubhouse and ablution facilities. The airfield itself is like any other, I suppose, windswept and desolate looking. The hangars being constructed of corrugated iron give the place the feel of an industrial park. The special thing about it though is the magnificent mountains surrounding the whole area. I was beginning to imagine flying amongst those mountains.

We were all expected to arrive at the airfield on Sunday evening where we would be given an introductory talk and a braai. This gave me the opportunity to meet some of the other students as well as the instructors. Of course there was much talk and stories of flying. By the time I got to bed I was hyped up and excited and couldn't wait for the morning. Morning did come and I was a little thick headed from the night before. Breakfast was served in the clubhouse at 7 am after which I was already feeling much better and ready for the lecture on co-ordinated flying at 8.15 am. By this time all the students had arrived and there were a total of 13 of us. We were issued with a rope, bucket and a chamois. The ropes were used to tow gliders to the runway and the other stuff for cleaning. Cleaning is important. Aside from the aerodynamic advantages, cleaning an aircraft forces you to look closely at it. You will more than likely pick up on any defects such as cracks, broken areas or missing bits. Each morning a daily inspection known as a D.I is performed. Moving surfaces, hinges, control rods and controls are checked. In an aircraft, unlike a car you cannot just pull over to sort out a problem if it does occur. Only when the instructor is satisfied does the aircraft get towed out to the runway.

Who said flying does not give you any exercise? Gliders only have wheels in the centre and therefore someone has to hold the wing tip. Because they are so light you also need people to hold the tail down to prevent the wind from turning the aircraft. A tow-rope is attached to the nose of the glider and to a car. It is then towed at walking speed all the way to the end of the runway. Once there, the gliders are parked and people get their flights allocated. One of the gliders is motorized and can make its own way to the launch point. There are a total of three aircraft and each student can expect to get three flights per day. When my name is called out I am told that the next flight will be mine and am introduced to my instructor who briefs me as to what I will learn.

We have all been issued with logbooks which the instructor will fill in after each flight. We arrive at the aircraft, a K7 glider. The K7 is a rather old twin-seater. It has classic looks with forward swept wings and looks just like a bird when in flight. I get shown how to strap on a parachute. At this point I realize that I am actually going to fly. Aside from the obvious, the parachute is necessary to sit on because the seat in the glider is not padded and without one you would sit far too low in the cockpit. We strap ourselves in and begin running through a series of pre-flight checks. The checks are drilled into you as a series of mnemonics. These are really important. As an example a seat belt could snag a control cable or a loose object could lodge behind a rudder pedal. These are not things you want to find out in Right. Once the checks are complete, a few of the other students push us onto the runway. A rope gets attached to the nose, the other end of which is attached to the tug aircraft, a Piper Cub, which will tow us up to about 3000 ff above sea level.

The guy holding our wing starts to wave his arm back and forth. This is the signal for the tug plane to take up the slack in the rope. He then starts to windmill his am, and the tug plane opens the throttle and starts moving off down the runway with me in tow. I have my hands and feet on the controls and can feel the minute adjustments the instructor is making as he keeps us moving straight and level down the runway. The glider takes off long before the tug plane does and my instructor keeps us skimming low above the runway until the tug also takes off. The ride is bumpy and noisy. It is especially so during the first 300ft. This is because the air close to the ground is turbulent. At the required altitude my instructor releases the tow-rope. We turn to the right and the tug goes left. Instantly everything is quite. There is only the sound of the air rushing past the canopy. I feel slightly more relaxed. I am a passenger enjoying myself in the front seat. It is fantastic, the view is quite beautiful. I feel even more relaxed until a voice from behind me says “you have control". Suddenly the view is gone. I see only a strange instrument panel and I grip the stick tightly in my right hand. I respond stiffly “I have control". Relax don't hold the stick so tightly. My instructor explains straight and level flight. It seems quite easy until he says look at your wings. I have happily been flying along tilted at a gentle angle. It is hard to find a reference. The dashboard is round, the nose is round and the horizon is obscured by mountains. Practice, learn what to look for. The base of the mountains is level. Look outside more often and check you wings. You do not drive a car while looking at the instruments. Now try a turn. Stick over to the right, right rudder, centralize the controls once you have the correct angle of bank and keep a little backpressure on the stick. No good, I have lost too much height on the turn and I realize with a start that we are flying in glider. All too soon we are on ‘final approach’. It is a windy day and therefore our approach angle is very steep. Our speed is approximately 130 Kph. My instructor pulls back just above the runway and we skim along, gently kissing the ground. The recovery vehicle (Romeo Victor) comes up to us, some students connect a rope to the nose, hold the wing and tow us back to the launch point.

