Sat 6th July

 Arriving at the club early morning to temperatures and wind that felt like late October, I did  wonder what this late Autumn (sorry mid-summer) day would bring. So few members turned up by 9:15 Stuart Procter the duty instructor decided to delay the briefing until nearly 10 (think he wanted breakfast really) hoping more members would turn up..they didn’t. Nevertheless there were enough to fly, at the briefing I said that I thought the afternoon might be quite good, no one expected quite how good it would be!

The wind was very strong but right down the runway, first met check flight confirmed that conditions were surprisingly “ok” for training in the upper blue card conditions, sadly too strong for the Trial lesson visitors and Roly’s two friends and family members, they promised to return however.

In the clubhouse, Stuart Thomson and Ivan Roulson met the prearranged group of Halberton cubs hoping to get their part two “aviation badge”, there were rather a lot of them! 

A packed Clubhouse (Mark Courtney)

 

Soaring was possible from the first flight as the James duo, James Flory and James Smart found out, it was nice to see James Smart back from Guernsey for a couple of weeks.

 

Great cloud streets (Mark Courtney)

Stuart Procter made a concerted effort to progress Andy Batchelor towards his Part One of his instructor course, with massive lines of lift (streets) appearing in front of the west end of the airfield it was effortless to stay airborne and practice lots of exercises.

Meanwhile I did the same thing with Shaun Dayman who is just about ready for his test to become a basic instructor.

James Flory who was duty tow plane pilot made redundant because of the strong wind, flew with Stuart Thomson, who looked rather battered after his gallant efforts to control what seemed like 50 small over excited  (but very well-behaved) children!

Stuart having now finished torturing poor Andy  who was last seen heading for a dark room needed a new victim, step up the ever keen Joel, Joel handled the very difficult conditions well and demonstrated that he is more than ready to progress to a red card, the next rung up on the ladder. Joel was also signed off for winch driving and Shaun received logging training.

Joel Roulson showing Stuart Procter he can cope with the weather conditions (Mark Courtney)

 With a spare K21 Tom Sides and Paul Medlock took a flight together to enjoy the conditions, with noone else to fly James Flory took Stuart Thomson as ballast in the back seat for a free flight.

Nice sky (Mark Courtney)

Thanks to Vicky for providing food in a somewhat chaotic environment, she did comment to me however “was just like her front room at home”!

In summary, a day that promised so little gave so much  to the members that turned up, happy wind burnt faces all round, I love Autumn flying……….  Mark Courtney

and what was going on up North?  Competition Enterprise is at Sutton Bank Saturday 6 - 13 July  with  teams DD3 and BBB and Dan Hender in JDP  (and with Connor Williams freelancing in FZ with Rob Vaughan) competing. Watch the action on Glide and Seek, and see separate blog entries.

Sat 6th July - Cubs and Beavers

  On Saturday 6th July, we had the pleasure of hosting around 20 eager Cubs and Beavers from the Halberton Cub and Beavers Group at our airfield, all working towards earning their Stage 2 Aviation Badge.
 
 The day kicked off with parents and leaders fueling up on caffeine and snacks at our cozy North Hill café. The atmosphere was buzzing with excitement as Stuart Thomson, our volunteer for the day, prepared to take the group through an unforgettable adventure. The clubhouse  hasn’t been that full in a long time. It was great to see such a buzz around the club.

 Stuart started with an engaging briefing on airfield safety, capturing the kids’ imaginations as they learned how to stay safe while exploring the airfield. Their eyes sparkled with anticipation, eager to witness some real flying action!

Real flying action (Stuart Thomson)

  Decked out in bright hi-vis jackets, the group ventured outside, guided by Stuart and assisted by Ivan Roulson. The air was filled with curiosity as Stuart quizzed the group about potential hazards and different parts of the airfield. A highlight of the tour  was discovering ‘Bumblebee’ tucked away in our ground hangar, where a barrage of questions from the inquisitive kids kept Stuart on his toes! 

Halburton Cubs and Beavers (Stuart Thomson)

  The adventure continued as the group made their way to the glider hangar. Stuart split them into smaller groups for an exploration of the DG505 glider. The excitement peaked as the kids tried on parachutes, surprised by their weight, and took turns sitting  in the front seat of the glider, getting a pilot’s eye view of the controls.
 
 After the hangar tour, everyone walked up to the Launch Control  to watch gliders taking off and landing. The thrill of the winch launches left everyone in awe, and the kids couldn’t stop talking about it! 

Keeping good order (Stuart Thomson)

  The morning wrapped up perfectly with packed lunches outside and some delicious delights from our cafe, basking in the long-awaited sunshine. Laughter and chatter filled the air as everyone enjoyed the beautiful weather and reflected on the day’s adventures.
 
 It was a truly successful and enjoyable morning, leaving the Halberton Cubs and Beavers with unforgettable memories and a newfound passion for aviation. We can’t wait to welcome them back for more sky-high fun! - Stuart Thomson

Fri 5th July - Course Week

 Unfortunately a second non-flying day for the Course members........

