The Scottish Gliding Union (also known as the Scottish Gliding Centre) is the largest gliding club in Scotland. The body is based at Portmoak Airfield, Scotlandwell, KY13 9JJ.
The Scottish Gliding Union's fleet currently consists of:
On 21 December 2020, G-OSGC, an Aeropro Eurofox tug aircraft operated by the Scottish Gliding Union was overturned during landing after providing its 5th aerotow of the day.
The aircraft was reportedly overturned due to soft terrain which caused it to “rapidly decelerate” before becoming inverted. [2]
There were no injuries and the aircraft has returned to service.
On 4 September 2012, a Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-3 glider, G-EENN, piloted by a 49-year-old off-duty air traffic controller crashed at Portmoak Airfield during a winch-launch after the pilot did not release the launch cable during a “wing-drop”.
After the aircraft's wing touched the ground, the aircraft cartwheeled down the airfield, fatally injuring the pilot. [3]
The British Gliding Association advises that pilots should immediatelyrelease from the launch cable if they cannot keep their aircraft's wings level. [4]
The London Gliding Club (LGC) is a members' club whose airfield is located at the foot of the Dunstable Downs. Many privately owned gliders are based there. It has the facilities to train pilots in powerless flight, and in the skills necessary to fly cross country using nature's sources of energy. Aerobatics and instructor training are also available. The LGC is open 364 days a year and is the second largest and one of the oldest Gliding Clubs in the United Kingdom, smaller only than Lasham Gliding Society. The club provides gliding courses, one day courses and trial lessons for members of the public.
The Schempp-Hirth Discus is a Standard Class glider designed by Schempp-Hirth. It was produced in Germany between 1984 and 1995 but has continued in production in the Czech Republic. It replaced the Standard Cirrus. It was designed by Klaus Holighaus.
The Schempp-Hirth Ventus is a sailplane produced during 1980–1994 by Schempp-Hirth, a German sailplane manufacturer. It was designed by Klaus Holighaus and replaced the Schempp-Hirth Mini-Nimbus. Schempp-Hirth manufactured 613 Ventus sailplanes.
The ASK 13 is a two-seater glider that was built by German sailplane manufacturer Alexander Schleicher Gmbh & Co. It was and still is widely used for basic training of glider pilots.
The Schempp-Hirth Mini Nimbus is a 15 Metre-class glider designed and built by Schempp-Hirth GmbH in the late 1970s.
The Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-2 is an Open Class glider built by Schempp-Hirth during the 1970s. The Nimbus-2 first flew in April 1971 and a total of over 240 examples of all subtypes have been built until the beginning of the 1980s. It replaced the Schempp-Hirth Cirrus.
The Schempp-Hirth Nimbus 3 is a glider built by Schempp-Hirth.
The Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-4 is a family of high-performance FAI Open Class gliders designed by Klaus Holighaus and manufactured by Schempp-Hirth Flugzeugbau GmbH in Kirchheim, Germany. The Nimbus-4 first flew in 1990.
Rockton Aerodrome is located in Flamborough, Ontario 1.5 nautical miles west of Rockton, Ontario, Canada.
The ASW 19 is a single-seat glider built by Alexander Schleicher GmbH & Co, first flying in 1975. It was originally designed as a Standard Class glider, but now mainly competes in the Club Class. The ASW 19 is known for its pleasant handling and some clubs use it as a training glider. It was succeeded by the all-new Schleicher ASW 24.
The European Gliding Championships is a gliding competition held every two years.
The Standard Austria was a single-seat aerobatic glider that was originally designed and built in Austria from 1959 but production was moved in 1962 to Schempp-Hirth in Germany.
The Schempp-Hirth SHK Open Class glider was developed in Germany by Schempp-Hirth. It was based on the 1964 version of the Standard Austria, known as the SH. The Austria was originally a single-seat aerobatic glider that had been designed and built in Austria from 1959 but production was moved in 1962 to the Schempp-Hirth factory in Germany.
The SZD-24 Foka (Seal) was a single-seat high-performance aerobatic glider designed and built in Poland in 1960.
The SZD-41 Jantar Standard was a Standard Class glider designed and produced in Poland from 1973.
The SZD-48 Jantar Standard 2 is a Standard Class glider that was designed and produced in Poland starting in 1977.
The Royal Air Force Gliding & Soaring Association (RAFGSA) is a voluntary organisation which exists to provide recreational flying to all RAF servicemen and women, in particular those employed in ground duties.
Susanne Schödel is a multiple world record holder and women's world champion glider sport pilot.
Bowland Forest Gliding Club is a British gliding club near the village of Chipping, Lancashire. It was formed as the Blackpool and Fylde Gliding Club in 1930, and is a members-only club, with no paid employees. It owns its airfield, generally called Chipping Airfield, but also known as Bowland Forest, Fiddlers Lane or Lower Cock Hill Farm.