A Kid Flying a Duckhawk?

Having fun in the DuckHawk 15m sailplane
By: Daniel Sazhin

In early September, I had a fantastic day of flying at Blairstown Airport, the culmination of which was having the opportunity to fly Windward Performance's new DuckHawk. I had just flown the club Grob Twin Astir with my brother, promptly falling out and not exactly having one of my best landings in it. It seems that Bill Thar did not see it and upon greeting him, he offered me to fly the DuckHawk! I was flabbergasted and immediately agreed. The glider was already assembled, so Bill promptly introduced me to the cockpit and gave the pre-flight briefing. We pushed the glider out to the line, which was easy because at its 440 LBS empty weight it is just like pushing my club's 1-26E around!

While I have not flown any high performance single-place gliders before, my many years of flying the Condor Soaring Simulator have allowed me to be familiar with most of the composite sailplanes in the field. I did not feel nervous about being able to control the plane and I was excited to try it out. The first takeoff was very easy and the DuckHawk had great control authority and responsiveness. There was no need for any of the takeoff tricks found on some other sailplanes such as negative flap settings prior to takeoff or open spoilers for increased aileron effectiveness. The visibility was great and it was easy to stay behind the tow plane because the DuckHawk didn’t get thrown around in the turbulence. Unfortunately, upon releasing I was unable to find much lift except for one light thermal which amounted to zero-sink for a while. Pulling into that thermal, it was quite a fantastic sensation bringing the flaps to 10-15 degrees and feeling the glider “grip” the air. The DuckHawk was able to slow down to a tad over 40 knots and provides the pilot with a lot of feedback from the air. What was definitely noticeable was that the glider does everything you want it to. There is no feeling of “fighting the glider” like in some other gliders I had flown. The DuckHawk handled great at the low speed end and the controls were not twitchy, but yet very responsive. I liked the fact that there is no elevator trim; instead wherever one places the stick, it stays in that position. The electric flaps are easily controlled in manual mode using a switch on the stick. The flaps move at a brisk rate, but there is no tendency for the glider to “drop” such as when the flaps are moved between notches in other gliders. This DuckHawk is fitted with a prototype automatic flap control system but it was not used on this flight. I returned to the field put the flaps down and opened the spoilers to land just like you do in other gliders and the nice thing was to put the gear down I just moved the gated switch and out came the gear. Everything went easily on landing and the floating piston oleo shock is wonderful as there is no bounce and it does its job very nicely and the wheel brake is very effective.

One week later, I took the DuckHawk up for another flight on a day when the ridge was working and had the opportunity to experience this glider's excellent cross country capability. Since there were thermals present as well, I had more time to fly the plane and it was a good opportunity to do some stalls and get a feel for the plane throughout more of its envelope. The stalls were benign and had very little tendency to drop a wing. The DuckHawk is much like a chameleon in the way it can be thermalled. For instance, at 50 knots it requires very little control in maneuvering in a thermal and climbs very well with little effort. However, unlike other sailplanes, this glider really does not seem to have a narrow and sensitive “drag bucket” and as a result, it can be thermalled even down to 40 knots without a significant sink rate penalty. It was quite interesting that the pilot is given quite the latitude in how one wants to go about thermalling, which bodes well for different conditions and pilot styles. Prior to the flight, Bill Thar also told me that I should consider bringing the glider up to its 160 knots maneuvering speed, which I did after thermalling it for a while. I dived away and got up to around 155 knots and then pulled up, heading like a rocket toward the stratosphere. That pull-up was such a rush that I decided I just had to do it again going the other way! One must also consider that this was even done under convective conditions in the vicinity of a ridge, not in smooth air. However, the DuckHawk was absolutely solid and it felt absolutely safe bringing it to a speed that is over the VNE of most other sailplanes around. The plane was flown dry with a light total flying weight around 620 LBS and when I got onto the ridge, I immediately noticed that even for its light weight it did not get particularly kicked around by the dynamic air. Unlike my trusty metal steed (1-26), the DuckHawk seemed to “plow” through the air and handled beautifully on the ridge. The ridge transitions were quite easy and I flew over 400 km with an average speed of 105 mph on the ridge, without doing any turns other than doing some more thermalling practice at the end of “our” mountain. The glider was flown with the prototype automatic/manual flap control system and I think that this will be an exciting system for the future of the plane as the automatic mode smoothly adjusts the flaps throughout their range and gives you the optimum flap setting all of the time. The fast roll rate is conducive to rolling in and out very quickly with little adverse yaw. As far as all of the other features of the plane you can check them out on the manufacturer’s website.. It is quite a testament to the design of the glider that someone with as little high performance glider time as myself would be able to transition so easily to a world-class racing machine. Windward Performance's DuckHawk was an absolute delight to fly and it would be an honor to fly it again.

