PP-ASEL Looking to start glider training.

inav8r

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Mike B.
And I have a few questions:

My student pilot certificate from my PP-ASEL doesn't expire until 10/06 - so can I use the same student pilot cert for my glider training or will I need to get a new one?

Since I already have my PP-ASEL am I reading FAR 61.109(f)(2) correct in that the bare minimum requirements are just:

FAR 61.109(f)(2) said:
[That] the applicant must log at least 3 hours of flight time in a glider in the areas of operation listed in §61.107(b)(6) of this part, and that flight time must include at least—

(i) 10 solo flights in a glider in the areas of operation listed in §61.107(b)(6) of this part; and

(ii) 3 training flights in a glider with an authorized instructor in preparation for the practical test that must have been performed within the 60-day period preceding the date of the test.

Now I know those are supposed to be bare minimums, but that seems awful minimum. Am I missing something? I have to be missing something...

I found a glider club near my house that is relatively inexpensive to join/maintain and the training rates are reasonable - enough so that I'm super interested in giving this a try!
 
inav8r said:
And I have a few questions:

My student pilot certificate from my PP-ASEL doesn't expire until 10/06 - so can I use the same student pilot cert for my glider training or will I need to get a new one?

No longer need a student pilot certificate because...

Since I already have my PP-ASEL

You would fly under your pilot certificate, not under a student pilot certificate.

Now I know those are supposed to be bare minimums, but that seems awful minimum. Am I missing something? I have to be missing something...

The only thing you could be missing is 40 hours in a heavier-than-air aircraft.
 
inav8r said:
Now I know those are supposed to be bare minimums, but that seems awful minimum. Am I missing something? I have to be missing something...

IIRC I had 15-20 flights and about 10 hours in gliders before taking the checkride. I started soaring when I had something like 150 TT. In any case, go for it. You stand to learn a lot about controlling an aircraft, landing off airport, and extracting maximum performance. On top of that, it's a blast.
 
Ed Guthrie said:
The only thing you could be missing is 40 hours in a heavier-than-air aircraft.
I have that already. Just about to pass the 100 hour (TT) mark.
 
inav8r said:
.... Since I already have my PP-ASEL am I reading FAR 61.109(f)(2) correct in that the bare minimum requirements are just:

(i) 10 solo flights in a glider in the areas of operation listed in §61.107(b)(6) of this part; and

(ii) 3 training flights in a glider with an authorized instructor in preparation for the practical test that must have been performed within the 60-day period preceding the date of the test.

Now I know those are supposed to be bare minimums, but that seems awful minimum. Am I missing something? I have to be missing something...

You are reading it correctly. That's all you need, and assuming you are reasonably proficient in your stick and rudder skills the minimums are very doable. When I went for the checkride I had 3 hours dual and 10 solo flights. Total time was 5.6 hours and I had about 21 total flights. The whole training took me about a month and a half, but it could easily be done in a few days of intensive training.
 
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Clarification - there is also a minimum requirement of three hours in gliders, but you'll need that to get the 10 solo flights, plus the dual training.
 
Yea, I had that in my original post. ;)
 
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inav8r said:
Yea, I had that in my original post.
So you did. :redface:

Go for the glider add-on, its alot of fun and it'll serve as a BFR too.
 
Mike,
the minimums laid out in the FARs are totally doable as long as you are a decent stick and youve got a decent CFIG. Remember that 3 hours of training in a glider is quite a few flights, most training flights are up and down. practice keeping tow position, boxing the wake, slack line on the way up, then steep turns, stalls, spins, and of course landings on the way down. No going around allowed:)

I did my Commercial add on in 4 days. The only big difference between private and comm add on is the comm requires 20 solo flights. It was a lot of work but also a lot of fun.

Look into getting checked out to tow for you're club too. Its a cheap (free) way to fly and is kinda fun. But don't let it stop you from soaring on good thermal days! Being a towpilot will probably make you a valuable member of the club. my club struggles to keep a full roster.

Feel free to PM/email me with any questions youve got about your glider training.
 
tonycondon said:
Look into getting checked out to tow for you're club too.
Their two tow planes are (what looks to be) single seat Piper Pawnee tail draggers - and I don't have the tail dragger endorsement... But I'll of course offer to help out wherever I can.

Tho I did discover one huge problem... Well, that I'm the huge problem. I'm about 30lbs over the max seat weight for the gliders that they own. :(
 
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As a pilot that did his initial training in gliders, I have a standard rant whenever when the topic of transitioning power pilots comes up. The power pilot who gets his glider rating with the minimum required by the FAA is certainly OK as a GLIDER pilot. He/she can do an aerotow, do the necessary stick work and land without too much trouble.

However, you don't have time to learn anything about SOARING, and IMHO that's what makes flying gliders such a wonderful sport. Students doing ab initio training in gliders will have time to learn at least a little about finding lift, centering thermals, speed to fly and many other aeronautical nuances that are somewhat unique to soaring.

So, go ahead and get your rating as quickly as possible. If you're smart though, you'll find an active cross country instuctor afterwards and learn the important stuff that the FAA minimums don't cover.

There's so much more to flying gliders than only circling around the airport of departure always within gliding distance of that airport.
 
Lance F said:
So, go ahead and get your rating as quickly as possible. If you're smart though, you'll find an active cross country instuctor afterwards and learn the important stuff that the FAA minimums don't cover.
My goal is not to get the rating as quick as possible - I was just suprised to find the minimums when I was doing my research.

I've not yet talked with any of the soaring club instructors - so I don't know how they operate - or if it's even going to work out for me yet - I have to lose weight before their season starts in May. I'll keep ya all posted! :)
 
I roger what Lance said. Although most of my glider time has been circling within glide distance of the home field, my 1.5 hr cross country flight was probably my favorite flight. We only made it 10 miles drifting downwind, could barely hold altitude and promptly landed out, but i had a blast. It is a great feeling knowing you cant make it back to the airport. Also the emphasis on flying efficiently and precisely is fascinating.
 
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