Heavy Metal Radio Calls

Predetermined radio calls to SOSA on 122.825 will be broadcast by West jet crews when they are inbound to Hamilton. As shown at the CAS Seminar this spring, Westjet traffic overflies the TETOS intersection (basically Plattsville) southbound and then turn east direct Hamilton. West jet pilots will make the following radio broadcast:

"Rockton Traffic WestJet XXX over Plattsville at 8000 ft, in descent landing YHM in 18 minutes".

This broadcast is meant for information only, do not respond to it. Once the tranmission has been made, they will be going back to their IFR frequency.

What this means to our operations is that you should now be looking out for 737 traffic inbound from the west to Hamilton and descending from 8000, down to about 3500 by St George.

SOSA Youth Team Steak Barbeque and NavCan Airspace Briefing

SOSA Youth Team Steak Barbeque

On Saturday, June 9th, the SOSA Youth Team will be hosting a steak barbeque. The cost is $15 and includes a juicy AAA rib eye steak, salad, and a delicious dessert. All the proceeds from the barbeque will go to support the SOSA Youth Team in their endeavours during the 2007 season. This is guaranteed to be a great evening of fun, friendship, and food! Please join us for a wonderful meal that will help support the youth team. Please respond to jay_airplanefreak "at" hotmail.com with the number of individuals attending if you are interested. There will also be a sign up sheet in the clubhouse for those interested. Please indicate by any of these means whether you will be attending and how many people are in your group. Bring the whole family, or treat some friends to a fabulous steak dinner! Please indicate your intentions to attend by Wednesday, June 6. Cash Payment for dinner will be accepted the night of the barbeque. A donation box will also be passed around for loose change in support of tows for Chris and Jay who will be competing in the Canadian Nationals in Hawkesbury at the end of June.

Jay Allardyce


Representatives from NavCan will also be at SOSA on the 9th to brief us on the airspace changes that take effect 5 July and the airspace review that will take place over the next year. The briefing will start at 6 PM in the clubhouse.

Student Training

The Tuesday, Thursday and Friday student training nights have been rather short on students since starting two-weeks ago. Ray Wood has been at the airport on Thursdays ready to instruct and no students have appeared. Tuesdays and Fridays have also been light with only 1 or 2 students.

So come on out for these mid-week sessions and you can have an instructor to yourself for the night!

Airspace Survey

NAVCAN is conducting a review of the Airspace in the area of Rockton and it is important that all SOSA members make their voice heard to protect our right to fly from Rockton.

Please take 10 minutes to complete the survey on the NAVCAN website and make your voice heard to preserve our ability to continue flying gliders in Rockton.

Take the survey here

Mid-Week Student Training Nights

Mid-week student training nights are scheduled to start this week (Tue 15 May). Student training will take place Tues, Thurs and Friday evenings from about 5 pm until sunset.

Aerobatic training will take place on Wednesday evenings.

Any instructors who are interested in voluntering their services for one of these week nights this season, please contact John Brennan

Meet Adam Oke - our Mid-week towpilot

Adam Oke is our mid-week towpilot for the season. Adam was a member of SOSA last year after having attended two Youth Camps at SOSA the previous years.

He is enrolled at the Huron Flight College where he completed his Commercial license this year. Adam earned both his Glider pilot license and Private license with the Air Cadets.

Adam is checked out in the Blaniks, Puch, Juniors and PW5 and has been signed out to carry intros. He also took his first flight in the 505 this weekend and you can still see the smile on his face in the picture above, taken many hours later!

He is now checked out to tow and is living in a trailer at SOSA in the North Campground. Look for his Black Hyundai station wagon beside the trailer closest to the entrance. So come'on out any day - Adam will be there to tow.

Spring Refresher

Adam discussing circuit procedures

Remember that while you are in the circuit, or the high key area at 1850 ft (ASL, of course) or lower that all turns must be in the same direction as your circuit. Since gliders fly left hand circuits, at Rockton, all turns must be in this direction.

A glider at mid-downwind decides to turn - for some unknown reason - it must only turn left, towards the runway. Why? Because if there is another glider over-taking this glider on downwind it will pass on the right since we should never turn right while in the circuit.

Why are these policies in place? Think about the purpose of the circuit - it is to put everyone in the same landing pattern so things are predictable - imagine if there was no circuit and you arrived on final from any direction!

Another traffic pattern to observe is: never fly the opposite direction of the downwind at circuit height (again below about 1850ft) in the same position as the down wind leg is located.

Picture this scenario - it happens all the time at SOSA - We are launching and landing on Runway 18, you are scratching in weak lift over the Safari and the southerly wind is blowing you away from the airport. You decide to return and land. How should you get to the High Key to start your circuit?

