GNZ Newsletter November 2023
From the president
Welcome to the November 2023 GNZ newsletter.
What a great start to the season!
Already there have been some amazing cross country flights.
Plus club trips away over Labour weekend.
Plus a youth camp.
Plus instructor training courses.
Plus a cross country course.
And even Auckland's field has finally opened for business.
And this month the season really kicks into gear.
Bring on the goodness.
And a few new members would be nice too.
Get out there and enjoy it.
Steve Wallace
GNZ President
Congratulations
STEVEN THRUPP
XCP Complete. Well done Steve!
RAY BURNS
GNZ's newest A CAT instructor!
DAVID TODD
A 'round the lake' flight ticked off the bucket list.
MIKE STRATHERN (on the right)
Third place at the Australian Club Class Nationals as he warms up for the World's in December.
Summer Training Sessions
by William Keedwell
Papawai and Omarama
Dear Gliding Enthusiasts across New Zealand,
With summer on the horizon, we are excited to extend a special invitation to all gliding club members across New Zealand for our upcoming summer training sessions. Papawai and Omarama are not just about gliding; it's about embracing the sport, refining skills, and building a community that thrives on the thrill of soaring.
Why Choose A Summer Training course?
Consolidated Training: Experience shows that immersive, week-long sessions offer a deeper learning curve compared to occasional flights.
Expertly Tailored Programs: Our courses are designed to cater to diverse needs, ensuring focused attention with a 2:1 student-instructor ratio.
Past Success: Many of our previous attendees are now meticulously planning their paddock landings for this summer. This could be you next year!
Time off work: schedule your time off work months in advance ensuring you fully immerse yourself in the training without any work-related distractions.
Weather Independent Learning: irrespective of the weather. On days when flying conditions aren't optimal, we ensure the learning doesn't stop. You can engage in insightful lectures from our seasoned instructors.
Papawai and Omarama: Diverse Training Opportunities:
Both Papawai and Omarama offer Intensive Training courses tailored to individual needs, accommodating a diverse mix of students with varying goals in the same courses for a personalized learning experience.
Omarama, in addition to the Intensive Training courses, also provides a Mountain Soaring Week and an Introduction to Alpine Flying Course.
Upcoming Summer Training Sessions at Papawai
October 2023:
Instructor Training Course: Mon 23rd - Fri 27th
November 2023:
2x Intensive Training Weeks: Mon 13th – Fri 17th and Mon 20th – Fri 24th
January 2024:
2x Intensive Training Weeks: Mon 8th – Fri 12th and Mon 29th – Fri 2nd
February 2024:
Intensive Training Week: Mon 26th – Fri 1st
March 2024:
2x Intensive Training Weeks: Mon 11th – Fri 15th and Mon 25th – Fri 29th
Upcoming Summer Training Sessions at Omarama
October 2023:
Instructor Training Course: 28th – 5th Nov
November 2023:
Mountain Soaring Week: 20th – 24th
2x Intro to Soaring: 27th-28th and 30th – 1st Dec
December 2023:
2x Intensive Training Weeks: 4th – 8th and 18th – 22nd
January 2024:Intro to Alpine Flying Course: 22nd – 26th.
February 2024:
Intensive Training week: 12th – 16th
Intro to Alpine Flying: 19th – 23rd
March 2024:
Intensive Training week: 4th – 8th
2x Intro to Soaring: 18th-19th, 21st – 22nd
April 2024:
Intensive Training week: 1st – 5th.
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We urge all gliding enthusiasts, whether beginners or seasoned professionals, to consider joining us. With limited spots available per session, we recommend booking your slot at the earliest. This is a golden opportunity to network with fellow gliders, learn from the best, and make the most of the summer skies.
Book at Papawai with this Link
Inquiries To Omarama [email protected]
To all our fellow gliders across New Zealand: Let's come together, share experiences, and make this summer a memorable one. We're eager to welcome you to Papawai and Omarama!
Youth Glide New Zealand have a new website
Well done to to the team at YGNZ who put in the hard mahi and created a brand new colourful website for all to enjoy. If you haven't checked it out yet just go to https://www.youthglide.org.nz/
Up Coming Events
For a summary of up coming events go to:
The ads are now flowing in. If you are travelling from another island please click the pic below for a 10% ferry discount.