Pity we cannot fly it in Europe!

At 04:23 30 October 2013, wrote:
Having fun in the DuckHawk 15m sailplane=20
By: Daniel Sazhin

In early September, I had a fantastic day of flying at Blairstown
Airport,
=
the culmination of which was having the opportunity to fly Windward
Perform=
ance's new DuckHawk. I had just flown the club Grob Twin Astir with my
brot=
her, promptly falling out and not exactly having one of my best landings
in=
it. It seems that Bill Thar did not see it and upon greeting him, he
offer=
ed me to fly the DuckHawk! I was flabbergasted and immediately agreed.
The
=
glider was already assembled, so Bill promptly introduced me to the
cockpit=
and gave the pre-flight briefing. We pushed the glider out to the line,
wh=
ich was easy because at its 440 LBS empty weight it is just like pushing
my=
club's 1-26E around!

While I have not flown any high performance single-place gliders before,
my=
many years of flying the Condor Soaring Simulator have allowed me to be
fa=
miliar with most of the composite sailplanes in the field. I did not feel
n=
ervous about being able to control the plane and I was excited to try it
ou=
t. The first takeoff was very easy and the DuckHawk had great control
autho=
rity and responsiveness. There was no need for any of the takeoff tricks
fo=
und on some other sailplanes such as negative flap settings prior to
takeof=
f or open spoilers for increased aileron effectiveness. The visibility
was
=
great and it was easy to stay behind the tow plane because the DuckHawk
did=
n=92t get thrown around in the turbulence. Unfortunately, upon releasing
I
=
was unable to find much lift except for one light thermal which amounted
to=
zero-sink for a while. Pulling into that thermal, it was quite a
fantastic=
sensation bringing the flaps to 10-15 degrees and feeling the glider
=93gr=
ip=94 the air. The DuckHawk was able to slow down to a tad over 40 knots
an=
d provides the pilot with a lot of feedback from the air. What was
definite=
ly noticeable was that the glider does everything you want it to. There
is
=
no feeling of =93fighting the glider=94 like in some other gliders I had
fl=
own. The DuckHawk handled great at the low speed end and the controls
were
=
not twitchy, but yet very responsive. I liked the fact that there is no
ele=
vator trim; instead wherever one places the stick, it stays in that
positio=
n. The electric flaps are easily controlled in manual mode using a switch
o=
n the stick. The flaps move at a brisk rate, but there is no tendency
for
=
the glider to =93drop=94 such as when the flaps are moved between notches
i=
n other gliders. This DuckHawk is fitted with a prototype automatic flap
co=
ntrol system but it was not used on this flight. I returned to the field
pu=
t the flaps down and opened the spoilers to land just like you do in
other
=
gliders and the nice thing was to put the gear down I just moved the
gated
=
switch and out came the gear. Everything went easily on landing and the
flo=
ating piston oleo shock is wonderful as there is no bounce and it does
its
=
job very nicely and the wheel brake is very effective.