Since the towplanes are flying their downwind west of the field - straight towards you - and the glider are flying downwind to the east of the airport the safest place for you is directly overhead the runway so you avoid flying the opposite direction of the downwind traffic. Of course if you find yourself in this position you must also think of what height is required to safely return to the high key to join a normal circuit. You should plan on a minimum of 500 feet to fly the distance from the safari to the high key, meaning you need to leave the Safari at 2350 ft (1500 AGL)!

While this example uses Runway 18 and the Safari thermal, this situation can occur on any runway. As glider pilots we must always think about where we are with respect to distance and height from our circuit entry point.

The Soaring Weather is here!

The weather we have been waiting for has arrived! Looks like a great 5 days coming up.

Dr Jack is forecasting great soaring today 500-600 fpm, and it should be mostly the same through the weekend. The tephigram shows 5700 ft top of lift in the blue - so don't expect Cu's to show the way.

DG 505 to go to the Ridge

The 505 will be heading to Mifflin, Pa on either the weekend of 28-29 April or 5- 6 May.

The intent is to get a group of SOSA members to experience flying at a different site and learn about ridge soaring.

Anyone who is interested in making the trip, plesae email dave at sosaglidingclub dot com.

The exact date of the trip will be decided based on the weather forecast. Both Dave and Joerg will be designated ridge instructors for the trip.

Joerg plans to fly to Mifflin in his Piper Arrow and can take three passengers with him for the weekend, but the combined weight of the passengers can not exceed 480 lbs, everyone must be a Canadian Citizen and hold a valid Canadian passport.

A Great Start to the Season

The sun was out, the temperatures were perfect and the runway has dried nicely allowing us to kick-start the season this weekend. As of the end of flying on Sunday, we had launched 115 flights, flying from 10 am until 6 pm both Sat and Sun (and from noon till 5 pm on Fri).

Many completed their spring check flights and spin checks over the weekend, so we now have a good core of check instructors ready to get everyone else checked out.

The conditions were also superb with great soaring conditions - 5 kt average lift to 5000 ft. Luke flew the Jantar on Sat for 3 hours, confirming that the newly installed LX4000 is working well. On Sun both Luke and Sergei flew the LS4 again confirming the operation of the newly installed LX5000.

Tom Coulson and Chris Wilson also rigged and launched in W2 - likely making it the earliest soaring flights of the year in W2 history.

Let's Go!

It looks like the weather has finally cooperated and the runways should be OK for limited flying operations this weekend.

Let's Go Flying!

Spring Work Weekend

Another successful work weekend was held this past weekend with about 60 members helping out over the two days. Many thanks to those who chose to help the club prepare for the season.

Angelo Savoia and crew lay a new sidewalk from the Clubhouse to the office trailer, while Andrew Parker and crew built a skirt around the office trailer

Meanwhile, at the hangar, another crew was busy preparing the aircraft. Luke Szczepaniak and Sergei Morozov installed the LX4000 flight computer in the Jantar, while John Brennan installed the new LX5000 in the LS4.


Joerg Stieber and crew vacuumed, cleaned and waxed the Blaniks, Puchacz and Junior, as well as the three towplanes. Pat O'Donnell and the Jurgensen clan also added their talents to the towplane cleaning crew.

Dan Bush re-installed the LX5000 in the DG 505 after having been removed for winter storage.

The grass cutting crew under the tutelage of Scott McMaster were given a briefing on the operation of both the tractors and mowers.

During the lunch break on Saturday, Anthony Kawzowicz was presented with the SAC Instructor of the year award for his efforts not only instructing, but also mentoring and working around the club throughout the season. Congratulations Anthony!

There are still many jobs that need to be completed to get the operation going.

LS4 - needs t0 be cleaned, waxed then rigged

DG505 - needs t0 be cleaned, waxed then rigged

Junior ZCA - needs t0 be cleaned and waxed

Clubhouse needs to be swept out and furniture needs to be vacuumed

The runways need to be rolled

The sidewalk to the office trailer needs to be finished

Please contact Herrie Ten Cate or Andrea Kuciak about the clubhouse and grounds or Alan Grant for Aircraft.

Flight Line Efficiency

During both the Summer and Annual General meetings, improving flight line efficiency was discussed at length. Some of the key points regarding improving efficiency relate directly to member satisfaction and ultimately retention. Other benefits to improving our flight line are: less wasted fuel as tow planes idle, thus reducing cost and pollutants, more flights in a given day resulting in more revenue for the club – thus minimizing the need to increase fees.

Our goal should be to fly the maximum number of flights possible each day so that all members are given the opportunity to fly on a given day. There have been many days where we have launched 100 flights. We need to look at our field management on these days and adapt this success to every day operations.

This year we need to focus on four items to meet this goal.

