GNZ Newsletter


September 2020

From the president


Welcome to the September GNZ newsletter.

Spring has sprung and the air is fresh with new opportunity.

We have more events than we know what to do with this season so time to put pen to paper or digit to keyboard and get thee entered in an event or two.

Click the link and take your pick.

GNZ EVENTS

Fun in the sun here we come!

Steve Wallace

GNZ President


Congratulations

SANDY YONG

305km triangle in a moose suit to keep warm

LOUIS TAPPER

Kiwi paragliding legend and now winch and aerotow rated glider pilot.

Paragliding (or sky jellyfish as I like to call them) may be fun but welcome Louis to the world of further, faster, shinier.

LUKE McPAKE

1st solo then he took a break, came back and has just solo'd again. So 1st solo after his 1st solo.


How to cut, polish and wax your Glider




Omarama Update





From Gavin Wills


Are you thinking of buying one of Gavin's gliders? Please consult the below flow chart first.




From Omarama Airfield Ltd

The company has been working with a number of parties, including the Omarama Gliding Club, and is confident that the full range of services needed for glider operations will be in place for the coming soaring season.

Click the foldable below for the full story of what's on offer from the Omarama Gliding Club this season.

Things are all go for the new season in Omarama for Omarama Gliding Club.

Youth Glide has based its new winch there which offers an exciting new training and launching option for youngsters and oldies alike, and OGC is running the winch whenever Youth Glide is not in Omarama. We have just begun ab initio training with a group of youngsters from Twizel school, and typical heights being achieved with the Duo Discus are 2300 feet, so even on an average day launching and moving on to Horrible Hill is an attractive option cost-wise.

There are two new tow planes on their way, a Dynamic and a Carbon Cub, and we have a number of tow pilots willing to fly them.

Omarama Gliding Club has extended its fleet with a new-to-us Duo Discus on its way from the USA. The glider has an interesting past, it being previously on the Baron Hilton ranch with extremely low hours. The rego is renamed to ZK-GOD which is something Nigel Davey couldn't pass over!

The tow planes and Duo are on schedule to be available for the start of the new season.

OGC will again be running the SI Regionals in November, the contest management team has just been confirmed and sign up notices will be going out shortly

OGC will also be running an Introduction to Mountain Flying course the week prior to the Regionals. This course will be based around Jerry's Course and will provide up-and-coming pilots with a supportive and fun place to pick up advanced training. In the morning there will be formal training sessions followed by a task briefing then flying in the afternoon.  For those that would like a little more adventure, there will be experienced mountain pilots available to fly in one of our club duos throughout the course period. In the past, these courses have been very popular and help to bridge the gap between gaining your QGP and flying in the mountains.

Omarama is a wonderful and exciting place to fly but also has its unique challenges so a week spent with local pilots working through the challenges of flying the mountains is a great opportunity for all pilots. 

The course is likely to be oversubscribed as 15 people have already shown interest, so we hope to repeat the course over the next season, so please contact OGC with an interest and we will keep you up to date with course sessions.

We will be running a tasked contest using taskPilot in parallel to the course, which will be of interest to those gearing up for the Regionals the following week.

We look forward to seeing new and old faces in Omarama over the coming flying season.

Got to be one of the best ever photos of the Taieri Pet

Photo by Geoff Beckett, 29 August 2020


New GNZ Regional Operations Officer

You can't keep a good man down and GNZ is pleased to announce the appointment of the highly respected and experienced Gavin Wills as the new Regional Operations Officer for the South Island.

GNZ Flight Training Programme

http://training.gliding.co.nz/


New System Roll Out


The roll out of the new system continues with the Brian and Martyn roadshow. Photos below from a highly successful event at the Canterbury Gliding Club.

COVID has played a wee bit of havoc with the schedule so please check first but bookings this month include:

Saturday 5th September: Piako and Tauranga (at Piako)

Sunday 6th September: Auckland and Aviation Sports (at Auckland)

Saturday 12th September: Taupo

Have you booked yet?

Supporting material is being given out (see pic below) for use by those students that are transitioning to the new programme. A great chance to learn all about the new system and get your many questions answered.