One week later, I took the DuckHawk up for another flight on a day when
the=
ridge was working and had the opportunity to experience this glider's
exce=
llent cross country capability. Since there were thermals present as
well,
=
I had more time to fly the plane and it was a good opportunity to do some
s=
talls and get a feel for the plane throughout more of its envelope. The
sta=
lls were benign and had very little tendency to drop a wing. The DuckHawk
i=
s much like a chameleon in the way it can be thermalled. For instance, at
5=
0 knots it requires very little control in maneuvering in a thermal and
cli=
mbs very well with little effort. However, unlike other sailplanes, this
gl=
ider really does not seem to have a narrow and sensitive =93drag
bucket=94
=
and as a result, it can be thermalled even down to 40 knots without a
signi=
ficant sink rate penalty. It was quite interesting that the pilot is
given
=
quite the latitude in how one wants to go about thermalling, which bodes
we=
ll for different conditions and pilot styles. Prior to the flight, Bill
Tha=
r also told me that I should consider bringing the glider up to its 160
kno=
ts maneuvering speed, which I did after thermalling it for a while. I
dived=
away and got up to around 155 knots and then pulled up, heading like a
roc=
ket toward the stratosphere. That pull-up was such a rush that I decided
I
=
just had to do it again going the other way! One must also consider that
th=
is was even done under convective conditions in the vicinity of a ridge,
no=
t in smooth air. However, the DuckHawk was absolutely solid and it felt
abs=
olutely safe bringing it to a speed that is over the VNE of most other
sail=
planes around. The plane was flown dry with a light total flying weight
aro=
und 620 LBS and when I got onto the ridge, I immediately noticed that
even
=
for its light weight it did not get particularly kicked around by the
dynam=
ic air. Unlike my trusty metal steed (1-26), the DuckHawk seemed to
=93plow=
=94 through the air and handled beautifully on the ridge. The ridge
transit=
ions were quite easy and I flew over 400 km with an average speed of 105
mp=
h on the ridge, without doing any turns other than doing some more
thermall=
ing practice at the end of =93our=94 mountain. The glider was flown with
t=
he prototype automatic/manual flap control system and I think that this
wil=
l be an exciting system for the future of the plane as the automatic mode
s=
moothly adjusts the flaps throughout their range and gives you the
optimum
=
flap setting all of the time. The fast roll rate is conducive to rolling
in=
and out very quickly with little adverse yaw. As far as all of the other
f=
eatures of the plane you can check them out on the manufacturer=92s
website=
.. It is quite a testament to the design of the glider that someone with
as
=
little high performance glider time as myself would be able to transition
s=
o easily to a world-class racing machine. Windward Performance's DuckHawk
w=
as an absolute delight to fly and it would be an honor to fly it again.

Kudos to Bill Thar for giving Daniel such an amazing opportunity to fly perhaps "the" state of the art 15 meter glider! More of us should be sponsoring promising Jr. pilots in this way! What a refreshing thing to see in the USA!

Out of curiosity, how does one register a duckhawk? The webisite says "All models are sold as basic aircraft. No instruments. No Certificate of Airworthiness." It's not a homebuilt, it's not part 103, it's not imported exhibition and racing... How do you fly this thing legally?

John Cochrane

On Wednesday, October 30, 2013 10:25:51 AM UTC-5, wrote:
Out of curiosity, how does one register a duckhawk? The webisite says "All models are sold as basic aircraft. No instruments. No Certificate of Airworthiness." It's not a homebuilt, it's not part 103, it's not imported exhibition and racing... How do you fly this thing legally? John Cochrane

Owner applies for Experimental airworthiness certificate. Recommend Exhibition and Air Racing. And you get limitations just like something that is imported and doesn't have a US Type Certificate. Hit the "EASY" Button.

Steve Leonard

On Wednesday, October 30, 2013 10:06:43 AM UTC-6, Steve Leonard wrote:
On Wednesday, October 30, 2013 10:25:51 AM UTC-5, wrote:

Out of curiosity, how does one register a duckhawk? The webisite says "All models are sold as basic aircraft. No instruments. No Certificate of Airworthiness." It's not a homebuilt, it's not part 103, it's not imported exhibition and racing... How do you fly this thing legally? John Cochrane



Owner applies for Experimental airworthiness certificate. Recommend Exhibition and Air Racing. And you get limitations just like something that is imported and doesn't have a US Type Certificate. Hit the "EASY" Button.



Steve Leonard

SN002 is listed as Experimental/Racing

Wouldn't a pilot who has before only flown sluggish oldtimer gliders write the exact same review about every modern high performance glider?

Maybe "a pilot" would....but Daniel wouldn't.

Cookie





At 08:14 31 October 2013, wrote:
Wouldn't a pilot who has before only flown sluggish oldtimer gliders
write
the exact same review about every modern high performance glider?

Maybe "a pilot" would....but Daniel wouldn't.

Cookie





At 08:14 31 October 2013, wrote:
Wouldn't a pilot who has before only flown sluggish oldtimer gliders
write
the exact same review about every modern high performance glider?

On Thursday, October 31, 2013 4:14:25 AM UTC-4, wrote:
Wouldn't a pilot who has before only flown sluggish oldtimer gliders write the exact same review about every modern high performance glider?

Of course, yes. It's been done many times.

T8