Night Flights

[Gary Boggs]

I know there are sailplanes around the world that are equipped with lights
but I've never read about any night time soaring, are there any stories out
there?

I'm refurbishing an SGS 2-32 and I'm going to install nav lights on it so
that I don't have to come down late in the day, just as the wave is getting
better and better. Every month last spring we had beautiful, smooth
lenticular clouds, lit up all night by a gorgeous full moon. Are there any
accounts of any night wave soaring?

Gary Boggs

[Bill Daniels]

"Gary Boggs" > wrote in message
...
> I know there are sailplanes around the world that are equipped with lights
> but I've never read about any night time soaring, are there any stories
out
> there?
>
> I'm refurbishing an SGS 2-32 and I'm going to install nav lights on it so
> that I don't have to come down late in the day, just as the wave is
getting
> better and better. Every month last spring we had beautiful, smooth
> lenticular clouds, lit up all night by a gorgeous full moon. Are there
any
> accounts of any night wave soaring?
>
> Gary Boggs
>
>

The NCAR 2-32 (Now operated by the Soaring Society of Boulder) is rigged
with running lights and, I believe, was flown in night waves. Somebody here
probably has some details.

The rec.aviation.homebuilt group has had a running discussion of using
"ultra-bright" LED's as running lights to conserve battery power. Still on
the LED subject, there are such things as "Paving Brick" LED runway edge
lights that contain solar panels and a battery. They charge enough during
the day to run the LED's all night. These might be useful if you intend to
land on a glider runway at night. A VASI - like glide path lighting system
might be useful too.

Bill Daniels

[Jack]

Bill Daniels wrote:

> ...if you intend to land on
>a glider runway at night...
> [a] VASI-like glide path lighting system
> might be useful....


Maybe not.

If somebody prangs because the (the lawyers claim) your VASI was all
wrong for the actual wind conditions, it could be a big liability problem.


Jack

[Albert Gold]

Gary,

I don't know about gliders with lights, but I do know that night time
soaring was a fairly common thing back in the days when duration records
were still recognized. As I recall the longest ran to something like 96
hours beating back and forth on a ridge, perhaps in Hawaii.

Hope things are going well for you in Hood River. I'll be in Albany and
Portland from the 20th to the 27th, but with kids and friends to visit
for the holidays, I doubt I'll be able to get over to your place.

Happy holidays,

Al

Gary Boggs wrote:
> I know there are sailplanes around the world that are equipped with lights
> but I've never read about any night time soaring, are there any stories out
> there?
>
> I'm refurbishing an SGS 2-32 and I'm going to install nav lights on it so
> that I don't have to come down late in the day, just as the wave is getting
> better and better. Every month last spring we had beautiful, smooth
> lenticular clouds, lit up all night by a gorgeous full moon. Are there any
> accounts of any night wave soaring?
>
> Gary Boggs
>
>

[Bill Daniels]

"Jack" > wrote in message
. com...
> Bill Daniels wrote:
>
> > ...if you intend to land on
> >a glider runway at night...
> > [a] VASI-like glide path lighting system
> > might be useful....
>
>
> Maybe not.
>
> If somebody prangs because the (the lawyers claim) your VASI was all
> wrong for the actual wind conditions, it could be a big liability problem.
>
>
> Jack

Somebody? I wouldn't turn the damn thing on unless I was landing.

Bill Daniels

[Bob Korves]

"Gary Boggs" > wrote in message
...
> I know there are sailplanes around the world that are equipped with lights
> but I've never read about any night time soaring, are there any stories
out
> there?
>
> I'm refurbishing an SGS 2-32 and I'm going to install nav lights on it so
> that I don't have to come down late in the day, just as the wave is
getting
> better and better. Every month last spring we had beautiful, smooth
> lenticular clouds, lit up all night by a gorgeous full moon. Are there
any
> accounts of any night wave soaring?
>
> Gary Boggs

At the old Vacaville Soaring Center in the 1970's they used to take paying
passenger rides at night in 2-32's. My intructor at the time, Ed Skuzinski,
said it was fine on tow and when at altitude because there were plenty of
lights from the surrounding cities for a decent horizon. He said it was
much worse in the landing pattern because then they were in the Lagoon Valey
bowl where there were very few lights and just a few lanterns to mark the
landing area. He said he was happy when the idea didn't make money and was
discontinued.
-Bob

[Kevin Christner]

Hi Gary,

You might check the DG website under the silent aircraft for some
interesting lights. Very low power drain.

Kevin

[Mhudson126]

www.silentwingsairshows.com Bob Carlton (The guy with the jet) also puts on a
night show in his Salto. He got it certified for night flight, although I
believe that he had to do some sort of special waiver because the rules do not
allow lighting on an aircraft unless it is equiped with a generator. The
lighting he has is by Whelen.

More strange output from the nuts at Moriarty, New Mexico.
-Mitch

[Mark James Boyd]

In article >,
>www.silentwingsairshows.com Bob Carlton (The guy with the jet) also puts on a
>night show in his Salto. He got it certified for night flight, although I
>believe that he had to do some sort of special waiver because the rules do not
>allow lighting on an aircraft unless it is equiped with a generator. The
>lighting he has is by Whelen.
>-Mitch

Hmmm...very interesting. I've never heard that lights aren't allowed
unless there is a generator. I'd love to hear more about this.

I too have a generatorless aircraft and am looking at putting
lights on it...

I'd love to see what the LSA stuff says about this.
--

------------+
Mark J. Boyd

[jorgie]

Does the generator need to be operational? Or just fitted?


--
jorgie
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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- A website for Australian Pilots regardless of when, why, or what they fly -

[Mhudson126]

I suggested to Bob he install an old hand crank telephone generator on the
panel. For some reason he thought this might be tacky. I do not know if it
needs to be opperational or not.

-Mitch

[OscarCVox]

Lasham in the uk
Glider lights - sorted
Runway lights - sorted
Qualified pilots - sorted
Insurance - ah problem no one is prepared to insure a glider for night flying
in the UK

[Tim Ward]

"Mhudson126" > wrote in message
...
> I suggested to Bob he install an old hand crank telephone generator on the
> panel. For some reason he thought this might be tacky. I do not know if
it
> needs to be opperational or not.
>
> -Mitch

Nah, one of those friction-drive generators for a bicycle -- then he can
charge the battery on the takeoff and the rollout.

Tim "It quits working for some reason" Ward

[Janusz Kesik]

U¿ytkownik "Gary Boggs" > napisa³ w wiadomo¶ci
...
> I know there are sailplanes around the world that are equipped with lights
> but I've never read about any night time soaring, are there any stories
out
> there?
>
> I'm refurbishing an SGS 2-32 and I'm going to install nav lights on it so
> that I don't have to come down late in the day, just as the wave is
getting
> better and better. Every month last spring we had beautiful, smooth
> lenticular clouds, lit up all night by a gorgeous full moon. Are there
any
> accounts of any night wave soaring?

I have been flying some ten flights two years ago, in a SZD-9 Bocian. This
glider is factory equipped with nav lights, and it is very simple grid of
three little bulbs with coloured caps on them, located on the wingtips and
fin (red&green on the wigtips, and white on fin). They're powered with an
additional battery, independent of this which powers the radio and other
electric stuff on board.

Well... great experience, especially on the moonless night as the one we
were flying... :) I haven't tried wave flying at night, but heard of guys
flying it during the night flights at the Zar Mountain Gliding School in
Poland. It must be a real blast! :)

Regards,


--
Janusz Kesik
Poland
to reply put my name.surname[at]gazeta.pl
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