"Andy" wrote in message
oups.com...

Bill Daniels wrote:
"For the pilot it's just like a takeoff in a powerful airplane. Just
pitch
up for desired climb airspeed. If the airspeed is high, just raise the
nose
a bit more and the airspeed will decrease. If it's a bit low, lower
the
nose a bit and the airspeed will increase. "


With a traditional winch of adequate power, pitching up increases
airspeed. How do these modern winches result in the reverse effect?
Does the reversal only happen once the line tension limit has been
reached?

Andy


A "traditional winch" doesn't control tension but tries (and often fails) to
control cable speed which doesn't relate in any logical way to glider
airspeed anyway. If the tension is controlled instead, the speed will
decrease as the pilot pitches up since this adds load to the cable which the
winch senses and slightly reduces power. This happens almost instantly so
the pilot sees the airspeed behave logically as it would in a powerful
airplane. This puts airspeed control completely in the hands of the pilot
where it belongs.

Think of it like a jet with fixed thrust. Nose up increases load on the
engine so the aircraft slows - nose down decreases load so the aircraft
accelerates.

Bill Daniels