On Monday, May 25, 2020 at 2:35:28 PM UTC-7, Charles Ethridge wrote:
Hi all.

I'm a former cfi-i/mei and commercial glider pilot, but I've never gone cross-country in my PW-5 glider. Training up for it though. A question:

If you are in an area where the fields are small, but there are several private airfields around, which should be your priority?

Seems to me that the private airport would be safer, assuming you have enough altitude to overfly it. Also I notice that my (new) Oudie2 shows all the private airstrips around as potential landout spots.

Will you get in trouble (legal or financial) if you have to landout at a private airport (assuming you aren't declaring an emergency, of course)?

Ben

The general rule of thumb is "You can't get hurt in the dirt." The majority of private airstrips are unsuitable for gliders (maybe a PW5). If you do consider it, visit the strip and take photos and notes for reference. Over time you can build a database of suitable strips. At a minimum look at the strip with Google Earth. Just committing to a strip that is listed as R on the chart is a definite crap shoot. A plowed field is a safer choice (although you will have to clean the glider afterwards.

BTW, how "small" are you talking about?

Tom