Questions tagged [glider]
Use for gliders; combine with specific tags, e.g. [sailplane], if required.
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What is the FAA definition of a "flight"?
For the purposes of aeronautical experience for glider ratings, the FAA requires a certain number of "flights". However, I cannot find a definition of "flight" in the federal ...
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Size of speed brakes for glider
I have a concept glider and I am trying to calculate the required speed brake area. The clean glide ratio is currently 30, and with speedbrakes, I am aiming at reducing it to something around 7.
I ...
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Airplane speed retention question? [closed]
Imagine the scenario when a plane is flying, then it turns off its engine and nose dives. After gaining a lot of speed, if the pilot pulls the stick back and the plane now points upwards again, will ...
user68613
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What is a tailwheel aircraft?
I just had a lesson in a SGS 2-33A and my CFI logged it as tailwheel time "because it has a tailwheel". I laughed and said I'm not sure that's how it works.
The center of gravity is in ...
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How would IAS change with altitude for an unpowered parafoil?
Suppose an unpowered parafoil (e.g. a ram air parachute or paraglider) is descending (gliding) in a standard atmosphere. Suppose a pitot tube is positioned to always point into the relative wind (e.g. ...
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Currency requirement for a Private Pilot adding a glider rating?
I have a Private Pilot certificate {ASEL, instrument) that I got years ago, and I haven't flown airplanes in over ten years. I'm trying to get back into flying now, but not in airplanes; I want to get ...
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landing glider with chronic right drift or float
I just completed 30 glider flights with my instructor. Over the 2 weeks of training everything improved except for this tendency for the glider to move, drift or float to the right and always ...
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How were military gliders positioned to their departure point?
Modern sailplanes are usually positioned to their departure field using a trailer. How did military gliders get to their departure field?
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Is it normal to fly or glide only one mile per hour above stall speed?
At one point, Through Gates of Splendor describes Nate Saint gliding in his Piper PA-14 Family Cruiser at 45 mph; the plane's stall speed is 44 mph. Earlier in the book, he flew at 45 mph. Is it ...
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Are there any recreational gliders with a yoke?
All gliders / sailplanes seem to use a single central stick to manipulate the primary control surfaces. In other airplane types, we also find yokes and sidesticks. Are there any glider designs, ...
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To what extent is it viable to launch manned gliders vertically using unmanned drones rather than tow planes?
An electric, vertical takeoff drone lifts a manned glider 5 km in the air. The glider is then released from the drone, and glides 50 km to carry its passengers across a lake. The drone meanwhile ...
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Can weight reduce a plane's glide ratio?
The FAA says glide ratio doesn't change, regardless of weight, here on page 5-7.
Glide ratio is not affected by weight because,
while a heavier glider sinks faster, it does so at a greater
airspeed. ...
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How to determine the size and placement distance of vertical and horizontal stabilisers given the size of my wing? (it's a foamular250 glider)
If the wing has a Chord of 150 mm and a span of 800 mm, what about the distance to the tail? anf the size of horizontal and vertical stabilizer?
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Are there examples of STCs which update airframe airspeed limitations, and in particular reduce Vne?
It might sound like a silly question, but there's a practical side to reducing Vne. The FAA has established that while powered LSA must respect a maximum level speed, Vh, of 120kts, for glider LSA it'...
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Calculating best glide speed
I recently started flying a SGS 2-33 glider. The POH lists the stall speed as 31 mph for solo flight. Min sink speed is 38 mph and optimal glide speed is 45 mph.
Being an old glider with imperfections,...
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What is the lift to drag ratio of a human being?
If a person falls at terminal velocity, and tries to steer himself with his limbs, what is the maximum lift to drag ratio he can achieve, and what position would that be in?
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Is it possible to have a foot powered hang-glider?
My goal is to build a pedal-powered hang-glider capable of traveling at least 80 kilometers per hour. Is such a unit possible in principle, or do we need orders of magnitude more power?
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How is a "turning polar" constructed?
To start with something familiar: here's a flight polar. As we learned, the best glide speed is found by starting at the 0,0 point, and drawing a line tangent to the sink rate line. The intersection ...
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What is the nature of the glider's vario lag?
I learned that glider's vario reading lags behind the vertical speed of the airmass. For example, when flying a steady circle and having a thermal not quite centered yet, the vario is reading a ...
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F1A COMPETITION GLIDER
I am working on a school project. I have looked up the airfoil database. There is a wide range of airfoils I have tried to optimize for my glider to no avail. How do i choose the best airfoil for a ...
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Is a glider on a winch directionally stable?
Let's say I were to fly a glider with the stick and rudder exactly centered laterally, while making the appropriate pitch inputs, during a winch launch.
Would the glider remain wings level throughout ...
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Is Styrofoam or Balsawood better for gliders? [closed]
I have a project that requires me to use either one of the materials. Which one of the materials is better to use?
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How deep do lift pins go inside the wing in gliders?
In the photograph below, how are the lift pins structurally attached to the ribs and how far does its support structure run inside?
Does the discontinuity in the torsional flow in the wing skins pose ...
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If i have equal lift and drag, do they cancel each other out?
I am working on a throw glider and was wondering, How much lift would be too much lift, as in it causes the glider to stall (maybe thrust that causes this, but still). also, if I create a body that ...
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What is a good airfoil for a throw glider
I am trying to design a free flight glider (I don't know what I'm doing, however, I'm interested in aerospace engineering and am trying to learn) And I was wondering, what would a good airfoil be? I ...
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Are the aerodynamic benefits of winglets similar for both powered airplanes and gliders?