After the flight the instructor will go through all the points in your log book, debrief and give appropriate marks. Because I have never piloted an aircraft before it seems there is too much to do. I feel I have too many hands and feet and they are always doing the wrong thing. There is too much to think about and do. Because of this perceived workload the first few flights are not very much fun. After the first day or two many students felt that flying was not for them. The thing is to persevere. When the basic control of the aircraft becomes more natural, you will begin to enjoy the experience of flying. You will also have more time to look for thermals and other forms of lift such as ridge soaring. Once you become aware of your surroundings and other external factors, the fun factor begins to seriously pick up. On the third day I was onto my seventh flight. The marks in my logbook were beginning to look better and I was looking forward to flying. The problem now was that flights were too short. You have to consider the other students who also wanted their turn. There is nothing more satisfying than finding a good thermal. A is absolutely fantastic and rewarding when you are able to keep the glider turning smoothly and efficiently and in so doing take an engineless aircraft right up too the cloud base. With altitude you also have time too play. You can now practice ever steeper turns which at first feel quite scary. With the long wings of a glider it feels as if you are going to tip over, but once you become used to it, it becomes very thrilling.

Once you have the basic flying under control you will learn about the take-off where you pilot the glider behind the tug plane all the way up to 3000’. You have to keep your aircraft in exactly the right spot. If you move up, down, left or right you will be caught in the prop wash of the tug plane. Things become very bumpy and turbulent. It is quite a battle getting back into position. Pull the release knob and peace and quite come back. If there is a wind blowing fly towards a mountain side. The air is forced to rise up the slope giving you lift. It is an incredible view as you drift slowly ever closer to the slope. So close in fact that it seems as if the wing tip is about to plough into the mountain. Once in the lift you will begin to climb upwards towards the top of the ridge. If you run out of mountain, bank into a tight turn and fly back along the ridge all the while climbing. Do not fly over the ridge as the air on the lee side will sink back down the mountain taking you with n. You will probably not have enough altitude to get back to the airport and will have to land in a farmers field somewhere. This is known as an out-landing and is not something you want to do on your first flying course. Once again it is time to return. You now have an opportunity to practice landing. Plan your route, run through the landing checks and get into ‘final approach’. Line up on the runway and keep the aircraft flying straight. This is suddenly not so easy now that you have a fixed reference to point at. Think about your approach speed and us the airbrakes. Airbrakes do not slow you down, they spoil the lift of the wings thereby controlling the rate of descent. The attitude of the aircraft is used to control speed. At first it is like a roller coaster where you are pointing the nose directly at the ground and the angle is quite steep. Pull gently back on the stick and ease the nose up. Slowly float down towards the runway, now pull back even further and look towards the far end of the airfield. Keep the correct attitude and the glider will gradually touch the ground. Wow, what an experience. Knowing you can take off and land is a great feeling. Of course none of this was done without an instructor in the back seat. It takes more than one week of flying to go solo but with a little more practice my turn will come.

Each time you go up there is a different instructor. The advantage of this is that different people will pick up different faults which another instructor might not have noticed. The instructors are all club members with the appropriate qualifications. None of them were paid for their services. They do it because they really enjoy flying and are passionate about it. Never once did an instructor loose patience or become short with a student.

They were able to joke and play silly buggers but were always serious about flying and following the correct procedures. It was a great experience. Not only the flying but also the camaraderie amongst the students which was built up with the incessant fetching, pulling and pushing of aircraft.

Evenings were spent in the pub, listening to lectures and watching flying movies. Of course there was also a lot of drinking. All in all I had a great time. Not only did I have a break from work but I also learned a new skill.

I can highly recommend this course to anyone.

The Cape Gliding Club and its Members. – Alison Hultberg

What has happened to the SPIRIT at our club? Where have the good old days of participation and camaraderie gone?

