Whats involved in learning to fly a glider?
You fly with an instructor in a 2-seater, dual-control glider; you’re in the front seat, the instructor is in the back seat, and you each have a set of controls. Flying a glider (or other aircraft) straight and level is pretty easy, it really flies itself. More difficult are turns, flying on tow behind the towplane, takeoffs and landings. The FAA requires you to have 30 flights before you can take the exam to get a pilot’s license. Teenagers learn very quickly (you can get a glider license at age 14); adults learn somewhat slower. There is no charge for the ‘use’ of an instructor or a club glider; you pay for the tow. Above: Bob holds the nose handle preparing for Mike to get in the front of the two-place glider Above: on tow. As you fly the glider, you control your vertical position to “hold the wings of the tow-plane on the horizon” (not above, not below). You control your horizontal position to be along the axis of the towplane — or just to the left, as in the photo. The “yaw strin
