Saturday's Gliding Club News - 10th June 2023

After weeks and weeks of high pressure blue sky days,  today was a bit of a change. With a weak occluded front overhead the cloud base was very low and there was even a little rain and drizzle. The forecast was predicting a clearance around lunchtime so we used our well practice skills and waited, drank tea and waited some more.

By lunchtime, the sky brightened enough to have us getting the gliders out, inspected and whisked up to the west end launch point ready to go. The first launch at 1318 confirmed that the cloud base was indeed above launch height so it was game on.

Val enjoying a flight with Rick

Poor visibility was the order of the day

There was some potential lift around the low clouds but this really only amounted to extended circuits of about 15 minutes. However, there was training to be done with CFI Rick Wiles manning one k13 while  the other was used to complete our One Day Course Tim Bissett who had cycled over from his home in Brentor. Even from the circuit we could truthfully tell Tim that we could "see your house from here".

Tim Bissett

FGR returns again

Mike Bennett took a couple of flights in the K8 to celebrate the completion of his Cross Country Endorsement this week. Well done, Mike, and welcome to the world of the licenced pilot.

Mike in the K8

All too soon the visibility started to deteriorate. There was actually a blue hole over the airfield but with the horizontal visibility rapidly reducing the call was made to stop flying early. Everyone who wanted to fly had flown so the early finish was used to have a very social get together in the clubhouse.

Visibility reducing

Steve