Does anybody have any additional info on the situation with the tow planes in the Glider program? I have learned in the last week from our SC Wing DO that the program is on hold due to a decision from NHQ to sell the Maule tow planes. We have only one in our wing and have no other options, perhaps a giant rubber band? ;D
I've read some discussion on one of the Forums or Blogs, (can't remember which one) regarding some Wings towing with the 180 HP 172's and 182's. But when you think about it, if that's all you are using the Maules for, you might be better off cost/hr wise hiring a tow plane or using the Cessnas as dual purpose. I keep hearing we don't fly the Corporate planes enough...
There are civilan glider programs here that use a kind of tow truck setup.
Quote from: shorning on April 17, 2006, 08:10:38 PM
There are civilan glider programs here that use a kind of tow truck setup.
Yep, the winch launch. I flew a couple glider flights by that method when I was on IACE in the UK. Their ACA cadets have the winch launch system -- pretty cool stuff. Saves on gas for a tow-plane, too! But I imagine the upfront costs are a bit steep to buy the launcher.
I recently saw a article about gliders being powered by model air plane jets. The photo I saw had these two small (10" diameter) jets mounted just aft the cock pit.
I wish I could remember where I read this...It was either plane and pilot or one of the RC Model mags.
I believe i may have seen the jet powered glider in soaring magazine. I think it is a one of a kind, but there are tons of self launching gliders out there.
Our wing is also losing our maule obviously but i guess we are trading one of our 182s for a 172 in Alaska to tow with. I guess it would help also if we got a new glider, ours got totaled in a major wind storm.
There are 3 methods of launching a glider, aero, winch, and vehicle. Winch and vehicle only get you a few hundred feet in the air.
Europe being Europe, most of their sailplane launches are winch/auto. Most launches in America are aero.
My dream is to buy a self-launching glider. My wife's dream is to continuously impede and frustrate my dream.
CAP restricts glider launches to air launch only. And there seems to be a lack of tow planes in the CAP inventory since the Maules were removed from service..
A C-172 with a 180 hp engine or C-182 make good towplanes. All you need is a towhook and a rear-view mirror. A few times I've towed up behind a 150/150, but it takes all day to get to 2000 feet.
On a hot summer day in Florida, A&P's tell me the 172 engine will overheat while towing a glider. Anyone know about that?
Quote from: BillB on January 08, 2007, 03:18:12 AM
On a hot summer day in Florida, A&P's tell me the 172 engine will overheat while towing a glider. Anyone know about that?
I wouldn't doubt that. I know that even the maules sometimes had problems staying cool on tow. Routinely the tow pilot would call me to let me know that we were pushing the engine temperatures a little.
Working a towplane with one glider, we never experienced a problem in Ohio and Michigan in the summer. Temperatures on the field were routinely in the 90's. The towplane would cool between launches.
Running a faster operational tempo, with 3 or 4 gliders, we would have to alternate towplanes, and even then we would sometimes get hot engines.
Quote from: JohnKachenmeister on January 07, 2007, 03:23:39 PM
There are 3 methods of launching a glider, aero, winch, and vehicle.
JATO? B)
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I will put it this way, I Loved The Maule. it towed fast, and was fun to fly. It had huge windows all the way down to the floor so it was a great search platform. Yea it could only have a 2 man crew most of the time, but I think that was acceptable because it was made up for by it's huge windows.
I have towed behind Pawnees also and while impressed, i wouldn't call it an elevator ride. now if I would have been in a more high performance glider it probably would have helped. The only tows behind a Pawnee that I have taken were in a 2-33, which i hate compared to a blanik or my favorite so far the 1-26.
quick question. Do any wings have anything other than the standard L-23 super blanik for their operations. We had a 1-26 for a while before it got destroyed in a wind storm one night.
I was at NFA-G in Rome, Georgia last summer. I never flew behind a Pawnee, but I did have to fly behind a 182 on a few occasions. I much preferred the Maule. The Maule always got up to release altitude quickly and there were never any problems with it. One time, flying behind the 182, both planes got off the runway and started climbing. Then, as we got toward the end of the runway, the Cessna started to lose altitude and descend toward the tree line! Luckily he started climbing again, though. It was a rough day for flying anyway. It scared my instructor and I, though.
That's just one reason I didn't like to fly behind the Cessna. :-\
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The 1-26 we had came from the academy also. Although it's paint job was not as cool.
Michigan has a Schweizer 2-32 that they got at a DRMO. It had been a NASA glider used to test out aircraft instruments in a vibration-free flight environment.
A useful URL for those interested in the CAP Glider Program.
https://ntc.cap.af.mil/ops/dot/Glider/index.cfm (https://ntc.cap.af.mil/ops/dot/Glider/index.cfm)
Enjoy!
I flew in the Schweitzer once with general Harrison. I remember liking the view I got from the seat a little better because it was higher up, but it takes a lot of stick movement to make that thing move a little. I flew it after I had already had a lot of L-23 training and I still couldn't fly the thing. The general did the take-off, let me try the tow for a minute (and I couldn't keep it behind the tow plane), he thermaled it a few hundred feet (you heard it right, you can go soaring in a Schweitzer) and landed it.
Nice flight, though. It's fun to have someone else fly for you while you look outside for a little while instead of having to focus on seven different things at once when flying.
The little bit of time that have have had in a 2-33 was interesting. i got it to thermal a little, but most the time i could not get it to bank over fast enough to get into the thermal. the roll rate on it is so slow it is not funny. but i guess that is what you would want in a trainer.
Long Island Group (NY) uses a winch to launch their gliders. There are C-182's in NYWG that are equipped for towing. I've heard they make okay tow planes. I don't see why they and high power 172's can't be used.
Quote from: Chris Jacobs on January 10, 2007, 04:26:31 AM
The little bit of time that have have had in a 2-33 was interesting. i got it to thermal a little, but most the time i could not get it to bank over fast enough to get into the thermal. the roll rate on it is so slow it is not funny. but i guess that is what you would want in a trainer.
If you've ever looked at the ailerons on that bus, you'll see that they're about 2'x6". And that's not even too much of an exaggeration.
Quote from: JohnKachenmeister on January 07, 2007, 03:23:39 PMMy dream is to buy a self-launching glider.
I thought you were kidding:
http://www.alexander-schleicher.de/englisch/produkte/ash26/e_ash26_main.htm