BOOKER GLIDING CLUB.
WYCOMBE AIR PARK, MARLOW, BUCKS SL7 3131P
INFORMATION SHEET
July 2003
| Instrument Flying There has been a long hiatus in making I/F training available – but we should be on line soon. The delays this year resulted from the decision to wait for ECZ to return as the glider has a canopy fitted properly for a blind flying hood. I didn’t want to duplicate the effort by fitting another hood to KCZ or FYV…… We hope to do two levels of training: a basic cloud flying awareness course which will teach you to fly in cloud safely, and a cloud flying soaring course which will teach more effective use of cloud flying to pilots with some experience. Details have yet to be finalised but essentially you will be able to book training through the office in the usual way. Watch for ECZ to return and then we will make a start. Roy Scott has offered to give comprehensive briefings on instrument flying to anyone who is interested – so if you can collect a few interested people together give him a call. Airspace Update
What have the BGA ever done for us? Well for a start they have negotiated a big improvement to the airspace north of Birmingham. This is largely going to be of help to those pilots planning big triangular flights with a leg going from North Wales towards Yorkshire – but it’s worth everyone knowing. If only so you can answer the question “what have the BGA…...etc” The office will stock copies of a stencil that you can use to mark your map. Just ask. Incidentally your chairman is working to get a big improvement to airspace around this site. No guarantees but keep your fingers crossed. G Aboyne 2003 28th September – 18th October inclusive The list is in the office and is filling up for this years visit to Aboyne. There is no minimum experience level necessary. Ab-initio students up to world team members are all welcome and can all fly at Aboyne. We take one or two two-seaters with fully instructors and enough single seaters based on the experience level of the expedition. Accommodation for the first two weeks is in a ten bed log cabin. If you want to join the trip book in with the office, when you book, you will be asked if you can tow a trailer to or from Aboyne and if you wish to stay in the log cabin accommodation or not. Private owners are all welcome, book in the office for the log cabin if required, book your glider in with Mary-Rose Smith on 013398 8645. Any queries ring me at the club. David Richardson Tugging Touch wood, the towing has gone well so far this year and this is mainly due to the excellent work of the two full-timers, Chris and Gavin. Dave Sarney has asked that I make a few points: 1. The radio in PR had to be repaired, almost certainly because of damage caused by a current spike due to not being switch off before shut down (or start-up). 2. That we are using up Pawnee brakes must faster than last year. 3. The just because a tug is parked outside the blister hangar does not mean anyone has done a daily inspection on it. We had a Pawnee catch fire as a result of a carburettor fire. Dave Byass put it out with the on board fire extinguisher before much damage occurred. He made the point that it is worth knowing its location on each of the tugs. It brought up a point about starting engines that are hot already. 1. Switch off the fuel pump (It should be off anyway.) 2. Do not pump the throttle 3. Crank it with the throttle closed. Also, I agree with Bob Davey that once you are in practice with the Pawnee the last 800ft of the descent should be a lot steeper and throttled back than many pilots are doing. All this has to do with problems past. My main worry, as always with regard to towing, is a mid-air collision. Please make it yours. Dave Watt Ian Lingham Fund Recently, a bunch of Ian’s friends from Booker got together in his favourite eating hole – The Curry Centre – in High Wycombe, to discuss what we could best do with the money collected for him. The people present were: Glyn Read, John Tournier, Paul & Kathy Mellor, Danny & Denise Lamb, Carol & Alan Smith, Bruce Cooper, Hilarie Luxton, Dave Byass, Emily Young and David Richardson. The general opinion is that we buy something that will last for a long time, and to that end we have decided that two good quality benches, probably teak, with suitable engraved brass plaques should be bought both for Booker and for Aboyne – where as everybody knows Ian spent three weeks every year. Also, we felt that a brass barometer should be bought and kept at Booker. We rejected the original idea of a “hi-tech” weather station, as that would in all probability be out of date in a year or two and left in a store cupboard somewhere. If anybody has any other ideas, please let us know, either through myself or the office. We will make our decision at the end of July – up until then, all donations are welcome at the office. Alan Smith Technology Update Email statements and newsletters: Our first tentative steps along the road to technological excellence have begun – many of you will have received your first statements over email, and hopefully many of you will also be reading this from within your email inbox. It is the intention to use email statements to reduce office expenditure on printing and postage, although it is an entirely voluntary system – should you wish to continue receiving a paper copy of your statement and newsletter you can do so. That said, anyone wishing to sign up to receive their monthly statement and newsletter over email please let the Office know office@bookergc.nildram.co.uk. For those of you who have already signed up and have started receiving email from the office your feedback is greatly appreciated. SMS texting Every year the office spends over £400 on phone calls to mobile phones trying to locate instructors/tug pilots/pupils to fly. We have a new SMS texting system on trial in the office which should save a significant amount of money every time we phone around to find someone to fly (2.8p per text as opposed to 42p minimum per mobile phone call!). If you are a member interested in receiving email alerts for available flying please let us know. Once again any member thoughts and ideas are welcome and keep watching this space for progress! Richard Garner COME AND HAVE A DRINK Shep cordially invites all club members (except Dave Watt of course) to join him for a glass or two or more to help him celebrate his birthday. Date: Saturday, 2nd August From the office
The new edition of Laws and Rules (14th) is now on sale in the office. The cost is £2.00. To help the staff here on the ground at Booker you are reminded that when you go cross country it is advisable to have arranged for a crew to retrieve you in the event of a landout. In order to make it easier for staff to identify glider trailers in the trailer park you are requested to ensure that your glider number is clearly visible on the outside of the trailer. Please be good enough mark your trailer as soon as possible – over to you. CFI’s final turn Dehydration is a killer – in the air at least, as it wrecks your ability to fly. In the recent hot weather we have seen several severely dehydrated pilots returning to the airfield and generally making a poor fist of flying a circuit / landing, etc. I am surprised that we didn’t see a serious accident. You must drink water when you are flying, and therefore you must also be able to urinate satisfactorily when airborne. It is not funny, it’s a necessity for serious flying so put modesty aside and get it sorted. Anyone who needs advice on this subject please talk to me. STOP PRESS
Bruce Cooper has announced that G has resigned his position of CFI at Booker due to his long standing plans but he will continue to work at the Club until 14th October 2003. There is also the possibility that he will come back next year as a seasonal coach/instructor. Parachute packing WILL take place on the 1st August
providing we have enough parachutes. Please notify the office immediately
if your parachute needs repacking on this date. |