Are the aerodynamic benefits of winglets similar for both powered airplanes and (unpowered) gliders? (without considering fuel consumption of course)
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Where is it defined (in UK law ideally) when a glider is in flight during what period, start and stop?
This seems to be a standard question but at least two of us should know, cannot find a definitive source, CAP393 seems not to have any text that refers. Any help gratefully received.
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Would building a large asphalt square or painted dark black area create a "thermal generator" for glider use?
Imagine if you build a "parking lot" square of asphalt and paint it the deepest black possible to absorb maximum heat...would that spot essentially be a thermal generator that you could fly ...
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Why don't competition gliders use riblet skin surface to reduce drag?
Price is not a problem in competition gliders, also no problem with in maintenance surfaces like at airliners.
It is very easy to wash glider before every race.
A riblet surface is proven (PDF) to ...
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For maximum glide range, should I minimize glide angle or AoA?
I'm currently taking an aeronautical engineering course in school. For an upcoming project, we're going to build balsa toss gliders and we have to design our own wings. The program we're using (Aery32)...
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What are the three different altitudes shown in the Perlan II?
The Perlan II glider has two altitude indicators and an altimeter on the navi screen, each showing different altitudes:
How is each of the altimeters different? One indicator certainly shows MSL and ...
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How much does glider insurance typically cost in the UK? [closed]
I (and my colleague from the club) plan to buy K8B glider. Does anyone know how much the insurance can be? We are both "just solo" pilots in our 50s. All insurance companies require details ...
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Why are gliders oftentimes not equipped with a transponder?
Oftentimes gliders are not equipped with transponders (at least in Europe). Even if they are, they do not necessarily operate it at all times. This is allowed by SERA.13001:
(a) When an aircraft ...
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Are there any gliders that can fly over the Himalayas?
Do gliders (sailplanes) use ridge and wave lift in the Himalayas to go to extreme altitudes, possibly above Everest's peak?
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For a PPL, do I pursue gliders or airplanes first? [closed]
I'm interested in pursuing a Private Pilot's License. I'm interested in both gliders and powered flight. Gliders look like fantastic fun and powered flight would be an amazing thing to have – I could ...
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What is the heaviest payload a modern theoretical glider could carry?
Let's define a glider as any plane with a better than 0.75m/s minimum sink rate. Let's also assume it meets all EASA requirements for load factors and handling.
Knowing that the spar is an important ...
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Do the soaring and/or ballooning communities in the US recommend 123.5 as the preferred frequency for air-to-air and air-to-ground use?
Does the soaring community (e.g. the Soaring Society of America) or the ballooning community in the US recommend 123.5 as the preferred frequency for air-to-air and air-to-ground use by glider pilots ...
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Does the FAA or FCC recommend 123.5 as the preferred frequency for air-to-air and air-to-ground use by glider pilots or balloon pilots?
Does the FAA or FCC recommend 123.5 as the preferred frequency for air-to-air and air-to-ground use by glider pilots or balloon pilots speaking to other glider or balloon pilots or ground support crew,...
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Feasibility and process for the approval of a modified glider [closed]
I am looking into a business idea that requires glider sized semi-automatic drones but I am very naive when it comes to the regulations and rigour of the aviation and airline industry, so I am hoping ...
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Does too big an angle of decalage make the horizontal stabilizer to stall?
This styrofoam airplane has two positions for stabilizer. When put in the upper one, the plane flies in a circle.
Is the stabilizer now stalled because the decalage angle is very big?What happens with ...
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Where must the glider tow line connection be?
I have styrofoam glider and I want to pull it with a rope, to fly with me when driving a bike. Where do I need to connect the attachment point, if I want the glider to fly stable above me?
I think, to ...
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Can gliders and single-engine planes have vortices?
I read,
A third physical explanation of the source of induced drag is that the
wing tip vortices contain a certain amount of rotational kinetic energy. This
energy has to come from somewhere; indeed, ...
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Does altitude affect glide ratio?
Lower altitude means higher air density, which means more liff, which means a glider can maintain a given glide slope at lower airspeed.
As a rule, aircraft tend to have higher peak L/Ds at low ...
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Why are 3- or 4-seat gliders so rare?
Sailplanes capable of climbing in rising air (not troop transports, which can only descend after the towrope releases) have one or two seats. I know of only one type with more, the Schweizer SGS 2-32 ...
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Could the Perlan II glider be used for nearspace tourism?
I asked the same question about the SR-71 Blackbird, and I'm also curious about the Perlan II sailplane which travelled above 70,000 ft, and is planned to be flown to 90,000 ft, if it could be used ...
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Is it feasible to circumnavigate the Earth in a sailplane?
Would it be feasible and survivable to circumnavigate the Earth in a glider or sailplane without propulsion and without landing until the circumnavigation is completed, when you'd return to the same ...
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Why do the ailerons of this flying wing work oppositely compared to those of an airplane?
I made this simple wing glider and put some ailerons on it. I thought that the ailerons in this glider would work the same way it works on airplanes, wherein the roll will be in the direction of the ...
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Why do sailplanes have such large tails?
Since a sailplane is focused on performance - what with tricky laminar flow airfoils and all.
Eo why this
Instead of this
It looks to me like that long tail is needed to balance the cockpit. Buy ...
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Is there any formula that directly relate density to altitude for a wide range of altitude?
I am working on a code to simulate a vehicle trajectory based on forces act on it in different altitudes, I need a formula that gives density in an altitude range between 0 and 40 km to obtain lift ...
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In what airspace may gliders fly in clouds in the UK without an IFR flight plan and without contacting any air traffic control facility?
In what airspace may gliders (sailplanes) legally be flown in clouds in the UK without an IFR flight plan and without contacting any air traffic control facility?
Also, how high does this class (...
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