The Straight Glide in Turbulence

The objective of this lesson is to understand how turbulence and some crosswind affects the straight glide..

Learning Points

Maintaining a course is more interesting when we have a cross wind, and especially so when it becomes more turbulent. Turbulence is a result of the air moving around in all dimensions – think of a shallow river flowing over rocks: whilst going in the same general direction, it can be going up, down or sideways at any particular point. The air is similar – it behaves like a liquid flowing over the landscape, with the added distraction of rising and sinking areas as it passes over patches of ground at differing temperatures. But we still want to fly straight to our target, and the goal remains the same:

• keep the wings level
• keep the string flowing straight back and
• ensure our target does not move across the canopy.

The glider remains quite stable, but will be knocked off course much more quickly. You will be making coordinated adjustments much more often, if not continuously.

Scenario and Demonstration

This demonstration and exercise will be in a moderately turbulent 20kt cross wind, amongst mountains. You’re flying the Standard Cirrus. We are heading North West towards the river and small lakes at the top of the valley. Being somewhat mountainous, the wind in the valley is quite ‘lumpy’! The glider starts on track and takes a moment to settle down. The video then shows the effect of letting go of the controls for a while, and continues by making coordinated turns to get back and stay on track. You’ll see when it is settled that we need to head slightly into wind in order to track towards our target.

Alternative Video without animation

About the videos

Multiple versions of the videos are being made available:

• With animation and voiceover.
• Alternative without the animation graphics.
• As recorded in Condor Flight School. These will have messages at the top of the screen, with no additional animation or voiceover – that’s the way the Condor cookie crumbles!

The videos are suited to any device that supports YouTube. If you have trouble loading the video in the browser, click on Watch on YouTube in the lower left corner.

Performing the Exercise

Aim for the same area, choosing a specific mountain top for precision… then try letting go for while. See how long it takes for the glider to be blown off course. When it wanders off, bring it back on course and settle to the required speed, then keep your target on the nose by adjusting all three controls as necessary. When you can do this at a steady speed in this exercise, you’re doing well! Try some Free Flight in Condor with varying crosswinds and turbulence settings. Try the exercises at different speeds. Beware that in rough air it is easier to become stalled – stay safe by speeding up.

Further Reading and References

• Gliding From Passenger to Pilot, 2nd Edition: Pages 87-88
• BGA Instructors’ Manual, 4th Edition: Section 2, Chapter 9
• Gliding: The British Gliding Association Student Pilot Manual, Section 4.7 and website.