Some questions

I'm thinking of getting a pilot license, or at least taking enough
training to solo. I've wanted to do it for a long time. I've started
reading various plane and pilot oriented magazines (AOPA, EAA, and
SSA), though to be honest a lot of it goes over my head - something
that I assume will be corrected by training.

The choice is between glider and sports pilot, and I'm leaning towards
glider. I took a scenic ride at the Williams Soaring Center a few
weeks ago; it was fun, and the people there were very nice (I talked
to several employees and a student). In general gliders are better
looking than small power planes, and I have already have a slight
hearing loss, so avoiding noisy engines would be a good thing. Also,
I like the idea of not having a big panel of dials and gauges to
watch.

I live in Sacramento, California, and the flight schools for either
type of license are at least an hour away, so there's no advantage in
convenience one way or the other, and there's not a huge cost
difference.

A few questions:

1) There aren't many places listed on the SSA learn-to-fly page
(http://www.ssa.org/sport/map/map.html), but I know there are other
places nearby to go gliding (in Napa, for example). Is it just a
question of finding a tow plane, or are there restrictions on where
gliders are allowed to take off?

2) Related to that, where are gliders allowed to fly?

I know that ultralights are restricted to unpopulated areas, and
there's a complicated set of flight zones for power aircraft, but I
haven't seen a list of restrictions for gliders.

3) Only during the day, correct?

4) What does insurance cost for a student pilot? What makes the cost
vary?

5) Will winter be a good time to learn, a bad time to learn, or does
it not matter? Last winter was unusually cold, but the temperature
here is normally between the low 40's and the mid 60's during the day
in winter. Are some things easier to learn in winter and others
easier in summer?

6) Are glider pilot licenses valid in other countries, or only in the
US?

7) Why is the Electraflyer-X a light sports plane while an Antares is
a glider? Is it just the intent of the manufacturer that decides
whether a plane with a motor is a powered glider or a powered plane?




-----
Caelum non animum mutant qui trans mare currunt.

First let me say this is an intelligent set of questions. I'll do my
best and let others jump in to fill the gaps.

On Nov 1, 2:09*pm, Jack Hamilton wrote:
I'm thinking of getting a pilot license, or at least taking enough
training to solo. *I've wanted to do it for a long time. *I've started
reading various plane and pilot oriented magazines (AOPA, EAA, and
SSA), though to be honest a lot of it goes over my head - something
that I assume will be corrected by training.

Perfectly normal. It gets clearer after a while.


The choice is between glider and sports pilot, and I'm leaning towards
glider. *I took a scenic ride at the Williams Soaring Center a few
weeks ago; it was fun, and the people there were very nice (I talked
to several employees and a student). *In general gliders are better
looking than small power planes, and I have already have a slight
hearing loss, so avoiding noisy engines would be a good thing. *Also,
I like the idea of not having a big panel of dials and gauges to
watch.

I live in Sacramento, California, and the flight schools for either
type of license are at least an hour away, so there's no advantage in
convenience one way or the other, and there's not a huge cost
difference.

A few questions:

1) There aren't many places listed on the SSA learn-to-fly page
(http://www.ssa.org/sport/map/map.html), but I know there are other
places nearby to go gliding (in Napa, for example). *Is it just a
question of finding a tow plane, or are there restrictions on where
gliders are allowed to take off?

Glider operation do tend to be spread out. There are no regulations
as to where they can fly but there are economic and practical
limitations. You are in a better location than many people.

2) Related to that, where are gliders allowed to fly?

Part of your training will be about airspace and the limitations that
imposes. The limitations depend on both pilot qualifications -
commercial pilots can go where students can't - and equipment in the
glider. In general, gliders enjoy far more freedom in the USA than in
other countries.
We have a lot of freedom in where to fly.


I know that ultralights are restricted to unpopulated areas, and
there's a complicated set of flight zones for power aircraft, but I
haven't seen a list of restrictions for gliders.

Gliders have no more restrictions than airplanes. But for safety and
practical reasons. pilots will stay withing gliding range of a safe
landing spot.


3) Only during the day, correct? *

As a practical matter, yes. However, the restriction is really about
equipment. Night flight requires running lights and rotating beacons
which gliders usually don't have.


4) What does insurance cost for a student pilot? *What makes the cost
vary?

5) Will winter be a good time to learn, a bad time to learn, or does
it not matter? *Last winter was unusually cold, but the temperature
here is normally between the low 40's and the mid 60's during the day
in winter. *Are some things easier to learn in winter and others
easier in summer?

Start now and be ready to enjoy the great soaring in the spring.


6) Are glider pilot licenses valid in other countries, or only in the
US?

Depends on the country and the level of US license you hold. The US
doesn't require glider pilots to have a medical certificate - some
other countries do.

7) Why is the Electraflyer-X a light sports plane while an Antares is
a glider? *Is it just the intent of the manufacturer that decides
whether a plane with a motor is a powered glider or a powered plane?

It's just how the manufacturer decides to certify his aircraft.

Bill D

Jack:

Good questions, most of which Bill has answered well already. But
I'll add a few more thoughts.

First, I think of soaring (or gliding, to begin with) as being very
different from powered flight. I fly both, but my love is soaring.
Given the quote at the bottom of your query, I sense you might have a
little of the soaring flight theme in your soul already. But if you
try it and decide you'd prefer to learn to fly a powered plane you
will not have wasted your time or money -- anything you have learned
in the early days of glider training will translate well to powered
flight, and in fact should make you a better power pilot.

