💡 SLIPPING our gravitational bonds and leaving launch is always a special moment. There’s no feeling like it, no matter how routine it becomes over time. It’s only great however when it’s done with control, without the need to test how bulletproof the wing’s design is. Launching is a critical phase; it’s where we’re closest to the ground, moving sometimes with speed without the wing properly flying. It’s where pilots can easily come unstuck, especially on unforgiving launches. 🏔️ Gliders’ launch characteristics have improved dramatically, and are one of the reasons why the sport has flourished in recent years. Having said that, visit any launch and watch a cross-section of pilots for long enough, and you’ll witness good and bad launches. What makes one good and one bad? Control. The manner in which the pilot is delivered into the air is key. Style points aren’t important, just a strong, safe technique. Falling on one’s face on to the rocks at Ölüdeniz does nothing for your image or your looks. 🌬️ Alpine flying sites can enjoy light anabatic winds, depending of course on time of year, day and prevailing conditions. Pilots used to soaring sites usually dread these launches. Even light backwinds can plague them, despite strong thermic activity out front, although this usually happens only when launching on snow in late winter or early spring. ⏳ These pilots are usually used to ground handling before deciding when to launch. But alpine launching does not afford the pilot time to stand and admire the wing, choosing when to go. Once started, an alpine launch should be a set of fluid sections, with a controlled flow from one to the next until the decision is made to commit fully. Pull up, control, look, commit. A front stall at the last stage can be either comedy gold or devastating, depending on the terrain. Grass launches usually allow mistakes, though nothing is guaranteed when running downhill at 20-25km/h and falling on one’s face. Falling down a scree slope with half the wing open at these speeds could see loss of more than a little pride. A trip to casualty or the dentist can be on the cards.
Style points aren’t important, just a strong, safe technique
⚠️ Some common mistakes
Forward launches, done because of the lightness of the forward breeze or a complete lack of it, can be daunting to pilots who don’t practise. Here are some of the main reasons that lead to the launch going wrong. ▶ Not checking properly: That lines are free, or even clipping in wrongly. ▶ Charging downhill: From the trailing edge with the lines totally slack – anything can happen. ▶ Too much impulse: At the beginning that goes unchecked and leads to a front stall. ▶ Not standing in the centre: Of the wing, leading to an uneven pull-up. ▶ Dropping the hands: Leading to closure of the leading edge – the glider will not fly. ▶ Bending at the waist: And closing the leading edge, again preventing the glider from flying. ▶ Not looking at the wing: To check for knots in the lines, so taking off with a problem. ▶ Sitting down too early and jumping back: With the glider not flying. As the wing tries to fly the pilot will scrape the ground – not so funny over harsh terrain.