1. Gliders will be placed on the runway in two lines at all times*.
2. Duty Instructors need to be pro-active in assigning student and Instructor pairings.
3. Field Managers need to manage the field – not run ropes.
4. The VIP role will change from that of flying all the Intros to managing the Intro/pilot pairing.

What does each of these points mean and how should they be implemented?

1. Gliders placed in two lines
1. Instead of placing gliders in a single line-astern row, gliders will be placed in two rows. This allows the Field Manager flexibility in launching, since there are two gliders at the front of the grid. For example if a single and two-place are both at the front and the Citabria is the next tow plane, the single should be launched first.
2. If a glider at the front of one row is not ready this also gives the Field Manager the ability to launch the other row, thus minimizing wait time and manpower to move the first glider from the runway.
3. * Both Runways 10 and 28 are two narrow for this type two-plane grid, so we will continue to use a single row on these runways. Typically, when using 10/28 the operation is fairly quiet.

2. Duty Instructors role in field management
1. The Field Manager job is the most important job on the flight line, yet it is typically held by our least experienced members since our more senior members move into the Duty Instructor role.
2. Duty Instructors must mentor the Field Managers to pass along knowledge.
3. The Field Manager does not know the students, whereas most instructors do so the Duty Instructors should be pro-actively working with the students and Instructors on the line to pair them up well before the flight. In an ideal world when there are lots of instructors on the line this allows pre-flight briefings to take place while waiting for a glider. Instead of at the front of the line with the tow plane waiting.

3. Field Managers need to manage the field
1. Field Managers must be aware of the big picture – this is not possible if they are running ropes and hooking up gliders. Delegate this task to other members who are waiting for a flight.
2. To improve efficiency, the Field Manager needs to focus on the gliders that are next to launch. By ensuring pilots in the second row are ready to launch, the first row will always be ready when the tow plane arrives. Depending on the number of tow planes in service, the Field Manager may need to focus on the second and third row in the grid.

4. The VIP role
1. On busy days, it is not feasible for the VIP to fly all the Intro flights, this is unsafe in terms of the fatigue the pilot will experience.
2. During the peak period, the VIP should focus on managing the Intro list and available pilots. By doing this we will again remove some load from the Field Managers and allow them to concentrate on launching gliders.
3. In the morning before the flight line is busy, and again at the end of the day, the VIP will likely be required to fly some of the Intros, but when things get busy they must assume a management role.
4. In recognition that the VIP is above and beyond the normal Flight line duties, the VIP's will have 1 less normal duty.
   

To implement these changes will take some effort on the part of all members and it will take some time to adapt to the new system, but the resulting improvements on the flight line will positively affect everyone’s opportunity to fly, and that is why we are all at SOSA.!

Too Muddy to Fly

With the warm conditions this past week, the field is unusable for flying this weekend. It looks like we have moved from the frozen season to the hurry up and dry season.

With the sun shining the last few days, the snow is completely melted from the runways and the runway lakes are relatively small for this time of year.

Hopefully, it will be a dry spring and we can fly over the next few weekends.

In the meantime, don't forget:

Instructor meeting Sun 25 March at McMaster University

CAS Cross Country Soaring Seminar Sat 31 March in Mississauga (for details contact dave"at"sosaglidingclub"dot"com)

SOSA Work weekend 14-15 April

More Flying on the 18th

With a frozen runway and some brisk winds from the north, we took to the skies again today. The photo above shows our CFI John Brennan and Dave Springford about to embark on a check flight. During this flight we were able to climb to 5000 ' with about 3 kts average and the vario indicating up to 6 kts at times. What was remarkable is that it was 1140 am (1040 sun time!). It is not often that conditions are as strong that early in the day during the summer.
Sassy also enjoyed her first flying day at SOSA taking her normal spot supervising from the Gator. She is very sensitive about the red coat - so don't bring it up - it is hard enough to get her to wear it, but at least it keeps her warm.

Terry McElligot soaring in ICQ. Note the altimeter reads 4250 ' and the vario is showing 4 kts. Also of note is the position of the yaw string. While many may think that Terry is flying uncoordinated, in fact, he is applying an appropriate amount of slip into the turn - a well recognized thermalling technique - and yes it is meant to increase the climb rate. There have been several papers published on this subject.

Of course a flying day is never complete without the post-flight gathering in the clubhouse over a bottle of Sleeman's finest.

Flying on the 17th of March - 2007 this time!

With the warm weather last week to melt the snow and the cold temps overnight to freeze the runway last night, the weather aligned just right to allow the first flights of 2007 today.

John Brennan - in typical Irish fashion remarked that it was a suitable manner to celebrate St Patrick's Day. Other particpants on the day were Dan Bush, Andrea Kuciak, Scott McMaster, Dave Springford and Luke Szczepaniak.