So useful to have a good simulator for non-flying days (Library picture)

 

...........but thanks to the Course Helpers Dave Perriam, Ashley Thomas, Mike Rigby and George Sanderson and Course Instructors Chris Wool and Steve Westlake  for making progress on everyone's personal targets.

Thur 4th July - Course Week

 A strong and cold WNW wind greeted the Thursday regulars and the course attendees. Mike Sloggett conducted a combined briefing and then the gliders (2x K21’s, DG505 and Perkoz) were brought out and given their daily inspection check. Course helpers Dave Perriam and Ashley Thomas had already set up the field and the first flight took off before 10am with  Chris Wool and course member Matt Harris. 

A yellow flag flew all day, fully justified by the strong gusty wind which thankfully was not far off the launch line making for good winch launches but also interesting approaches through the wind gradient. Almost from the start there were opportunities to stay up with the ridge working in places and as the day progressed broken thermals appeared in the turbulent air. Cloud base initially only 2,500ft steadily increased to nearly 4000ft. The course had a good day, run by Chris Wool and Steve Westlake completing 12 flights. Many of which were extended flights using a mixture of ridge and thermal. 

North Hill Airfield (Mike Sloggett)

 Two private gliders flew, 230 Pete Startup and FAJ John Borland. It was difficult to go far in the strong wind and unreliable thermals. There were also large areas of heavy sink to negotiate. Pete made it to Tiverton but all was gloom beyond, John half way to Tiverton. Both encountered heavy sink on the way back however the ridge provided a rescue while waiting for the next thermals to arrive on the wind. Mike Sloggett as the only Instructor not involved in the course worked his way through the training list conducting 11 flights. Dave Perriam helped with 6 flights.

In all 30 dual flights, 4 solo, Longest dual  flight Chris Wool with Course member Aaron 57 minutes, Longest solo flight John Borland 3 hours 5 minutes. - John Borland

Wed 3rd July - Course Week

Well Day 3 of the Course and the weather, (as forecast) low cloud, strong blustery winds and a bit of drizzle thrown in. One or two club members arrived realistically not expecting much, so they were not disappointed when we didn’t fly.

 

DSGC Club Simulator

The day was not a total loss as all course members used the Club Simulator under the tender loving guidance of our two instructors, and a good session of flying various exercise's were covered, with a lot of very complimentary feedback regarding the realism  when using the sim. Forecast tomorrow looks like a flyable day, we live in hope. - Dave Perriam

Tue 2nd July - Course Week

Well day two of the course, weather a little better albeit still reasonably low cloud but flyable.
Everyone sorted gliders and kit, airfield set up and flying started, Dave Perriam on the winch for the morning whilst course members sorted their day's targets with Chris Wool and Steve Westlake - our two instructors.
There was an interesting crosswind which made for difficult launches, speed control and you guessed it, not very high releases!!
Which turned into some “up, around and down circuits” great for our early stage trainees but not so good for our solo pilot Andy Pickrell.  The conditions did provide some good learning experiences however. 

 

Setting up the Launch Control 

We stopped for lunch expecting a slight improvement in the afternoon and for once it did indeed improve, cloud lifted (a bit) and the wind decreased slightly which gave way to some better launch conditions.
Later in the afternoon the wind dropped off and the last few flights produced some extended flight times and thermals!!!

All course members flew and overall had an interesting but challenging day, with some good learning and experience being had. - Dave Perriam

Mon 1st July - Course Week

Well, Monday morning blues as the course members assembled in the Clubhouse full of expectation that the cloud will lift. Plenty of coffee, bacon rolls, and other nice things consumed, course briefings given, and a lecture on circuit planning delivered by our two esteemed instructors Steve Westlake and Chris Wool - the field set up ready to go in hope.
 
After much and constant looking skyward out of windows brightness was beginning to appear, expectation of good things (aviation taking place) all of a sudden seemed more likely. So a planned early lunch (yes shortly after consuming breakfast) took place and yes …… the first launch took place.

North Hill Airfield

The day turned around completely and went from mist to sunshine and even some extended airtime with Aaron Harris getting some soaring with Chris Wool.
 
Everyone flew and the day worked out well, with some good launches by Mike Rigby on the winch, Ashley logging, and Dave Perriam retrieving gliders.
 
Tim Petty getting to grips with the ASK21 again, and Andy Pickrell back for another course as he loves it here in Devon, and of course the numerous launch failures before resolo that he loves so much,  new member Adam Lay, Matt and Aaron Harris together with Dave Gregory  all having productive and progressive training flights.
 
Looking forward to day two and the probability of a full days flying. - Dave Perriam

Sun 30th June

 Predicting what the actual weather will be like on a particular day, when looking at the day before forecasts, can be tricky at the best of times - not least with the rather changeable weather we have seen in recent months. And such was the case on Sunday - the forecast on the day before suggested a reasonable flying day from the start and with a Westerly component for much of the day. But arriving at the airfield under grey skies with a distinct chill to the air, it was evident that the actual weather was not keeping to the forecast.