The past year for me personally has been particularly difficult and perhaps has also helped me see many things in perspective. What I see around me now is a particular generation of members who are selfish, self-centered, greedy and single-minded. I am now talking about the dangerous 100 hour ‘Know-all’ pilot.

I am at the Club every weekend and I see people, the likes of the legendary Tim Biggs, in our own Herbie, Horst, Mike, Rien, Trevor, Sandy, Roger, Andre, Robert and Dulcie, Rico, Hans and others.(And even non-members, like Alewyn Burger snr., who are willing to muck in and help out as Duty Pilot when the rostered incumbent forgets to show up!- thanks Alewyn) Who runs wings, hooks up gliders, pushes gliders, and I dread to think what sort of example we would set for our new members if these people stop helping because our younger generation pilots are such a bad example.

I am not going to mention names but these people know where the shoe fits! These are the pilots who put their names on the list very early in the morning and then only show up when it is their turn to fly. They get into their gliders, get pushed onto the runway, fly, land deep and we never see them again. That is shocking.

These are the pilots who sit in front of their huts and criticize. They make disparaging remarks about other members forgetting that the only single reason that we are at the airfield is for flying.

Recently we had a wonderful day when Peter Wooley arranged a Cross-country competition. For a moment everyone had such fun that for the first time in ages chatter in the clubhouse was only about flying and the vibe was wonderful. Remember? Why can’t we do that again?

The complaints have been too ridiculous to believe!. Some have been about flying but lately the most important issues seem to be:

Who’s dog has pooed on the lawn!
Why does Ed hide the soap and toilet paper on a Sunday night?
Who is smoking in the loo’s?

Lets get real. Participate more and then you won’t have time to winge. Many of you will say that you cannot afford to fly that often but that should not prohibit you from participating.

Let’s try to change the ambiance of the club this year and remember what we have in common – TO FLY.

Extending the soaring boundaries again! - Domicilium Verdi

Some of our pilots have recently seen Dasklip pass from the cockpit of a glider for the first time, and judging by the look of things, quite a few are going to see it soon. Amazing news from Adriaan Hepburn is that during this December (Dec 2000), a hang glider pilot, Dolf Pretorious, set a new 164km (100 mile) distance record flying from Dasklip, soaring to roughly 10km beyond Van Rynsdorp (daar in die Knersvlakte). He flew for three and quarter hours at a maximum height of 7300’ msl. The only reason why he landed was that he was suffering from fatigue.

Now if WE can fly so easily from Worcester to Dasklip, and THEY can fly from Dasklip to Van Rhynsdorp, it follows that WE can do it too, only a little bit faster and in more comfort. And then do the return trip as well, as it stands to reason (as Ed always says) that if there’s lift on the way out, it has to there on the way back.

So what about Nieuwoudville out and return? If we don’t try, we will never succeed!

We must still try – Domicilium Verdi

Nearly all things in life are relative. Usually there is always someone who has more than you, is cleverer, better adjusted, more accomplished at something they do, and so on. And if you are the best at something right now, it’s only a matter of time and you won’t be. So it achieves little for us to compare (which is why competitions are so odious).

In our club we continuously try to encourage up-and-coming pilots to go off across country, and congratulate them on succeeding to make Porterville out and return, or likewise Swellendam. Not world records but honest, commendable achievements nevertheless.

Now imagine flying over 2400km in a glider!

On 26^th November 2000, Klaus Ohlman flew an almost unbelievable 2459km, three turn point free distance task in Argentina. The 14hour flight was undertaken in a Stemme S10 at an average speed of 178km/h. It is yet to be documented by the FAI.

Thinking about it, this amazing achievement could make the attainment of our Worcester goals seem worthless. But actually it doesn’t, because we understand the futility of such comparisons. And that’s why it’s still worthwhile to plan – be it Porterville, Swellendam, Calvinia or Nieuwoudtville. We salute Klaus Ohlman, obviously a master soaring pilot, but I’m sure he also started small.

Competition feedback - Domicilium Verdi

Our club is notorious for not supporting the Regional and National competition scene. It’s been said that we don’t know how to fly thermals, because we can only read about them in books! Not my words, so you can now decide on that one for yourself…

First there was the Gauteng Regionals at Orient airfield (Magaliesberg Gliding Club) in October. Francois de Klerk was the overall winner flying a Ventus2cM. Sven Olivier, flying his father’s ASW20 placed 8^th out of 16.

