If you have a Turn Area Task and you fly into turn 1, then fly into turn 2 then pass through the finish circle could/should it be possible to leave the finish circle and return to turn 2 and fly deeper into the circle than you did the first time and then return to the finish circle? On an option...

I have just seen an unscientific poll on a guitar forum that I found fascinating, and not because of what it means for playing guitars. In this poll, almost 41% of those responding were between the ages of 50 and 59. The next largest group, 40-49, is at only 18%. Like most, if not all of us...

I’ve been experimenting around with Li-Ion batteries for a few months now, just for fun, and thought I would pass on a few observations that might be interesting. I only experimented with Li-Ions that had a separate printed circuit board incorporated into each cell, and I was not able to ignite...

New forum member, glad I found this resource! I'm in the midst of purchasing an ASW-19 that has a Standard C of A...and am mulling over (because of some of the projects/instrumentation/maintenance/etc) if it would be beneficial to convert the certificate over to Experimental. If the conversion...

http://tinyurl.com/337bok7 ...I'm sure it works like a champ. Nice work John/Hank/Dick!

Each year I like to test my batteries and replace those that do not have enough capacity for a typical flight of 3-4-ish hours with all the electronics running. I run two batteries so that removes a worry about loosing power during a record flight. But how do you perform a good real world...

I find my checklist is expanding, and there are some people who have a sort of 'flip book' attached to the top of the glareshield and I was wondering if someone could share some details. Other ideas also very welcome, Brian

I wrote an article for Soaring, that will appear in the July issue. Title: "Gizmo Future." A somewhat unusual view of the "what's in the future for Soaring" kind of article. It's on my webpage if you just can't wait for...

It seems that the company SkyRides has now formed a new company called Soaring Sports and has become an SSA business member to hyjack the F.A.S.T program in order to sell rides. Some operators will not do business with Sky Rides by honoring the certificates it sells. Sky Rides has contacted the...

Recent threads highlighted tail stalls in powered aircraft experiencing icing. The thing that concerned me was the recovery being exactly opposite to the wing stall that we all practice and demonstrate, and thus have ingrained as almost automatic. It also sounded like the thing that distinguished a...

Hi Gang Occasionally one finds a good read on a subject that many of us are interested in, namely soaring. Well the Government funded in the 50s the development of a new spy plane - a motorglider - named the U2. The specifications of this machine included operation up to 80,000 feet at 80% the...

I've got my ASW-27B in the shop to have some cosmetic work done - building up the tip skids and fixing some minor scrapes. At the same time I'm wondering if a profiling job is in order as I can now see spar and rib dimples top and bottom all along both wings. The shop tells me that it's going to...

I'd like to replace my current digital camera with one better suited to pictures from my glider, but I'm having difficulty finding one with the features I want. Perhaps someone has solved my problem already, or at least has a way of finding a suitable camera without days of downloading brochures...

As a low time pilot (150 hrs) I have been alarmed at the number of recent incidents relating to getting trapped in clouds. In reading though some old posts on this forum, I have concluded that even though everyone has the best intention of never getting into clouds, it still can happen to even...

A recent UK Parliamentary Committee, who are definitely not revolutionary hotheads, concluded that the so called 'War on Terrorism', far from curing the problem, is actually stoking up further terrorist problems, with our own indigenous young Muslims being sufficiently radicalised as to become...

http://www.ntsb.gov/NTSB/brief.asp?ev_id=20060906X01297&key=2 For you amateur FAR lawyers to chew on: "The glider was equipped with a panel mounted communication radio, global positioning system (GPS) unit, and a transponder; however, the pilot did not turn on the GPS and transponder. The...

I've been doing some reading about sailplane racing, and it seems pretty clear that every racer needs a crew. He needs at least one person who can help him ready the plane and retrieve him when he lands out. Now, for most guys, I'm guessing crew=wife. But what do all the single guys do? Johan...

Dramatic cockpit video of a midair collision with a tow rope getting caught in the prop of another plane. The pilot was able to deploy his ballistic parachute and safely descend. No mention of what happened to the towplane. Video is from CNN on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTemKnL8X30

You should take a look at this: http://www.dg-flugzeugbau.de/holm-dg300-e.html Marc

Just saw on the SSA website that the R12 contest has been cancelled. Anyone know the story and reason(s)? Just curious as I was thinking of attending at one point but could not rearrange my schedule Ron Gleason