SLOPE SOARING

SLOPE SOARING

Wind coming up a suitable hill keeps plane in air. Simple, close to nature but requires right location and conditions

Recommended plane for beginner: Three main types -

2 metre span polyhedral glider (see plane described in Unpowered Gliding From The Flat page) - docile, forgiving in the air, flies well in light breezes.
1.2 metre Flying Wing - simple, highly crash resistant, presents some flying challenges initially
1.2 - 1.5 metre foam glider of normal "plane-like" configuration

Propulsion / launching: Unpowered radio control model, simply thrown off the hill or cliff, kept in the air by the wind coming the slope.

Flight Times (See also Catching Thermals article)

This will depend on the conditions - slope lift, the thermals and your ability to stay in them. If the conditions are good you could stay up for hours - but you would probably run out of batteries or personal endurance or simply get too cold before then.

Radio Gear: Basic 2 channel radio - or higher quality multi-channel radio. Flying wings will require a Mixer, this can be electronic, mechanical or (preferably) built into a computer radio transmitter.

D.A.W. Schweizer 1-26 Foamie from

www.davesaircraftworks.com

Approximate cost of first plane and gear: - from around A$350 including radio; plus club fees.

A full table of ITEMS REQUIRED and APPROXIMATE PRICES
is contained in the ADVANCED ARTICLE on this topic.

See link at the top or bottom of this page.

Location requirements: Large Slope with good lift and landing area - with few trees, roads, houses etc or other dangers.

Weather: Reasonable breeze coming from the right direction - sufficient to maintain plane in air - but not so strong as to make your plane unmanageable.

Comments

Polyhedral is the most docile plane to fly - excellent model to be trained on, but prone to major damage if crashed. Most experienced pilots retain one of these for light days on the slope. See UNPOWERED GLIDING FROM THE FIELD article.

Flying Wings are challenging initially but once you have learned the basics your learning will accelerate quickly. After crashing, simply pick up, check it all works, and re-launch. These can fly in a range of winds.

Foam glider of normal "plane-like" configuration are fairly crash resistant (but not as much as a flying wing). Also less sensitive and are easier to orient - because they look like a plane - but faster than a polyhedral trainer. Not as readily available, but good units are well liked by their owners.

Alternatives for the beginner: other models can be used but none are recommended. The models described fit the requirements of the beginner particularly well.

(Plenty of beginners have started on other planes on the slope - but on average they also spent more time repairing them than the above would require - hence my recommendation.)

Moving on to other planes: (Having different models for different conditions is an advantage.)

- Aileron models

- Higher performance fibreglass models

- Large or small scale gliders

- Large or small Power Slope Soarers (PSS - they look like powered models but are actually unpowered).

- Just about anything that looks or flies like a plane or bird

Further reading on this type of flying:

ADVANCED INFO - SLOPES, THE PLANES THAT FLY THEM & HINTS.

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ADVANCED INFO - SLOPES, THE PLANES THAT FLY THEM & HINTS.

Review of the Zagi Flying Wing