Then we had the European Soaring Club’s “Masters” competition at Mafikeng where no less than three of our members took part – Randy Cullen (ASW20), Rob Tiffin (Kestrel) and once again, Sven Olivier (ASW20). This competition was attended by numerous big names in contemporary international gliding and was won by Justin Wills. Sven placed 12^th out of a field of 16 competitors – no mean achievement when one considers the standard of the pilots he was competing with. Rob and Randy placed 15th and 16th respectively.

Finally in December, also at Mafikeng, we had the Pre-World Championship, or Gyps Africanus as it was called. This was the runner-up event prior to World Championships to be held at Mafikeng at the end of this year. Here Sven was our only representative and once again was pitted against a formidable line up of local and international hot-shots. The 15m class (Racing class) was won by New Zealand’s John Coutts and Sven was placed 12^th out of 19 in this class – a very commendable achievement!

Perhaps a few more “club comps” will get the local folks in the mood too? Don’t forget there’s always the “Club Class”.

Apart from all these competitions, two of our long distance specialists, Chris Way and Graham Anderson, joined the local and international fraternity at the annual Gariep Dam Camp, organized again this year by Peter How. While they both flew some good tasks, including a nice 500km (Gariep - Merriman - Kraankuil - Gariep), the weather was not quite what was expected, so no 1000km flights or records were flown by these two. At the time of writing Otto Toenges, together with Hilmar, are also at Gariep.

The Humiliation of a Young Glider Pilot – Alex Kielcynski.

Way back in 1969, at my school in England, a fateful notice was posted on the notice board, it read:’ “Pupils who would be interested in partaking of a week long gliding course during the holidays are requested to obtain parental consent and affix their names on the list. Only 12 will be accepted and must be 16 years old” I was desperately keen to be one of those 12. And sure enough I got to Lincoln RAF Scampton (where the Dam Busters raid bombers took off from).

We were instructed on a winch using a side-by-side open cockpit T21 or “Sedberg” glider.

It was great fun and at the end of the week I duly went solo!

I remember it well, the instructions were clear- “pull off at 900feet, turn left, continue to the hanger at the beginning of the downwind leg, turn left over the green garage, continue to the blue outbuilding, turn left and land straight ahead on the wide grass field.” One didn’t even need to line up with any runway!

I performed three of these daring feats of aviation totally unaided by anyone sitting next to me and was duly presented with an impressive Gliding Certificate issued by the Royal Aero Club of the United Kingdom.

Now the point of this story begins with a subsequent flight I had with an instructor, who had just taken delivery of a brand new “hot shot” glider – a K13! You can just imagine how modern and beautiful this super machine looked in 1969!

Having now completed three solos I was thrilled to be asked by the instructor if I wanted a ride in it. Well everything changed for me during that awesome flight, and so did my memory. We did the lot, loops spins, stall turns and to crown it all A BEAT UP!

My story now moves to South Africa. In 1976, at the age of 23, I emigrated to this country having met someone on a previous visit!.

Now memory is a strange thing, because the intervening years had subtly altered my entire perception of those events seven years earlier and the certificate I still held turned into a Gliding License and the flight in the K13 slowly becoming a P1 flight and not a Pax flight!

Girlfriends must now be introduced into the memory mix-up. Over time I became convinced that I was a fully fledged glider pilot, able to take any girl for a flight in a rented glider. What’s more, I believed it too! After all, I clutched an A&B License which had very official writing in six languages, respectfully requesting, on behalf of the Civil, Naval and Military Authorities (including the Police) to assist the holder of said certificate/license – yes, me!

So, the first weekend after my arrival in Cape Town, my girlfriend and I presented ourselves at the Cape Gliding Club, then based at Fissanterkraal, for the flip I had always promised her.

I met a good-looking Mr. Giso von Petersdorf and made my request. “Can I please rent your K13 and take my girlfriend up? I do have a license”

Now Giso played his part perfectly. (He must have winked to Herbie Oberhofer who was the CFI then.)

