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#51
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Bonus Jet glider demo weekend
At 17:56 28 April 2011, Dr. John wrote:
I think it is time for a Jet Sailplane Racing League. Here me out and I promise this is not heresy and might even be a boom to the sailplane community. That's just what we're afraid of. Jim Beckman |
#52
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Bonus Jet glider demo weekend
On Thu, 28 Apr 2011 10:56:19 -0700, Dr. John wrote:
I think it is time for a Jet Sailplane Racing League. Here me out and I promise this is not heresy and might even be a boom to the sailplane community. Isn't this ass-backward? The idea of calling a bunch of pilots driving jet-powered aircraft round a tiny three-mile circuit 'sailplane racing' is just a travesty. We have a hard enough time convincing the general public that a glider can do more than fly round the airfield for a few minutes as it is without something like this being called 'sailplane racing'. To me a soaring community[1] requires mass participation. It is never a few sport celebs making big bucks entertaining all the Joe Sixpacks slumped in front of their goggleboxes. [1] Soaring community, PLEASE. We are, or should be, a group of actively involved pilots up there and doing it because we want to, not to entertain a bunch of couch potatoes while making some promoter rich. 'Sailplane community' makes as much sense as 'Cricket bat community'. The sailplanes are inanimate for chrissakes, so no way can they form a community. -- martin@ | Martin Gregorie gregorie. | Essex, UK org | |
#53
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Walt |
#54
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Bonus Jet glider demo weekend
On Apr 28, 7:03*pm, Martin Gregorie
wrote: On Thu, 28 Apr 2011 10:56:19 -0700, Dr. John wrote: I think it is time for a Jet Sailplane Racing League. *Here me out and I promise this is not heresy and might even be a boom to the sailplane community. Isn't this ass-backward? The idea of calling a bunch of pilots driving jet-powered aircraft round a tiny three-mile circuit 'sailplane racing' is just a travesty. We have a hard enough time convincing the general public that a glider can do more than fly round the airfield for a few minutes as it is without something like this being called 'sailplane racing'. To me a soaring community[1] requires mass participation. It is never a few sport celebs making big bucks entertaining all the Joe Sixpacks slumped in front of their goggleboxes. [1] Soaring community, PLEASE. We are, or should be, a group of actively involved pilots up there and doing it because we want to, not to entertain a bunch of couch potatoes while making some promoter rich. 'Sailplane community' makes as much sense as 'Cricket bat community'. The sailplanes are inanimate for chrissakes, so no way can they form a community. -- martin@ * | Martin Gregorie gregorie. | Essex, UK org * * * | A common psychological experience just happened to this thread. So many RAS threads get “off course” and crash, and this one just did. The FAA has a term for when aircraft do this…. CFIT (controlled flight into terrain). Pilots get distracted by something “important” and lose track of where they were in relationship to the surrounding terrain, and crash, which NTSB statistics show is 20 times more likely to occur than mid-air collisions. Pilots have good intentions, but sometimes forget the most important rule of flying, “Fly the airplane first.” This thread is all about a non-traditional way of getting GLIDERS into the air… with the use of an on-board jet turbine engine. It has been a fascinating thread. Suddenly, something else “important” to GLIDING, the drop in popularity / lack of public interest in the sport, has gotten the thread off course… because someone lost rack of where they were in relationship to the sport. We do have powerful need to attract people to our sport. BUT, one has to remember that our sport is all about UNPOWERED flight….. GLIDING, also called SOARING. A jet, or a lawnmower engine, or an electric engine, or a Pawnee are all just means of getting GLIDERS airborne so they may spend their day GLIDING / SOARING. Jet plane racing is NOT gliding or soaring. I was glad to see that a separate thread was started on the “jet racing” concept. I hope it stays a separate thread, because this thread has been so informative and interesting…. bringing up all sorts of things I had not thought of, including a jet providing a way of getting a glider to a distant wave, and all the FAA intricacies, to mention a few. GLIDING is at a fascinating point right now. For years the primary ways of getting GLIDERS aloft has been either from a ground tow with a wire or rope, towed behind another aircraft, or self launched by a relatively unreliable (compared to other power sources) engine. Now, today, we have huge advances in electric motors and batteries, making electric self-launching gliders a realistic possibility, and we have Bob Carlton blazing the way with the application of small jet turbine engines for self launching gliders because of huge advances with small jet engines. Both have their advantages and dis-advantageous. As this thread is about the application of jet power for GLIDERS, I hope it continues in that path. Bob T. 19 |
#55
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Bonus Jet glider demo weekend
Guys, Yes the jet sailplane Racing League is a spoof/Joke. Some of
you take this way too serious. There is ZERO chance of a Jet Racing League. All I want is a JS-1 pure sailplane when I race in the 18M nationals someday. I'm a soaring bird at heart but love to dream the impossible. Congrats to Bob Carlton for giving us one more option that might attract a few new pilots. Anything new is better than nothing. John |
#56
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Bonus Jet glider demo weekend
On 4/29/2011 5:22 AM, Bob wrote:
GLIDING is at a fascinating point right now. For years the primary ways of getting GLIDERS aloft has been either from a ground tow with a wire or rope, towed behind another aircraft, or self launched by a relatively unreliable (compared to other power sources) engine. Now, today, we have huge advances in electric motors and batteries, making electric self-launching gliders a realistic possibility, and we have Bob Carlton blazing the way with the application of small jet turbine engines for self launching gliders because of huge advances with small jet engines. Both have their advantages and dis-advantageous. As this thread is about the application of jet power for GLIDERS, I hope it continues in that path. Mostly I agree with Bob, but I'm going to pick a couple nits, anyway ;^) "making electric self-launching gliders a realistic possibility"? Good news - they already exist and have been in production for several years! Maybe "viable alternative" should be substituted for "realistic possibility". I expect Dave N. to also point this out. Bob Carlton is blazing the way, but I think it's very important to note he is NOT doing it with "huge advances in small jet engines", but is using a proven, conservatively designed, commercial engine that has been around for years. This is not an exotic or "upgraded model" engine, like he used on the Silent glider, but a real aircraft engine for aircraft that carry people. -- Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to email me) - "A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation Mar/2004" Much of what you need to know tinyurl.com/yfs7tnz |
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