OGC Mountain flying course: Mon 20th Nov - Fri 24th Nov 2023 South Island Regionals Competition: Tue 2nd Jan – Tue 9th Jan 2024
Drury Enterprise Contest
Club Class Nationals - Papawai
07-15 February 2024
Attention all aspiring Club Class pilots. Don’t forget to register now for the Club Class Nationals being held at Papawai Airstrip in Greytown next 07-15 February followed by the Central Districts at Waipukurau 2 days later.
Two competitions in two locations in two weeks….twice the fun.
If you are intending to come and fly the friendly Wairarapa skies we need you to enter so we can plan an awesome event as we did during the 2022 Central Districts. Entries are now open at:
Club Class Nationals - Papawai
We will be putting a limit on the number of entries so we can run a really good and safe contest so get in now and register!
All launching will be by aerotow.
Camping is available onsite if bringing a tent or campervan. We have modern shower & toilet facilities https://www.wwgc.co.nz
Greytown is full of wonderful Air BnB’s and two excellent motels but you need to book now as there are a number of summer events on in the Wairarapa in February.
For more information contact Cheye 027445228 or Grae 0274429337
Your chance to fly in the New Zealand
Multiclass Nationals
Have you ever wanted to fly a task with a champion at a National Gliding Contest
This is a chance of a life time. You get to experience what it is like to fly a day (maybe more if numbers allow) with a champion racing pilot.
Yves Gerster won the New Zealand Racing Class in 2016 while studying here as a student.
He is a 3 x National Swiss Champion with a world championship ranking of 7th.
Yves recently famously flew from Courtelary in Switzerland, to Lasham in the UK. A nine hour flight that included crossing the English channel. Then a few days later he flew back home!
If you wish to fly with Yves at the upcoming New Zealand Multi-Class Champs in Taupo, 19th to 28th January, then register your interest below.
https://forms.gle/U8kWKQw3BWuR6Hwp9
If you just want to watch some great gliding videos you can check out his You Tube channel here:
https://www.youtube.com/@YvesGerster/videos
From around the clubs
After the summer and then winter of the never ending rain, the Auckland Gliding Club is at last open again for business with a freshly painted towplane.
Aviation Sports enjoys their traditional Labour Weekend dinner (and flying) at Matamata. Not sure what's happening on the TV in the background though!
Mike Strathern and his lucky frog in the land of Oz. Hope he brings back some of that lucky weather.
Tokoroa landout retrieve for Andrew Flectcher. Tow pilot Peter Thorpe.
Good start to the soaring season at Piako with no less than five around the lake flights over two consecutive weekends. Well done David Jensen, David Todd, Jason Shields, Steve Foreman and Tim Bromhead.
Feeding time at the Wellington Wairarapa Youth camp.
Lovely wave photo by Milan of Kahu Soaring
Canterbury Gliding Club matching it with a para-glider.
How amazing is the Canterbury Wave when lit from underneath by the setting sun.
The 2023 Matamata Cross Country Course
Gerard Robertson reports
The 2023 MSC XC course had a mixture of new and returning participants, 11 in all, who managed 3 days of good flying, before deciding on the Tuesday morning that the forecast weather wasn't worth staying for. This, of course, meant a good ridge day on the Wednesday afternoon eventuated.
While less common that course participants return for a rinse and repeat, it's indicative of the value of the course and the fact that participants feel so well-supported by the cast of thousands in the background. The presenters, instructors, tow pilots and other volunteers all did a great job, but it's likely that the first person to come to mind to be thanked by participants would be Marion Moody, who did her usual sterling work proving that glider pilots fly on their stomachs.
The support by clubs and syndicates in offering gliders and towplanes underpins the course and is greatly appreciated.
There was only a handful of outlandings, including some pre-planned at the Pohlen Road goat farm, while a couple of others made new friends of farmers. One pilot unfortunately damaged his glider during an outlanding and was widely commended for his willingness to talk about it the following morning, allowing all to learn from his experience.
Post-course survey results (improvements always being sought) included:
- flying with renewed enthusiasm
- I have done all this before...but the course boosted my knowledge and flying skills enormously
- exceeded my expectations; great course.
