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#11
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Launch Order
First come, first served - if you are ready - seems to work best.
At commercial sites I have worked and flown at, launching a grid of XC (or local racers) at a specified time also works - the commercial instructors and students get a midday break, and the private owners get a quick launch. My club, unfortunately, uses a "first to sign up on the towsheet gets priority" system that drives me crazy - since you can show up early, move gliders out, clean canopies, help a newby, but forget to sign up until late morning - then when you push out your glider get told "wait in line - Joe Blow is in front of you" even though good old Joe just showed up, signed up, went to breakfast, and is still trying to figure out how to open his canopy. Seriously, the tow lines fortunately (or unfortunately) are rarely long enough to cause a problem, but the system is fundamentally flawed. Of course, this is the same club where the first person out will place his glider at the very back edge of the runway (gotta have every foot available, you know...), thereby preventing anyone else from gridding behind him. As we all know, the rate of change in glider club procedures can be glacial.... Kirk 66 |
#12
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Launch Order
"bildan" wrote in message ... As a one-time instructor/ride pilot, I've seen it happen many times. The happiest first-time customers were those who got the early and late flights. True. Much of this can be helped by proper diplomacy and by managing expectations from the start. I used to tell ride customers that soaring is supposed to be a fun, relaxing experience, not something regulated by a clock. My favorite line: "When you come to a gliderport, don't have anything more accurate than a calendar strapped to your wrist". Same goes for students:. Remind them that they only pay for time in the air, but there is much to be learned by watching (and assisting) on the ground. Vaughn |
#14
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Quote:
The Japanese students who come here to learn to fly bring a different work ethic than the American students. It's observable to a high degree...they work as a team. We can learn a lot by watching them. Walt |
#15
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Quote:
Placing your glider at the back edge of the runway might be appropriate in certain circumstances..... say a DG 1000 on a hot day..... otherwise. Walt |
#16
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Launch Order
At 22:17 30 May 2011, John Cochrane wrote:
The owner of the tug obviously wants to keep his investment in gliders and instructors working. Your post says this is is a commercial operation, not a club or a charity, so the answer seems clear: Business class. If you, mr. private glider, want a tow Right Now, thereby idling my investment in a training glider, instructor, and lowering my throughput of students, go for it, that will be $80. If you want to pay $40, wait until the students rentals and rides are done. Now everybody's happy. Well, you can't ever make everybody happy. But this is certainly a wonderful solution, and at least answers everybody's objections. (And you know what - there would be a certain number of folks willing to pay the $80.) Jim Beckman |
#17
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Launch Order
At 16:18 31 May 2011, Martin Gregorie wrote:
Where I fly, also UK, at busy times we run two winch queues: one for training and trial flights in two seaters and the other for single seaters and private two-place gliders. Both queues operate on a first-come, first served basis. We tried using two winches but found little benefit from that as in practice the main delay is from ab initio and trial flight briefings: if both queues contain gliders and an instructor is busy briefing, the single seat line gets launched until he's ready. Why would a glider that is not ready to launch be in the launch queue? Seems odd to me, but hey, I'm from the Colonies, so I think simple thoughts. Jim Beckman |
#18
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Launch Order
On Wed, 01 Jun 2011 18:27:22 +0000, Jim Beckman wrote:
Why would a glider that is not ready to launch be in the launch queue? Some instructors seem to like briefing in the launch queue no matter what the CFI says about the practise, though launch line delays are a more common problem with trial flights: some pax just take a lot of time to get into the glider, get strapped in and be ready to go, particularly if you need ballast weights and/or need to put cushions or the ASK21 adjustable backrest into the glider. The above palaver tends to happen near the front of the queue because we tend not to put bodies into aircraft until they're number 2 or 3 in the winch queue. Unlike an aero tow queue, its more important to keep moving gliders forward as those in front of them launch. Our closest winch queue is no more that 20-30m out from the launch point bus and we won't launch a glider that isn't level with the front of the bus. This prevents a wing- drop and the resultant swing and release from sling-shotting the glider into the bus or any people standing by it. -- martin@ | Martin Gregorie gregorie. | Essex, UK org | |
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