However with suitable optimism gliders were brought out of the hangar and Launch Control set up on the Northern boundary of the airfield - with the windsock showing an Easterly component just to really throw the plan for the day. As the morning briefing was taking place orographic cloud started to sweep across the airfield to also add to the ‘confusion’. Undeterred the gliders were moved across to the launch point and taking the hint blue skies started to appear- it was now a question of whether the wind direction would improve - and steadily but surely it did with Mike Sloggett and James Smart soon taking a met flight in what had now become a crosswind rather than a tailwind. And then it was on with the flying list which made steady progress during the morning. 

North Hill Airfield (Mike Sloggett)

After a short lunch break to allow the few winch drivers, loggers and instructors available to recharge their batteries the afternoon allowed further progress with the flying list with the arrival of Glenn Turpin helping same. The improved weather conditions of the afternoon saw Robert Lee undertake some aerotows with the EuroFox and during the day Paul Summers looked after our trial lesson visitors.

The day’s flying was unfortunately brought to an end late afternoon, and before everyone had flown, as the few available winch drivers and loggers had done more than their fair share during the day…. Mike Sloggett

Sat 29th June

 For once yours truly was able to start a duty day closer to 8 rather than 9 thanks to an overnight at my sister’s and was very happy to arrive to a scene of much industry! Hangars being unpacked and daily inspections started. We hit the published briefing time of 9 with the ground equipment in place - thanks to all involved.

Duty Instructor and Birthday boy (John Pursey)

A crowded clubhouse at 9 and, encouragingly, lots of young fresh faces! With Simon Minson helping instruct for the morning, Robert Lee dealing with first flights, James Flory in the club Eurofox it only needed the safe hands of Pete Startup as Duty Launch Marshal to get the field going. Some half-price launches before 10 o’clock cut off - again well done team!

Gill Morrison with more time for gliding now (John Pursey)

The weather never really delivered - the high cloud threatened in the forecast and all though not high, spirited climbs were to be had until late afternoon. The club fleet from the hangar was all in action with the Perkoz doing some more adventurous training alongside the K21s.

DD3 enjoyed spirited blue thermals (Stewart Henshall)

 

The Eagle made a late appearance as JB realised a shake-down flight before the start of Competition Enterprise next weekend might be a good idea!

The Eagle gets an airing (Stewart Henshall)

 

 As the hangar doors shut on a still sunny evening and I scuttled off (late) for my own birthday celebrations, I thought it had been a great day really, all had flown who wanted to and the Eagle was nestled in the field ready to soar on Sunday! - John Pursey

Thur 27th June

The prediction of a nice warm and sunny day, based on the previous evening’s forecast, turned out to be slightly awry as a weather front moved across the South West in the early hours of Thursday. So members arrived at the airfield under grey skies, with the lack of sun and the forecast Westerly brisk wind seeing jumpers, coats and hats aplenty.

Morning briefing completed the winch run was set up for the Northerly side of the airfield to make the best use of the launching and landing areas at the East end of the airfield. Both K21s, the DG505 and a Junior were soon being walked across to the launch point, daily inspections having been completed, and with the sun and blue skies starting to appear above the airfield. 

Chilly west wind in the sunshine (Mark Courtney)

 The first launch of the day, just after 10am, a met flight by Mike Sloggett and Ashley Thomas, saw a rope break at the top of the launch - with a thermal right above the winch and the rope needing to be sorted out it seemed rude not to make the most of the ‘lucky thermal’, so the met flight was slightly longer than originally planned.

The approach and landing made it an easy decision to put up a Yellow flag which limited use of the Junior but with Mike, Chris Wool and Steve Westlake working their way through the flying list steady progress was made. Dave Perriam looked after the day’s trial lesson visitors and an early arrival for next week’s Course keen to get into the air.

Happy Trial lesson visitor with Dave Perriam (Mark Courtney)

During the morning whether gliders stayed up depended on the timing of the winch launch against the arrival of thermals which unsurprisingly were moving quite quickly across the sky in the brisk wind. The ridge was also working ‘here and there’.

A short lunch break over, the afternoon continued with the thermals in plentiful supply but with patches of strong sink ready and waiting to catch the unwary.

Throughout the day starting the circuit with some height in reserve ‘just in case’ was a sensible plan for handling pilots with final turns being made at a good height ensuring a ‘high energy positive use of airbrake’ approach and resultant safe landing. 

Nice looking sky to the East of North Hill (Mike Sloggett)

 The forecast had been for the wind strength to increase as the day unfolded so no surprise that a blue flag was raised mid-afternoon - and late afternoon with the flying list having just been completed both Mike and Mark came to the same conclusion that the wind strength was now such that continuing to fly was outside the ‘risk v reward’ equation. So gliders were returned to the hangar and Thursday evening flying reluctantly cancelled.

A good day with some ‘interesting’ flying to be had. - Mike Sloggett