I transitioned to Diana SZD-56 (identical side-stick to Diana 2) with 1500 hours. Gimbaled stick: no slide. It’s all in the wrist. Everyone asks how long does it take to get used to it? Answer: No time: it’s completely natural. Nobody believes me. But the stick is where my hand is. Central stick would be perfect if one’s hand came out of his fly.
“I like flying with a side stick. It feels natural.“ -Mike Opitz Feb 19
Switching hands? I’m not ambidextrous, but I have no trouble twiddling knobs with my left hand (or operating gear, spoilers or flapperons). And without a central stick, the closer instrument panel is very handy, so to speak.
Left-handers? While sitting, rest your right hand on your right thigh, and left on left. Now pretend you’re flying with a gimbaled side-stick on your right. Ask your left hand to mimic the motions of your right. It’s as if your hands were connected by a parallelogram.
“…no big deal with the stick in my left hand. -Mike Opitz Feb 19
“…I'd like to check out a Diana 2 for comfort and forward visibility and wonder if cricked necks could be a problem.” -Martin Gregorie Feb 19
Diana’s seating is almost too comfortable! Isn’t there an FAR against napping at altitude? Diana’s transparent canopy goes nearly to the nose, so forward visibility is as good as it can be. I never had a cricked neck, but looking up was a bit awkward. So I spring-loaded the headrest pivot. Now when I look up at clouds (or the rare glider temporarily above me) the headrest swivels down and then pops back up for cruising. Perfect!
-Jack Wyman