Power Pilot's Guide to Soaring

Aimed at the power pilot who flies anything from Light Sport Aircraft to Bell Jet Rangers to Boeing Dreamliners and who wants to add soaring to his/her aviation accomplishments.

Author’s Notes by Murray Shain
You may be a brand new Private Pilot or an Airline Transport Pilot with decades of flying experience. In either case, you appreciate the fact that the certificate you have earned sets you aside from the vast majority of the faces in the crowd. You’ve known anticipation, joy, and perhaps a bit of fear with your first solo, and a growing pride as your flying skills developed and improved. Some of you remember the first time you filed IFR into actual instrument weather with your new instrument rating. Even after all the time that has passed since you started training, you still get excited each time you see a runway stretched out ahead of you as you advance the throttle for takeoff roll. The airplane slowly transforms itself from the world’s worst means of ground transportation into what it was really meant to do: Fly. “Now, this is a thrill!” you think, with each takeoff you make.

It is all of that, but there are many other thrills in aviation still available to you. This manual was written specifically for you, the licensed (or soon-to-be licensed) airplane pilot, who has decided to pursue ground and flight training in gliders. Your previous airplane experience will stand you in good stead as you pursue glider flight training.

Why learn to fly gliders in the first place? I logged my first dual flight instruction in airplanes as a 14-year-old about 61 years ago now, (it even sounds old to me). But, what these years have taught me is that getting any new rating gave me knowledge and skills which could be transferred to every category and class of aircraft I fly. And don’t write off sheer pleasure! Some people have asked me what getting your first good thermal feels like. I tell them that it feels unreal: It’s as if you could squat down, put your fingers under the insteps of your shoes, and lift yourself off the ground. It feels like something is happening that is impossible. In short, it feels like something never to be forgotten.

Table Of Contents, Power Pilot's Guide To Soaring
1. Glider FAQ’s & Glider Familiarization
2. Aerotow Launch Procedures
3. Primary Flight Controls
4. Glider Airwork & Performance Airspeeds
5. Glider Approaches & Landings
6. Understanding The Practical Test Standards
7. Appendix: Study Materials & Resources; The SSA