An Invitation to Soaring Flight

We're Talking About Sailplanes Here This site is about soaring flight in sailplanes (gliders), those elegant, highly efficient wonders of aerodynamic design. Another way to soar is with hang gliders. But that's a largely different game. For information on that see The United States Hang Gliding Association. In the United States, sailplanes fall under the auspices of the Federal Aviation Administration, and sailplane pilots are licensed just like other pilots. That may be off putting, but it's good for you because it means you will be trained and tested to a high level of knowledge and proficiency, just what you need to fly safely. In the United States this kind of soaring is fostered by Soaring Society of America. It Sounds Expensive, But... The good news is that you get to do all sorts of things you can't do in powered flight and you don't have to pay extra for it. In fact, you pay less, a lot less. There are commercial soaring operations and private, non-profit clubs. How much you pay depends on the type of establishment you choose, whether you buy a glider or rent, and, if you buy, how new your ship is and how well equipped and maintained. You get the idea. The cheapest way into soaring is through a club. They don't make a profit, the instructors and tow pilots usually volunteer their services, and the aircraft rental rates are very, very low. I learned to fly in a club (Memphis Soaring), and my total expenses from first flight to solo were $750.

Commercial operations, however, are often the best option. In some places, good clubs are hard to find and you may have to drive far to reach one. For many people, time is money. Commercial operations operate every day, so if you are in a hurry, you can get the job done more quickly. Also the level of instruction is usually more professional at a commercial operation. Whereas, in a club you may get handed off from one instructor to another and the quality of your training may depend more on your own initiative than would be the case in a commercial setting.

In the end, regardless of the option you choose, the kind of pilot you become depends mainly on you. If you are to become a safe and proficient pilot, you must be willing to invest a lot of time reading, besides the time you spend at the airport.

So, Where to Begin?

Most people just show up at a soaring site, introduce themselves, ask some questions, take a demo flight, and eventually sign up. However, you could warm up to the idea by reading a book or two first. I highly recommend recommended the following titles:

Learning to Soar

Most people find it hard to believe that one can fly for hours on end and travel hundreds of miles with any certainty of success. Power pilots, especially, find it difficult to imagine enjoying flight without an engine, a situation they are trained to regard as an emergency. To them, carrying their energy in gas tanks equals security; it gets them from point A to point B and permits a retry if they should botch a landing. For many of them, the concept of harvesting energy from the atmosphere itself, is a real stretch of the imagination and doesn't sound like fun. However, some power pilots embrace the idea and then wonder what took them so long to discover it. After two years of soaring, one power pilot wrote:

People who learn to soar go through several stages. First they learn to learn the basics, takeoffs, landings, maneuvering--easy stuff for experienced power pilots. Then they learn to stay aloft as long as the atmosphere has energy (lift) to offer. Later, they learn to fly cross-country. And, finally, they learn to do it fast. Not all pilots progress through all of these these stages. Many prefer to stay close to their home field, but that soon becomes easy and the sense of challenge fades. It takes a lot of grit, the first time, to cut ties with your home field and set out to a far destination. But, once the commitment is made, you settle down to "business as usual" and pleasantly finds that you have the skills necessary for success. With experience, confidence grows the anxiety wanes. The search for challenge leads many into competition. They often start in local, fun fly contests. Then they move on to regional, national and, in some cases, world contests. Most find a stage of development where they are adequately challenged and continue soaring at that level. You don't have to be national or world class to enjoy the sport. For most, it is enough to simply fly like, and sometimes with, the eagles, hawks, buzzards.

Jim Hendrix | Back |  Soaring Publications |