“Sure thing”, he said. “How long since you flew?”

“Seven years” say I.

“Well” Giso said, “I hope you don’t mind, but it’s just a rule at our club, I am obliged to check you and go with you on the first flight, then you can go”

I was delighted - and into the K13 we climb, my girlfriend beaming as she watched.

“If you don’t mind, I will do the take off.’’ said Giso.

“Sure. Sure I understand you have to do these things, can’t be too careful”

After take off Giso felt that since I had flown only off a winch, he should do the aerotow.

No problem, I would soon enough show them all what I could do!!

Well dear readers, you can see what is coming next, He eventually released and uttered those words, “You have control”. Well I didn’t – anything but!

I cannot begin to describe my pain and humiliation when, after all those years of gradually believing I could fly, were destroyed with the first uncoordinated turn and my wallowing around the sky!

Worse was to come. Giso obviously had to land the glider, which he did perfectly. Now my girlfriend, eager to accept those years of promises, clapped at ‘my’ landing!

My logbook records my first real solo as being 47 flights later (10 months of intense flying), my Silver ‘C’ on flight 54 and it was only after 2 vears and 133 flights later, that I was Pax Rated and able to take my girlfriend for that promised Pax flight.

From Ab Initio to Pax Rating.

Martin Brandon Kirby:“ Club congratulations to Martin Brandon-Kirby who began his flying career in the ASK 13 (GHB), back in 1983 sent solo by an only slightly nervous father. Martin was then an air traffic controller and soon afterwards got his PPL, eventually doing a bit of tugging for the club. He built up some 80 of his commercial licence hours on the Motor Falke. With his commercial ticket he joined Anglo American as a corporate pilot, and later Air Namibia.

Martin recently gained his command of the Boeing 747-400 and they threw in a pax rating as well. Shows you what can come of both gliding and generous usage of the Motor Falke.” – Robert Brandon-Kirby

(The above article prompted me to get the stories of some others that have followed the gliding route to becoming an Airline Pilot)

Rene Langeveld (Ab Initio Pupil): - (Rene was a pupil of mine and she sent me the following “Curriculum Vitae” – Ed.)

22 September 1997: (Matric year) First flight at Worcester Gliding Club - Ab Initio course. Flew with Andre Leeb-du Toit in ZS-UUA for 30 minutes, and then I knew that flying was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life! . (I well recall Rene’s first day on the course. We flew the Motor Falke and, after demonstrating the ‘effects of the controls’, we worked on co-ordination of the controls – over and over and over again. Poor Rene was close to tears at the end of the day. The next day it all came right and, by the end of the week, she was a star pupil. Rene’s father used to radio daily from Flight Level 300 as he flew over Worcester, as Captain on the SAA flight to Johannesburg, for a report on her progress during the course. I am glad it was all worth it Rene. Ed.)

January 1998: Applied for SAA Cadet Pilot Training Course, as well as South African Air Force for pilot training. Underwent a 6-month selection process (SAA and SAAF) which consisted of psychometric tests, aptitude tests, medicals, interviews and flight grading. I finally made it to the final stage: SELECTION BOARD interview, and two days later received a telephone call from SAA to inform me that I had been selected, along with 11 others, for the SAA 6-course!

June 1998: Started Phase 1: Preparation course in Johannesburg (five and a half months).

November 1998: Wrote and passed my South African PPL subjects and also obtained the General Radio licence at 43 Air School in Port Alfred (as part of the cadet training). Up till now we have not touched an aircraft - lectures and ground school only!

27 November 1998: Departed for Oz: British Aerospace Flight Training - Adelaide, and did MORE ground school - Australian PPL subjects.

22 December 1998: My actual flight training starts on VH-TGX, a Grob 115 trainer. The Grob is a small training aircraft similar to a Piper Tomahawk.

15 January 1999: Solo on Grob 115!!! VH-TGN.

5 March 1999: Converted onto the Tobabo TB10. The TB10 is a four-seater French aircraft similar to a Cherokee 180. (I flew a total of about 120 hrs on this type). I also did aerobatic training (10 hrs) on a Mudry CAP 10. (The Cap 10 is a fully aerobatic, low wing, side by side tail-dragger, similar to a ‘tailwheel’ Yankee Trainer).