All aspiring cross-country pilots should aim to attend this course or the South Island equivalent. Learning and camaraderie make for a great time together.
Membership
Membership Display Panel
Ok, it's that silly time of year again when the membership numbers make no sense as clubs are resigning members on mass that haven't renewed (as they are supposed to do) even though in typically glider pilot fashion many of these members will get around to renewing. So the vario has actually gone twice around and is showing -44 for the month and the altimeter if it showed negative numbers would be reading -55. The real picture should present itself in a month or two once things settle down. In the meantime, now all clubs are back up and running after the wet winter, let's all do all we can to get some new members in the door.
A not to be missed Vintage Kiwi Rally
Your chance to be aerotowed by a Tiger Moth.
Be sure to get this one in your log book!
From the GNZ IT Department
New BFR & Medical System on gliding.net.nz
If your club is using the GNZ BFR & Medical system, emails are now being sent for BFRs and Passenger Flying Medicals that are due to end or expire. You'll get a warning 1 month out, then an email when it actually ends.
To view your BFRs and Medical status anytime, go to: https://gliding.net.nz/, click on your club, then choose 'BFRs, Medicals & Ratings'. You'll need to be logged in with a verified account to view this.
Eventualities
WASOB / SASOB
Incident Reports
A summary of incidents September to October 2023
- radio batteries flat, pilot unable to land at controlled airfield due airspace, landed at another field
- pilot did not see electric fence wire and posts until exiting aircraft after outlanding, no damage
- training flight, glider laterally out of position on tow, tug and glider released rope simultaneously
- Cessna aircraft approached tug + glider head-on during launch, averting action required by tug
- two 2-seat gliders joining overhead airfield, inadequate lookout, flarm not updated, near miss
- rear canopy opened during winch launch, occupant was unfamiliar with latch characteristics
- winch launch aborted (due to canopy opening), cable would not release using knob in rear seat
- severely intoxicated club member arrived at gliding site, present at launch point, walking wings
- wheel-up landing after ferry flight, pre-landing check not done, pilot insufficiently prepared
- hatch which secures tail ballast weights lost during flight, attributed to not being fully secured
- single-seater, fuselage broken after ground loop when outlanding, approach deemed high and fast
A reminder about 'Just Culture' from the NOO
A number of incidents in the above list do not yet have a completed OPS-10 report. Sometimes there is a reluctance to face our mistakes or errors of judgement - this is completely understandable. We also need to be gentle and nurturing towards pilots who have been involved in an incident, and offer genuine support. The purpose of these incident reports is to keep us aware of the potential hazards in gliding, and hopefully prevent a recurrence. The causes which lie behind an incident are often subtle and may not be immediately obvious. For example, there may have been inadequate training, not enough consolidation, lack of currency, insufficient preparation, a poor attitude towards certain procedures, or simply a gradual erosion of safe standards. It can take an incident to remind us of where we are all slipping up. As far as possible all identifying details are scrubbed from the above summaries. Sometimes specific glider types need to be named. We are not interested in "who this happened too" or who might be to blame. We are interested in learning about what happened recently, and in probing the underlying causes. Please encourage operators and observers to fill out an OPS-10 form within 24 hours of an incident, at least in draft form, while the details are fresh and vivid. An observer can also submit a report - it doesn't have to be the pilot. It can be helpful to have reports from different people about the same incident, especially if injury or damage occurred (or could have occurred)
You can access all back copies of the Ops Team Talking newsletters.
These have been placed on the Gliding NZ web site under News > Safety Bulletins A link to the GNZ incident reporting form (OPS 10) can be found in the very top menu bar on the GNZ homepage, just to the right of the 'Classified Adverts'. You can now fill this form out on your phone at the airfield so no excuses.
OPS 10 link: http://gliding.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/OPS10v7f.pdf
In the case of an accident, asap please phone: 0508 ACCIDENT (0508 222 433)
GNZ Classifieds
Just look at all those lovely gliders for sale just awaiting new owners before summer...
https://gliding.co.nz/classifieds/
JS3 - 400hrs, 146 launches. All the kit. Currently undergoing EASA certification. Selling for $100k less than the new price and it’s in NZ already
Thanks for reading
All contributions, pics, videos and opinions welcome
EMAIL: [email protected]