You live near some of the absolute best soaring in the world. I speak,
of course, of Minden, NV. I run a small soaring business there and
I'd love to welcome you to SoaringNV for your training. But speaking
realistically (unless you want to spend a week here for concentrated
instruction) you're closer to Williams. They have a very fine outfit
there and I recommend them highly. You'll come through their training
with a good grasp of the fundamentals of soaring flight. And if at
any time you'd like to try some soaring in a more challenging
environment, come give us a try too. Or I should say WHEN you want to
try more challenging soaring, call us at 775 782-9409.

Although (as Bill has already said), gliders can fly just about
anywhere powered planes can fly, busy airports generally do not
welcome glider operations. For this reason you generally find them at
quieter airports, often away from large cities so the chance of a
landout does not result in a glider putting down on a golf course in
the middle of a city somewhere.

As far as when to learn, I like students to start instruction at
exactly this season of the year. We in Minden are enjoying Indian
Summer now, there is little wind and no turbulence, and we have
capacity for students. I suspect the same is true of Williams. And
the nice thing about starting now is (again, as Bill said) you'll be
ready to fly on your own and take advantage of the soaring season
later in the year.

I'd encourage you to visit some gliding web sites (ours is
www.soaringnv.com and read a little about what is going on, what
equipment is available, and who is doing what. I'd also encourage you
to join the Soaring Society of America www.ssa.org. They are
dedicated to preserving and building our sport and their monthly
magazine is worth the cost of membership alone. And you're bound to
learn about what we do and how we do it if you read the magazine
regularly.

Finally, I'd be delighted to talk to you on the phone. Call me any
time -- if I'm busy I'll call back. I'd be delighted to tell you more
about our sport or answer specific questions you might have about
training, locations, etc. And next Saturday the Pacific Area Soaring
Council is holding its annual safety seminar in San Carlos (near Palo
Alto). We charge a small fee for attendance at the day's
presentations, and another small fee for the banquet that evening. It
will be held at the Hiller Air Museum, so you get into the museum as
part of the cost, which will actually save you money. That would be a
good opportunity for you to rub elbows with folks who are passionate
about our sport. I'll be talking about soaring out of Minden, and
although some of it might be over your head you won't find a nicer
bunch of pilots who will answer your questions and give you good
suggestions about training.

Good luck with your training. By all means, do call (775 790-4314 is
my personal cell and I'm happy to talk to people interested in
gliding) and do think about coming to the PASCO safety seminar next
Saturday.

Best,

Fred

On Nov 1, 1:09*pm, Jack Hamilton wrote:
I'm thinking of getting a pilot license, or at least taking enough
training to solo. *I've wanted to do it for a long time. *I've started
reading various plane and pilot oriented magazines (AOPA, EAA, and
SSA), though to be honest a lot of it goes over my head - something
that I assume will be corrected by training.

The choice is between glider and sports pilot, and I'm leaning towards
glider. *I took a scenic ride at the Williams Soaring Center a few
weeks ago; it was fun, and the people there were very nice (I talked
to several employees and a student). *In general gliders are better
looking than small power planes, and I have already have a slight
hearing loss, so avoiding noisy engines would be a good thing. *Also,
I like the idea of not having a big panel of dials and gauges to
watch.

I live in Sacramento, California, and the flight schools for either
type of license are at least an hour away, so there's no advantage in
convenience one way or the other, and there's not a huge cost
difference.

A few questions:

1) There aren't many places listed on the SSA learn-to-fly page
(http://www.ssa.org/sport/map/map.html), but I know there are other
places nearby to go gliding (in Napa, for example). *Is it just a
question of finding a tow plane, or are there restrictions on where
gliders are allowed to take off?

2) Related to that, where are gliders allowed to fly?

I know that ultralights are restricted to unpopulated areas, and
there's a complicated set of flight zones for power aircraft, but I
haven't seen a list of restrictions for gliders.

3) Only during the day, correct? *

4) What does insurance cost for a student pilot? *What makes the cost
vary?

5) Will winter be a good time to learn, a bad time to learn, or does
it not matter? *Last winter was unusually cold, but the temperature
here is normally between the low 40's and the mid 60's during the day
in winter. *Are some things easier to learn in winter and others
easier in summer?

6) Are glider pilot licenses valid in other countries, or only in the
US?

7) Why is the Electraflyer-X a light sports plane while an Antares is
a glider? *Is it just the intent of the manufacturer that decides
whether a plane with a motor is a powered glider or a powered plane?

-----
Caelum non animum mutant qui trans mare currunt.

But you don't say why you are at all interested. Is it a long term
fascination with aviation and you just want to fly anything? Are you
interested in the challenges and even sport of cross country soaring?
Do you just want to get a license as a challenge and not sure what you
will do after that.

Aviation in general and soaring in particular suffer form many people
who get their licenses and then don't go on to use them. Thinking
about your core motivations first might help avoid that, or if you do
that at least recognize up front thats what you may do. Places like
Williams Soaring (where I usually fly from) will help you a lot in
going cross country, not just abandon you once you get a license. Fred
will also help do this at Minden.

For many of us it is the cross country soaring that makes this at all
interesting. Sled rides get boring fast even with the pretty scenery.
If you want to try that out talk to Charlie or the other staff at
Williams Soaring and see if you can arrange a cross country flight
with an instructor. You might catch a wave day or manage to find a
thermal day even this late in the season. And as mentioned not is a
good time to get a license if you are interested and you will be able
to start your own cross country explorations in the early spring.

Darryl