A bit of coordination is needed (the team can't be everywhere at once) but if you would like to book one of these presentations please contact Brian Sharpe via email.

bwsharpe@xtra.co.nz


FAQ's

ONLINE TRAINING PROGRAMME FAQ's

As pilots spot mistakes, opportunities for improvement or areas of concern, these are either being dealt with by the Ops Team as they come in or are being held over in anticipation of the appointment of a Change Request Review Panel. The ability for constant improvement is one of the key features of the new system.

The training programme is a controlled document so any suggestions for improvement must be made in accordance with AC 2-01 (4a and b). At the moment this is just being done via email but a change request form and flow charted process is on its way. More next month.




The Great Easter Bunny Hunt Comp

Need to add one more event to your calendar.

Easter 2021, TAUPO


Fathers Day Soon

Don't want sox or a box of chocolates this year? Need to drop a hint for something useful?

This from Neil Harker

How many times have you gone to pickup someone and realised the tyres look flat on their trailer or towed your Sweet Pea down to the launch point and someone points out that your landing wheel tyre needs some air?

I bought one of these last summer, and it's awesome, its a Ryobi Tyre Pump, keep in your car boot and you will never have any worries again. Bunnings sell them for $89 (Battery & Charger extra) I use mine with a 2.5Ah battery which is more than enough to top the Trailer and 4 car tyres before needing a charge.

Also to pump up most glider tyres you will need a an extension fitting as the air nipple on the glider wheels is tucked hard into the wheel hub. You can buy these extensions from SuperCheap or Repco (oddly they come in packs of 4 when you only need one - at least they are cheap).  I have one taped to the Pump Hose  (Red Tape in pic) so I have everything I need when I need it.

The Pump has a Pressure Gauge built into it (on the end)  so it is seriously is a total one stop solution.

Finally, did you know the Tyre Pressure for your landing wheel is always placarded in your glider ?

Springfield Soaring Champs

28th November - 5th December 2020


Hospitality, Fun, Entertainment, Mentoring

The Springfield Soaring Champs is focused on hospitality, fun, entertainment and mentoring. Lots to do and learn. It’s the unique Enterprise style of competition, set within Canterbury’s easy access to exceptional mountain soaring. Most meals can be had on site and there is camping and bunkroom accommodation.  

  • Enterprise is the perfect way for less experienced pilots to start racing gliders and yet challenging for advanced pilots.
  • Enterprise encourages personal bests.
  • Enterprise is where the winner has done the most flying, not the least.
  • Enterprise works for a wider range of pilot experience and glider handicaps.
  • Enterprise is not an FAI style with prestart delays and enroute gaggles.
  • Enterprise events are competitive and also fun to compete in.
  • Enterprise allows for ‘novel’ interpretation of the rules – normally called cheating.

Enterprise events are FUN and as a general guideline, tasks will be set to make the most of the day's (safe) flying potential, taking into account the variety of pilot ability and glider performance. This may involve the use of ridge and wave lift, as well as thermal soaring. Water Ballast is not allowed.


Need to understand the meaning of the below? Then make sure you enter a competition this season.


Taranaki looking lovely


YGNZ AGM

This year Youth Glide will be hosting its annual Meeting (AGM) & Mingle in Tauranga. Just like the previous Meeting & Mingles, Youth Glide will arrange a series of aviation-related activities during this weekend which will hopefully include some gliding at the Tauranga Gliding Club.

This weekend is not just for YGNZ youth members – we encourage friends, family, and all supporters of YGNZ to attend and join in on the fun.

REGISTER YOUR INTEREST BELOW - More info coming soon.

https://forms.gle/N5nNTVRRPZgfJ1NS6


The 10 most exciting days of the year!

+Register here: http://youthglide.org.nz/soaring-development-camp/


Not long now...


Captain Terry says..

Don't be like Jim. Jim didn't tie his glider down properly. Now Jim doesn't have a glider.




Don't forget a link to the GNZ incident reporting form (OPS 10) can now 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

Thanks for reading



All contributions, pics, videos and opinions welcome

EMAIL: steve@korcreative.nz