Of course with the cool temps, the Citabria needed a good pre-heat before firing up, but after 20 minutes of pre-heat and pulling the prop through a few times, by hand, it fired with no hesitation - I think she wanted to fly as much as we did.

Most people think of a snowball as something you throw, well today it was something you followed on take-off, because if you look really closely, you can see a blue and white wing sticking out of it! (Click on the pic to enlarge)

Here it is from the outside

There were even a few thermals, with the vario peaking at 5 knots. The duration award for the day goes to Dan Bush who managed 25 minutes, including a couple of spins from a 3000 ft tow.

And if you have never seen snow covered runways at SOSA from the air it is actually a beautiful sight.

With a forecast overnight low of -11 C, the runway should be good and solid for some early flying tomorrow as well. We plan to open the hangar at 9 am and do some more flying.

As the sun warms the ground later in the day, it tends to become a little soft so we will likely only be able to fly until about 1 pm and then we will need to stop when the ground softens up.

So if you want to fly come out early!

Spring Work Weekend and Small Hangar Unstacking

The Work weekend is scheduled for Sat and Sun April 14-15.

All members are expected to attend one of the two days to help prepare the club equipment and facilities for the up-coming season.

If you have specific tasks that you think should be accomplished please contact Herrie (facilities), Andrea (grounds and equipment), Al Grant (aircraft) with your suggestions


All private owners who have glider trailers stored in the small hangar are asked to remove their trailers from the small hangar on Easter Weekend 7-9 April.

Flying at SOSA on the 7th of March

A Blanik circling over the Lion Safari on the 7th of March.

A few hardy souls braved the cool temps and managed to get in the air. This early start to the season does not happen every year - things need to align just right, cool enough temps to keep the runways frozen, yet not too much snow to hinder flying operations. As it is, the snow is still covering the runway today, but a year ago we flew the first flights of last season on this day. With the warming trend on its way at the end of this week, and a little rain to wash away the snow, we might yet be flying before the end of March! Keep your fingers crossed. And for those who thought I was talking about 2007 - sorry about that :)

SOSA AGM and Awards Banquet

A well attended AGM took place this past weekend with a room full of members to hear reports from the Board about last years activities and plans for the future.

Mike Sury busy at the registration table

Dave talking and John listening :)

Dave still talking!

After the meeting many toured the Museum with Mike Sury's father as the tour guide

The cocktail hour before Dinner

70 people attended the awards banquet and were treated to a wonderful meal. Following dinner, certificates and awards were presented for the 2006 flying year.

Solo Certificate Presentations:

Mark Karamanis - Dennis Dyke - Spencer Hunt - Ping Wu

License Presentations:

Ping Wu

Instructor Ratings:

Andrew Corrigan - Rafael Bravo - Eric Gillespie

Awards Presentations:

Ken Larmour Award - significant contribution by a first year member - Neil Wilson

Chris accepting on Neil's behalf

All-round Junior Trophy - best non-badge pilot use of Junior - Keith Hartley -162 km Triangle - SOSA- Platsville-Tillsonburg.

Kyle and Jay accepting on Keith's behalf

The Doug Winger 500 Trophy - fastest 500 km triangle flown from SOSA - Joerg Stieber - 501.7 km Triangle @90 km/hr - SOSA- Priceville- St Thomas - Hagersville

The SOSA Flight Achievement Award - for a significant flight by a SOSA member - Wilfred Krueger - 1194 km @ 138 km/hr - Ely Nevada

Honorable Mention: Jerzy Szemplinski - 1012 km @114 km/hr - Mifflin, PA

The Royal Crown Cola Trophy - best flight by a silver pilot - Jay Allardyce - 432 km @80 km/hr

Dr. Wolf Dietrich Leers Award - SOSA Instructor of the year - Scott McMaster

Douglas C. Winger Trophy - significant contribution by a Tow Pilot - Scott McMaster


The Reinhard - for a significant contribution to the non-flying operation at SOSA - Jean-Marc Henry

Tribute to Bela Vados

We are sad to inform you that with his family by his side, at Princess Margaret Hospital, on February 9, 2007, Bela Vados passed away. Many will remember him for his passion for flying that he shared onto Peter and for always helping around the club those many years. Bela was quiet but always there when someone needed assistance. He joined SOSA during the 60’s and really enjoyed the time he spent soaring and also the time he spent with other members chatting and dreaming of flying. I will always remember, a few summers ago, at the flight line during a very windy day. Peter was towing and all his landings were perfect. Bela turned around to me and said: “This kid can fly”.

He was really proud of Peter. You may also remember him helping Steve with the BBQ’s or roasting 5 or 6 turkeys over the fire for Thanksgiving dinner. The club would like to extend our deepest sympathies to the Vados and Burany families for their loss. In lieu of flowers, a Donation to the Princess Margret’s hospital in Bela Vados’ name would be preferred.