Takeoff/Landing same direction?

kirk.stant wrote:
Eric Greenwell wrote:
I gotta know - how long do you have to fly that day before you are
allowed to land in the opposite direction from your takeoff? It's hard
to imagine anyone becoming a glider pilot without landing in the
opposite direction a few times shortly after takeoff. Perhaps too many
adult beverages preceded the discussion, or is it still reaallly hot out
there in Arizona and some pilots hats aren't big enough?

Erik,

I think we have our conversations garbled, but anyway - When I was
flying out of Turf, we usually took off on 23 due to prevailing winds.
If returning late in the day, landing on 23 could be challenging due to
looking directly into the setting sun, through dust, etc and it was
common to land on 5 (or even 14, which was a better runway anyway).

I was just curious if the folks that supported the landing and takeoff
in the same direction had thought about how long this "rule" was good
for! I suspect it might be 10 minutes, say, rather than at the end of a
long flight. A fun argument, I bet, and funner with each adult beverage
that leaves the cooler. I wish I'd been there - at least some flying
went on.

--
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Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA

"Transponders in Sailplanes" on the Soaring Safety Foundation website
www.soaringsafety.org/prevention/articles.html

"A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" at www.motorglider.org